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Essay on An Argument for Gun Control

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America is the most well armed nation in the world, with American citizens owning about 270 million of the world’s 875 million firearms (Marshall). Indeed, this is more than a quarter of the world’s registered firearms. The reason why Americans own so many guns is because of the Second Amendment, which states, “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” (Rauch) This amendment guarantees U.S. citizens the right to have firearms. Since this amendment is relatively vague, it is up for interpretation, and is often used by gun advocates to argue for lenient gun laws. Hence, gun control is a frequently discussed controversial topic in …show more content…

Unlike the colonists of the 1700's, the modern citizen simply has no need for firearms. During the Revolutionary War period, colonists viewed the right to bear arms as a natural right, and rightfully so. They faced legitimate dangers such as a tyrannical British rule, Native Americans, and wild animals. Hence, the Founding Fathers included in the Constitution the right to own firearms in 1791 (Brown). The colonists needed firearms to actively defend themselves against these dangers and eventually overthrow their British oppressors. Furthermore, it made sense for colonists to be armed because the colonial militias were composed of volunteer minutemen. These soldiers had to be quick to act and transform from a civilian to a soldier within minutes, which is where the term originates. Interestingly, immediately after the British were defeated by the colonists, we see an immediate abuse of the right to bear arms in Shay's Rebellion, where an unruly group of farmers in economic crisis tried to hijack a militia armory (Shay’s Rebellion). Shay's Rebellion is evidence that the right to bear arms is not always a good idea, especially during times of peace without clear and present dangers. In relation to modern times, there is no justifiable reason to possess arms; we do not face dangers such as a tyrannical oppressor, Native Americans, or wild animals. We live in arguably one of the safest

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