Argumentative Essay On Gun Control

Sandy Hook Elementary. Aurora, Colorado. San Bernardino, California. Las Vegas, Nevada. Orlando, Florida. (Words with Negative Connotation) These are just some of the biggest mass shootings that have swept America in the past few years. Hundreds of lives are lost each year to gun related violence in the United States alone. Gun control has been a topic in our country since our founding fathers adopted the second amendment to the US constitution. Although recently controversy has sparked to an all-new extent in America due to the recent spike in mass shootings and gun related homicides. So many families and loves ones are affected each year in the United States because of gun related violence and other mass killing events, because of these events gun control laws need to be revamped and strengthened in American in order to protect the citizens.

In an editorial published in the Vidette Online titled “We Need Gun Control Now More Than Ever,” the editorial board takes on the topic of the need for stricter gun control. The editorial board reports that if gun control isn’t more strictly enforced it will only create more mass shootings. They make the point that if there was stricter gun control many people would still be living, but their lives have been cut short because of mass shootings. The editorial board is correct when they go on to say enough is enough and we need to figure out a way to stop these mass shootings (“Editorial: We”). However, the board is not correct when they make the statement that putting an end to mass shooting is going to be solved by banning firearms all

Gun control remains a moot point among many people today. With mass shootings that happen in our country, this question arises: can gun control stop shootings or does gun control promote shootings. History tends to repeat itself, so we need to take a trip to the past to solve this issue. Throughout history gun control has changed in many ways from registration/ background checks, the type of gun that can be purchased, and the age at which you can purchase types of firearms.

Gun rights are a hotly debated topic in the United States, especially in light of recent mass shootings that have occurred. Guns have caused a high number of casualties, eliciting a need to reassess gun laws. There is no one easy solution to the problem, especially due to the development of new firearms such as assault rifles, machine guns, and semi-automatic handguns. Before delving more into the subject matter at hand, let us explore more about the history of gun policies in the US.

In the wake of the shooting in Las Vegas this year, there have been more tension around gun-control than ever. This shooting has inspired a new wave of people to argue over whether or not the United States needs new gun laws, one side argues that we need more restrictions on the owning of guns, the other side that it's a citizen's right to own a gun and to take that away is unconstitutional. In this paper, I will first give a rundown of the history of laws concerning gun control, then I will talk about whether or not America should pass more gun laws then I will address how this relates to previous cases involving gun control.

As opponents against gun control have numerous reasons as to why guns should not be restricted amongst the American public but pointed to the Second Amendment to the United Constitution as the main reason why gun control should not be permitted in the U.S. However, what these critics do not want to accept is that since 1980, several crucial events in the United States have led to excessive gun control movement. Remarkably, it takes a lot more than one appalling catastrophe to influence Americans that more attention should be taken into monitoring the number and types of guns the public can get access to. However, some major shooting calamities in the U.S such as assassination attempts on President Reagan’s, Columbine, Virginia Tech, and Sandy Hook have all triggered majority of Americans to take a stance in favor of gun control legislation. The first key push in the direction of the gun control movement begun during the era of Ronald Reagan presidency since he happened to be of one of the most “pro gun” presidents in American history.

For many years the controversial topic of gun control has sparked countless passionate debates. The arguments posed in these debates vary widely concerning the possible solutions to solving the problem of violent crime due to the possession of firearms. This paper introduces three different views concerning gun control. The first illustrates the freedom to own firearms. The second view advocates the complete restriction of firearms owned by citizens, and the last one presents a modified freedom of possessing firearms. Each faction seeks to have its position supported by national legislation.

In today’s society of political turmoil, violence, and economic tragedies, many gun control advocates are pushing for more gun regulations from the government. Guns have been a part of America’s way of life for centuries. However, it was not until the 20th century that the government enacted it’s first gun control act. The National Firearms Act was enacted in 1934, as stated in “Firearm Laws, Regulations, and Ordinances,” edited by Sandra Alters, in response to the increased criminal and gangster activity as a result of prohibition (19). This act aimed to make it more difficult to acquire specific firearms by establishing a $200 tax on firearms (Alters, ed. 19). In 1968, the Gun Control Act was passed and

“Guns don't kill people; people kill people.” With the United States having the highest gun ownership rate in the world, controversial conversation arises between two groups of people: pro-gun and pro-gun control. Gun control laws should be much more stern as it could decrease gun fatalities in public mass shootings, defeat gun purchasing loopholes, and promote general peacefulness, so that Americans will feel safer.

