Essay On Lazy Background Checks

Only this month, 59 were killed and over 500 people were injured during a country music concert in Vegas in what is now known as the deadliest mass shooting in American history. Last year, 49 were killed and 58 were injured in a gay nightclub in Florida. In 2012, a mass shooting in Sandy Hook Elementary School took 27 lives, 20 of them being first graders. The list of these unthinkable and stomach-churning acts is quickly turning endless, forcing us to rethink why we truly have the right to bear arms. Many defend the second amendment by claiming we need this right for self defense, which is the most wretched part.When we look at what we have lost compared to what we have earned in this fight to keep the right to bear arms, this privilege does not seem worth the sacrifice of so many lives. In today’s world, we do not defense through guns but from them. Our policymakers keep trying to reach a compromise by putting in place certain regulations. “Some states require would-be gun owners to fulfill a firearms safety course in order to obtain their license.” “Such training courses, however, even when not required, are very advisable for the would-be gun owner, as they ensure that he or she has all the necessary information on liability issues, on safety, and even on care and maintenance of the gun” ( How to Get a Gun License 1). This lack of attention illustrates that despite the multiple tragedies that have taken place in our nation, some states do not even require a simple safety course that ensures the safety of our people. Furthermore, it is required that one must pass a background check. The questions asked on the test are the following:

According to a report by the Switzerland-based Small Arms Survey, the United States has about 35-50 percent of the world’s civilian-owned guns and has less than 5 percent of the world’s population. With no restriction and so much freedom, firearms can be distributed throughout the United States illegally and obtained as easy as buying it from a person, disregarding all gun laws. Implementing stricter background checks can help reduce the amount of crime relating to gun violence. It can also keep firearms away from those who shouldn’t have possession of them.

Another type of background check that needs to be added and included to every State standard background check is the No Fly List as well as violent repeat offenders and abusers. States need to be running their checks against the No Fly List and Homeland Security; those on the list should be denied the ability to get a gun. We want to stop terrorists, both domestic and foreign, from being able to walk into a store and purchase a gun with no background check. “Depending on one’s perspective, the divergence in states’ approaches to guns either means that some people… are facing dangers of gun violence that could be avoided by enactment of strong gun laws”, while others “are unnecessarily having their freedom and safety impaired by gun laws that only disarm law-abiding individuals” (Rostron, 2016, p. 356) . There are times when an innocent person’s name can appear on the list so we should be prepared with a legal path to clearing that person’s name and removing them from the list. This path should be swift and completed in a timely manner, but each individual should understand we take our safety at the highest regards so we must be thorough.

The United States is country that has the largest gun related deaths in the world. A lot of cases happened because the background check system is not strict enough to prevent criminals from purchasing firearms. “Many supporters think that the United States Government should consider having tighter background checks on firearms” (Opposing viewpoints….). This involves the court decisions, gun control laws, and incidents spark calls for reform.

The author has pointed out that the Second Amendment says “guns are permitted to a “well-regulated militia.” That means trained citizen soldiers called into action for emergencies – because in colonial times every able-bodied man was required to be a member of the militia. It does not mean everyone with $50 and a driver’s license is entitled to own a gun” (“Stop the insanity: Ban guns”, 2015). Before concluding that guns should be banned and prior to that, proper background checking processes must be implemented, the author also cited how “Among the 24 most affluent nations of the world, the U.S. is the far and away leader in gun homicide. None of the other 23 affluent nations has a rate above 1 firearm death per 10,000 population” (Ensley, 2015). And considering all these premises and citations, the argument should be considered a strong one from the inductive perspective. The author has cited several incidents and facts which point towards the need of banning gun and prior to that, the need of implementing stringent background checking processes before handing a gun license to an

But how do we know if we’re putting a gun in the wrong hands or not? Between May 2007 and Mar. 11, 2014, 14 law enforcement officers and 622 other people were killed nationally (not in self defense) by private individuals legally allowed to carry concealed handguns. It is very difficult to prevent bad people from doing bad things. Regardless of background checks and security registrations, someone who really wants to get their hands on a gun legally, will do so. In 2007 the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reviewed a list of concealed gun permit holders in Florida and found that 1,400 had pleaded guilty or no contest to a felony, 216 had outstanding warrants, and 128 had active domestic violence injunctions. There are many irresponsible people in this world, and whether you would like to or not, you can 't stop them all. But like i’ve said many times, they are also many responsible people on the world. A bad person will always do bad things, but why does that mean everyone else should have to suffer?

Many in the United States support passing stricter gun laws, and overwhelming support for expanding background checks, especially for private sales and Gun Shows. According to Leah Barrett’s article for the US News and World Report, “The Case for Universal Background Checks”, 92 percent of Americans nationwide believe that background checks should be expanded

Fifty eight dead, four hundred eighty nine injured due to the recent tragedy that took place in Las Vegas that shook the city and nation. Not being able to control violent people and insanity, blame is turned towards gun control. But is it really the best idea to create stricter laws against firearm possession? There needs to be control of weapon sales and procurement instead of banning the guns itself.

