“The breadth and complexity of the problem of gun violence is great, but it is no excuse for inaction” (Kelly 24). By standing still, as Captain Mark Kelly of the United States Navy said, our nation is allowing the problem of gun violence to continue. More and more mass shootings occur in the United States every year. Overall, this nation has not put in place the proper procedures to prevent this gun violence. This is because we have divided our nation into two different groups: one that is pro-guns and the other group that is anti-guns. But many people have missed the overall cause of these mass shootings because they are too busy fighting each other. One group is focused on outright banning firearms and enforcing stricter background checks, while the other is focused on ensuring their 2nd Amendment rights are not taken away and wants to protect their freedoms. However, this is not the real problem. Our problem in the United States is that in some cases we are allowing regular civilians to purchase assault rifles and high-capacity magazines without any background checks. Assault rifles are military-grade weapons designed to kill large groups of people. High-capacity semi-automatics are all those capable of firing more than eight shots. Many might say that a semi-automatic pistol is not capable of killing large numbers of people; however, if you put a thirty-round magazine on that specific gun, it can inflict damage on thirty innocent bystanders. These weapons are the ones that have been used most often in mass shootings over the last 10 years (Nutter, Schlesinger). Right now all of these weapons are available to almost anyone over the age of 21. Weapons alone are not bad, and in many cases they are even necessary... middle of paper... 001. 1-3. Network. February 2014. http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf.fuo.pdfJohnson, Jim. “Should Congress pass tougher gun laws?” Congressional Digest 92.3 (2013): 28-30. Premier of academic research. Network. January 29, 2014.Kelly, Mark E. “Should Congress Pass Tougher Laws?” Congressional Digest 92.3 (2013):22-27 Premier academic research. Network. January 29, 2014Kydd, Andrew. “Why does anyone need high-capacity magazines?” Political violence in brief. 5 February 2013. Web. February 2014. http://politicalviolenceataglance.org/2013/02/05/why-does-anyone-need-high-capacity-magazines/Nutter, Michael and Schlesinger, Robert. “Should Congress Ban High-Volume Ammunition Magazines?”. US News Digital Weekly 3.6 (2011): 11. Academic Search Premier. Network. February 4, 2014. Schered, Michael. "THE NEXT GUNFIGHT. (Cover article)." Time 181.3 (2013): 24-33. Premier academic research. Network. February 11. 2014.