In addition, gun control has continued into the new century of 2000. January of 2008, President Bush signed the National Instant Criminal Background Check Improvement Act that requires a background check on gun buyers to screen for mental illnesses in individuals, making them ineligible to buy firearms. Recently in July of 2015, an effort was made to close the “gun show loophole.”

Gun control is becoming an increasingly prevalent issue in today’s world. Multiple mass shootings occurring over the world have spurred a multitude of people and politicians to think and speak about this issue. For instance, the Las Vegas Shooting, which occurred on October 1, 2017, was the deadliest shooting in American history, killing 59 people and injuring more than 500. The Second Amendment states that people have the right to bear arms, but this phrase has been interpreted in different ways. Of course, not everyone has the same viewpoint on this pressing, yet complicated issue. Liberals, closely affiliated with the Democratic Party, believe that the Second Amendment does not grant people the right to bear arms. Instead, the states can have militias that can bear arms, and it is their job to protect the people. Due to this, they believe that there should be stricter gun control laws, and that people owning guns will cause more attacks involving guns. On the other hand, conservatives, associated with the Republican Party, interpret the Second Amendment in a way that people have the right to own guns. They believe that people are allowed to own guns and can protect themselves in times of despair. Conservatives strongly contradict the liberals when they say that owning guns will cause more gun violence; they believe the exact opposite. Recent events have once again brought this topic into the spotlight of news channels and the Internet.

During the early history of the United States, gun regulations were a state centered issued. In 1827, Georgia was one of the first state to try to implement gun regulations by passing a bill that attempted to ban handguns. The law is ruled unconstitutional and thrown out (Utter, 2000). As gun technology progressed during World War One and the Thompson submachine gun was developed a change for stricter gun regulations was inevitable. The History News Network reported that, “at least 27 states enacted measures to restrict or outlaw the sale and possession of fully automatic weapons prior to 1934 (Spiltzer, 2015)”. The country understood the need to regulate fully automatic weapons but the issue would be further expounded due to the fact that

The general problem when considering the idea of whether gun control policies should be revised to better the safety of their country is that even when suggesting that one state becomes stricter then they are currently this sparks another problem. This source states that the “problem with changing policy for advocates and non advocates is agreeing on what policy is appropriate” (Coates). When considering this, many government officials as well as citizens will find it hard to agree on the views of each other because this topic is extremely controversial. This is the main conflict when deciding whether to adjust the policies and declare which states should have to alter their regulations. Some states such as Michigan may feel that the need for guns is imperative because of the high rates of crime and violence in their neighborhood. People in Michigan would not want to give up their rights to obtaining a gun if they feel that they are threatened and that they need to give up a piece of comfort and sanity just to adhere to another state’s problems. This may produce the opposite effect for Michigan and put them at risk of an increase in crime in other ways rather than guns. An example, of this is described by Todd in his article. He explains that “there was a massacre in Virginia which took place at a law school, was stopped by two students that had handguns” (Coates, Pearson) Todd gives this example to contrast the idea that equal state laws will improve society, because many will oblige by the fact that guns are not negative to society. However, the debate over gun control should be covered by government leaders and they should come to a reasoning that supports a common ground. If this common ground can not be achieved then the government as a whole needs to consider the losses of innocent lives that have taken place as a result of gun crimes.

The battle over gun control has been the topic of debate for many decades and continues to remain a political and social issue. In the United States, the term gun control “refers to any action taken by the federal government or by state or local governments to regulate, through legislation, the sale, purchase, safety, and use of handguns and other types of firearms by individual citizens.” (Lee). The questions of how much gun control is appropriate, the nature of background checks, mental health, purchase accessibility, among others, have been opposing in viewpoints over the years. More recently, mass shootings such as the Columbine High School massacre, the shootings at Virginia Tech, the Charleston church shooting by Dylann Roof, and the Bryce Williams/Vester Flanagan anchor shootings have considerably fueled the gun control debate even further.

After many firearm related attacks, gun control still remains a large issue that needs to be solved in the United States. Attacks such as the Sandy Hooks and Columbine High school shootings, gun control was brought back into being a serious issue being discussed. With a long history in the United States, and having many different pros and cons, groups such as the NRA and ATF continually try to provide solutions to cutting back gun related violence. Gun control is a controversial topic in the United States that needs to be solved based on the history, pros and cons, effects and solutions.