The state of California is at the forefront of limiting unrestricted use of firearms.

The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence ranked California as the number one state for gun safety. California is in fact the only state to receive four stars.

But when it comes to safety, California and the other 49 states in this country should not stop at four stars. Insisting on gun safety now can transform the U.S. into a safer place for generations to come.

Without stronger, sensible gun laws, thousands of people will continue to die and be injured needlessly each year. It is far too easy for unstable or criminally-minded people to obtain dangerous weapons.

There should be stricter restrictions for convicted felons, the dangerously mentally ill, domestic violence offenders and youth to get the guns in the first place.

This can be achieved by passing strong and effective laws as well as by curbing laws and policies that allow guns on college campuses.

According to the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC), every day, 270 people in America, 47 of them children and teens, are shot in murders, assaults, suicides, accidents, and police intervention.

Every day, 87 people die from gun violence, 33 of them murdered.  Every day, eight children and teens die from gun violence.

Every day, 183 people are shot, but survive their gun injuries.  Every day, 38 children and teens are shot, but survive their gun injuries.

There is no coating the truth.

Who can deny that the U.S. has a huge problem when, according to the NCIPC, 100,000 people on average are shot, and nearly 32,000 are killed in one year?

As a nation we have learned that rights are to be protected and if they aren’t, they will be taken away.

But there comes a time when we must be protected from ourselves and while there are laws to regulate the sale, those laws do not go nearly as far as they need to.

There are two major ways guns are sold legally. Sales from federal firearm licensees (FFLs) require a background check. Sales between individuals, under federal law, do not require a background check. This means that felons can “lie and buy” at gun shows and other places where guns are readily available.

It is true that there are cases where a gun is used in self-defense and everyone should have the opportunity to defend themselves and their families from harm.

According to the Jim Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violance, for every gun that is used in self-defense, 11 are used in an attempted or successful suicide, seven times in a criminal assault or homicide and four times in an unintentional shooting injury or death?

Also, the Campaign averages 20 mass shootings every year. A mass shooting is defined as a shooting where a shooter or shooters injures at least four other people.

The campaign also says that we have had eight such shootings in the month of July 2012 alone, three in Chicago, one in Seattle, one in Tuscaloosa, Dover, Oak Creek, and Aurora.

There are a lot of “in your face” statistics, the problem is large, but it is one that can be handled in our time. And if done properly, the children of this country can live in a safer place.

Now is the time to have this discussion and make the improvements, not after a disaster.

Instances at different middle schools, high schools and colleges have shaken the country.

Shootings at parks, movie theaters and places of worship have severely shrunk the number of places you can truly feel safe from gun violence.

There must be a movement to take back what were once safe places by removing guns from wrong hands.

And the best way to do this is to put accountability on the dealers of these weapons.

Ninety-four percent of licensed dealers approached as part of undercover stings at gun shows in Ohio, Tennessee, and Nevada, completed sales to people who appeared to be criminals or straw purchasers, according to Mayors Against Illegal Guns.

The Second Amendment to the Constitution is important and needs to be protected. Even more important are the citizens that the Bill of Rights accords freedoms. That is why America needs to take a serious look at adjusting their gun policy before even more people get hurt.