Guns are one of the most controversial and debated-upon topics in America today. In the Constitution, Americans are given “the right to bear arms,” and many Americans are proud of and believe strongly in that right. Though, that right has been constantly misused. Homicides by gun are at a higher rate in the United States than any other country in the world, mass shootings are at an all time high (many of which have occurred in the past two years alone), and terrorism has been at an all-time high. So, naturally, it is a topic that needs to be discussed. In the articles Change Your Gun Laws, America (1), author Fareed Zakaria provides the readers with some harrowing statistics on guns and insight over how the U.S. laws on guns need to be managed.
The debate over whether the United States should have stricter gun laws has become a major talking point in our society. However, the clear choice that will bring the most prosperity and security to our country is to maintain the current gun control laws as they are the best option for the USA’s modern society. We must not let the rush to judgement after every shooting spree cloud our minds and glaze over all the benefits and lifestyles that guns let us take for granted. Society must also see what the outcomes are for the other options suggested and to not make the wrong choice and have to live with the consequences. We must not let the government enact laws that would place stricter controls on guns.
In America guns have been a part of the country’s society since it’s birth. Throughout history the citizens of the US have used firearms to protect the nation, protect their families, hunt for food and engage in sporting activities. The issue of Guns and gun control is complex. Weighing the rights and liberties of the individual against the welfare and safety of the public has always been a precarious balancing act. In the United States, gun control is one of these tumultuous issues that has both sides firmly entrenched in their positions. Those parties in favor of gun ownership and the freedom to use and keep arms, rely on the fact that the provision for such rights is enshrined in their constitution. In this climate of
While the Second Amendment can help determine the prevalence of guns in our society, the actual results of the United State’s lack in regulation can be seen in all corners of our country. From horrifying mass shootings to suicide, guns only encourage homicidal behavior and violence. Therefore, we must now explore the arguments centered around gun
Each gun related incident that occurs in the United States is recorded and factors in to the major decision of removing all guns from citizens. It has been estimated that economically, the cost of gun violence is on the border of $100,000 billion per year. In 2002, 71.1% of murders, 42% of robberies, and 19% of aggravated assaults committed in the United States, involved firearms. In 2001, nearly 30,000 Americans died as a direct result of gun fire. (Chemerinsk. 477-485.) These statistics factor into the limits and restrictions given to individuals of this country. Conditions of our right to bear arms should remain free enough for us to be able to protect ourselves from being overthrown by our government, but not without guidelines and regulations for us to follow in order to have those rights in a functional society. (Chemerinsk.
In 1787, when the U.S. Constitution was written, did our founding fathers plan for the negative association of guns with violence amongst their own citizens? Did they foresee the advancement of their one-shot muskets becoming automatic assault rifles? The news today is riddled with debates of gun control due to many accounts of our nation’s troubled citizens, to the unaware youth, being able to easily obtain lethal firearms. From the tragedy of Sandy Hook and Virginia Tech to the death of a four year-old by his own mother’s gun, brings to attention to the question of how these lethal firearms should be handled. Opinions vary from both extremes of the spectrum but as the controversial topic continues, many gun enthusiasts believe that
The issue of gun control is a sensitive topic for many Americans including advocates for the protection of the civil liberty to maintain and possess firearms and proponents of legislation to encourage necessary government intervention in the manufacturing, sales, and possession of guns and firearms. While pro-gun advocate continue to argue for the adherence and protection of the Constitution’s second amendment, gun control proponents stress the importance of the government’s responsibility to ensure domestic
The topic of gun control laws has risen to become one of the most controversial ethical issues of the twenty first century in the United States of America. The US is world-leading in terms of gun ownership, according to a 2012 Congressional Research Service report, per 100 residents there are “112.6, meaning there is more than one gun for each American citizen” (Krouse). This means that there are more guns in the US than in any other country, with over double and even triple what the next closest countries have. There are two perspectives to this ethical issue, those for and against stricter government gun control laws. Activists who support stricter
The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution grants every American the right to bear arms. While this inherent civil right has good intentions, American society has ultimately corrupted what it means to carry a firearm by distorting its purpose. Our misuse of firearms has led to a society plagued by gun violence. The presence of gun violence in American society is neither an ambiguous nor new occurrence. Gun violence has resulted in approximately 297 people shot per day, resulting in the U.S. having the most shootings out of every other nation in the world (“Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence,” 2016). While it is noteworthy that gun violence has declined since the 1990s, it is ironic that America is an industrialized,
The debate over stricter gun laws has been ongoing in the United States for quite some time now. Individuals who oppose stricter gun control laws argue that the second amendment to the constitution of the United States constitute part of the bill of rights that protect the right for American citizens to bear arms, and any attempt to set up laws for gun control will be a direct violation on this (Hofstadter 10). They argue that the primary purpose of the amendment was to ensure that American Citizens had the capability to protect themselves against criminal activities and defend the country against external aggression. From a personal perspective, the recent surge in instances of gun violence in the United States of America indicates that stricter gun control laws are necessary for the safety of the American citizenry. Thus, this paper is going to focus on highlighting the benefits of more stringent gun control laws and why members of the public should support it.
