OPINION:

Just a few weeks ago, 2015 SHS graduate Trey Gentry decided to enter the Smashburger on Cornell Road and shoot an employee named Josh Abbott.

Abbott was shot twice, and one of the bullets punctured his femoral artery, which is critical in supplying blood to the rest of the body.

Abbott almost died that day, and for a while he was in critical condition at Bethesda North Hospital. This incident once again presents the question of whether or not we need to limit the availability of guns.

As of right now, in the state of Ohio, as long as you are 18 years old and you are not under the influence of or dependent on drugs or alcohol at the time of purchase, a fugitive, convicted of a felony, or mentally ill, you are eligible to purchase a gun. Does that sound fishy to you? Me, too.

It is too easy to obtain a gun in Ohio, and that needs to change. You do not need a permit or license to purchase or possess a gun.

I can get past the fact that you do not need a license to possess the weapon. After all, you bought the gun with your own money, and you are the legal owner.

But the fact that you can just buy a gun without a license or a permit is ridiculous. There is no in-depth background check and no mandatory testing to prove a buyer’s worthiness of possession. Requiring these checks are possible solutions to a growing problem in the U.S.

If we want to be safe and not worry about the wrong people getting their hands on deadly weapons then we should put more requirements on obtaining a gun.

SPORTS:

I love Super Bowl Sunday. For me, Super Bowl weekend is a holiday. I spend the weekend sitting on my couch, eating football food, and listening to hours of stories and commentaries related to the Super Bowl.

While I love Super Bowl weekend, the holiday became less special this year due to the continued appearance of the New England Patriots.

The Patriots have been in the Super Bowl for seven out of the past 15 years, creating a “been there, done that” feel to this year’s game.

Having the same team making the big game almost every year makes it boring and downright annoying for National Football League (NFL) fans everywhere.

The Patriots are the New York Yankees of the NFL: they always win and their fans are obnoxious, which makes them a hated team nationwide aside from their small fan base in the Boston area.

Basically every other team in the American Football Conference (AFC) loses to the Pats in both the regular season and postseason, especially in the East division. The constant appearances of the Pats in big games will have many NFL fans rooting against them in Super Bowl LI.

Most non-Patriots fans will be rooting for the ringless Atlanta Falcons.

The repeated success of New England and NFL fans seeing this same scheme again on national television makes for dull entertainment.

It hurts to see the dynasty playing for a fifth ring, and a strong defense seems to be the only key; so come on Falcons defense, “Rise Up.”

SPORTS:

As this National Basketball Association (NBA) season moves along, the tendency is to focus on new, flashy players. Whether it is Russell Westbrook or James Harden, everyone wants to focus on the young ones.

Instead, what we should be focusing on is the continued greatness of LeBron James, and the fact that we are currently watching the greatest basketball player ever at the height of his power. Yes, he is the greatest to ever play, even greater than Michael Jordan.

James is not only a better athlete than Jordan, he is more of a team player than “His Airness.” In his career, James is averaging more rebounds and more assists than Jordan.

Also, in elimination games, James averages 33 points, 11 rebounds, and seven assists per game, which is better than Jordan’s 31 points, eight rebounds and seven assists per game.

Finally, there is no argument against James’ value to his team. After he left the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2010, they went from the Eastern Conference finals to the worst team in the league.

Then, after he left the Miami Heat to return to Cleveland, the Heat went from the NBA Finals to not even making the playoffs. When Jordan retired from the Chicago Bulls (for the first of two times), his team went from 57 wins in the regular season to 55.

James has cemented his status as the greatest player ever. The only thing left is to see how far the gap between him and number two can get.