There are already many laws barring citizens from purchasing weapons, as there should be.  Since those people are obviously not law abiding citizens, they shouldn’t have the right or be trusted to use a deadly weapon.   That is why when you purchase a gun, it is the law that you must be screened by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) that the FBI introduced in 1998.  However, that system has some flaws.  There are thousands of criminals and terrorists that go through the system and are still allowed to purchase a gun.  For example, if an FBI background check takes longer than three days, the gun sale is approved by default. This is how Dylann Roof, the killer of nine people at a black church in South Carolina in 2015, was able to buy a gun despite having a police record that included drug possession. “Mr. Roof exploited the three-day waiting time that has allowed thousands of prohibited buyers to legally purchase firearms over the past decade — and some of those weapons were ultimately used in crimes, according to court records and government documents” (Schmidt).  I am all for the right of the people to keep and bear arms, but have no argument against these issues.  Loopholes in the background check system do need to be stopped.  Mentioning the right of the people to keep and bear arms brings me to my next point.

Gun control; two words that have many people on the edge of their seats. One of the most controversial issues in America currently, and it comes up time and time again when another person is killed from gunfire. Some people believe the issue is a personal one. “Let me have my guns,” they say. The realistic questions to ask them in response are; where will you get “your guns?” How responsible are you? What is your intention with these guns? Have you ever committed a felony? These are not unreasonable questions. In most background checks these questions are asked. However, there are too many loopholes in the system for these checks to matter. The majority of people who have guns aren’t getting them from the black market; most are buying them legally. A lot of people often buy them at gun shows as well, where, “Gun-show organizers say private sellers typically disregard the laws.” (Tampa Bay Times) The ethical question here is this; Is it right to allow gun violence to continue when there are proactive laws that could be enacted to prevent it?

It seems as though firearms are able to be placed in the hands of anyone; regardless of what their background looks like. The basic background check consists of completing a form which is then followed by a phone call to the NICS (National Instant Criminal Background Check System) who then gives the approval or denial of the applicant. According to NICS (https://www.fbi.gov/services/cjis/nics ), in the past ten years the increase of background checks has nearly tripled from 8 million in 2005 to 23 million in 2015. Although these statics do not represent the amount of approvals or denials, it simply states that there are 23 million people trying to obtain a firearm. This increase has also affected the number of murders which has now decreased since 2005. These numbers reflect the positive effects that having a firearm can have in our society. It seems that crime is less likely to happen with so many Americans having firearms in their homes. In some states a license and a permit are required to own and carry a

First to be discussed on President Obama’s gun control plan is to require anyone wanting to purchase a gun to comply with a National Background Check System created by Brady Act. Why? You may want to ask must we require a background check for all gun sales. The answer is while most people wanting to purchase a gun will be responsible with it while they enjoy hunting or shooting as a sport and while others want a gun for personal protection, however, there are people in this country that don’t need a gun or is prohibited from having a gun either because they have a mental illness that makes having a gun unsafe or they have been convicted of a felony or domestic violence either way want people in control of a gun to use it responsibly and not used it for

The most powerful and lightest weight weapon in our century now is gun. And I believe that a lot of people know how to use guns properly, even without any training, we have been watched too much action movies and learned how to use gun eventually. But there is one thing we must understand, which gun can protect us from harm, and it can also hurt us in deeply. That is why most of countries strictly enforce the right of guns ownership; moreover, some countries even do not allow their citizens have guns at home. Unlike those strictly countries, the United States is a freedom country. Citizens are allowed to deploy their own rights, such as freedom of expressions, freedom of religions. And according to the Second Amendment, it states

Americans are 20 times more likely to be killed by a gun than any other developed nation on earth. This includes countries like Switzerland and Sweden, who have large gun cultures, but have solid gun control to let law abiding people own guns, but keep them out of the hands of criminals. America, on the other hand, has horrible gun control and in most states you can buy a gun without a background check as long as the seller isn't a gun dealer. At the moment, it is far too easy to purchase a gun, legally or illegally. USAToday states that “3% of Americans own half the country's 265 million guns”. Americans own more than 265 million guns, that means more than one gun for every American citizen. Adding on to the facts, 55 million Americans own guns. It is as easy as going into Walmart to purchase a firearm. Guns shows take place all over the nation, and it is easier to purchase a gun there too. Stores do background checks on the buyer, but guns show will just accept your money and give you your firearm. However, CNN states that denials are rare for gun purchases. “However, denials are rare, occurring less than 1% of the time. More than 100 million such checks

The gun laws and bans in the United States are not helping to make things better or decrease our crime rate or solve anything instead we need better background checks to make sure we are not giving guns to the wrong people. ‘’A study published in the Harvard journal of law and public policy discovered that the nations with more guns tend to have a lower crime rate’’ (Snyder, Michael. N.p., 12 Aug. 2013. Web. 26 Mar. 2015.). This proves that people tend not to commit a crime if they know that people around them are armed and ready to fire also they know that if they go to a country with a lower percentage of gun ownership they are not taking as much risk because there aren 't that many guns in the area.