The United States stands alone in the issue of gun control. For, the United States of America is one of only three countries throughout the world which ensures citizens the right to bear arms (Hasan). Despite America being one of the most advanced countries in the world, it has severely fallen behind in terms of firearm regulations and safety. It is not a coincidence that approximately 32,000 gun related deaths occur annually in nearly every district in the United States (Zornick 25). The connection between fewer restrictions on gun controls and increased gun related incidents is incredibly evident; however, America has failed to take action. It is time for America to make adjustments based on the needs of the people.
It feels like every day, countless news stations, websites, and social media users break the tragic story of yet another mass shooting in the US, a fact that is shared by almost no other developed countries. Clearly there is something anomalous about the U.S., why else would the U.S. be the only country where this regularly happens? The answer lies in one key difference between the United States and other developed countries, its policies on gun control and ownership. The 2nd amendment to the United States Constitution states, essentially, that every US citizen has the right to own guns, and that the United States Government may not infringe upon those rights. The truth of the matter is that controlling American Citizen’s access to firearms is the only solution to the undeniable issue of mass shootings and gun related homicides, a fact that is backed up by the example of several other developed countries, in which guns are controlled and incidents of gun homicide and mass murder are far less common than they are in America. Controlling guns in America is a task that has been halted numerous times by the antiquated constitutional stance on American armament, and is the only sensible option for lessening the atrocious tragedies that are seen so often on U.S. soil.
According to the Coalition for Gun Control, last year a total of 291 people were killed by handguns in Australia, Sweden, Great Britain, Japan, and Switzerland. In the United States more than 24,000 people will be killed by the end of this year. So what is the big difference between the U.S. and these other countries? In these other countries it nearly impossible to buy any kind of gun. In these countries there are no gun shows. In these countries you can't buy a gun at a pawnshop or your local Wal-Mart. These countries have strict gun laws and are all about gun control. In this paper I will discus the correct interpretation of the Second Amendment, why guns are such a problem in the U.S., and
“Over the past decade in America, more than 100,000 people have been killed as a result of gun violence. Millions more have been the victim of assaults, robberies, and other crimes involving a gun” (“"FACT SHEET: New Executive Actions to Reduce Gun Violence and Make Our Communities Safer"”). Gun Control is one of the main political issues that has been debated for years now; Guns have led to the mass increase of fatalities and deaths in the U.S. today, being a controversial issue for the past decade. From assassinations, to mass shootings, and homicides, every time guns and violence interact with each other the issue reemerges. As of today, the nation stands separate from the issue, taking a firm position on both sides, debating on what
“There are almost as many privately owned firearms in this country as there are people living inside it — a figure that may also account for about half of the known number of civilian-owned firearms in the entire world. “ (Tharoor) Guns are used for many different purposes, but can also cause much harm. Over the past couple of decades, the amount of gun related travesties have continued to increase as the amount of gun control laws do nothing to prevent this from happening (America’s gun control). There are many different opinions regarding the issue of gun control laws within the country of America. The increasing of current gun control laws is essential for America due to the negative effects caused by the weakness of gun control laws that are currently in place.
The controversy regarding the regulation of guns in America is always a heated topic -- and as mentioned above, one of the main issues people have is the easy access in which people are able to purchase guns; this is an issue not experienced in many other developed countries. The history of gun control in the United States spans back since the colonial era of the Civil war, ever since guns were first used in the country. This history of gun regulation in America is not new, and many incidents concerning gun-related violence have sparked controversies about how the implementation of gun regulation in the country is something that needs to be addressed as an alarming issue (Kwon, Scott,