Pros And Cons Of Gun Shootings

“ My biggest frustration so far is the fact that this society has not been willing to take some basic steps to keep guns out of the hands of people who can do just unbelievable damage… This is becoming a norm. We should be ashamed.” President Barack Obama said in regard to the shooting in Newton Connecticut in June of 2014. “We're the only developed country on earth where this happens and it happens now once a week, and it's a one day story. There's no place else like this,” he added. America is a unique country in that it is one of the only countries in which the right to bear arms is constitutionally protected. It is also the sole country with the most civilian owned guns and the highest rate of gun related violence. A mass shooting is defined as a single shooting incident which kills or injures four or more people, including the assailant. Between the years 2000 and 2014, the United states witnessed 133 mass shootings which is ten times more than those observed in developed countries such as Germany, Switzerland and Finland. According to the Mass Shooting Tracker, in 2015 only, there were 372 mass shootings in the US. 475 people were killed and 1,870 were wounded in these shootings. Excluding suicides, some 13,286 people were killed in 2015 in the US by firearms and 26,819 people were injured. According to the most recent data, ninety-two people on average are killed in the United States by guns.

You’re in your house and someone breaks in. Oh no, gun control laws said you can’t have a gun! You have no protection, so you’re dead within seconds. This is why the U.S. does not need tougher gun control laws. We need guns for protection, we should have the right to conceal one at all times, and the second amendment says we can have a firearm.

Background checks can’t predict when or where the next mass shooting is going to occur. “Mass shooters can’t be stopped because we never know who they are until they make themselves known” (Jundo). (6) It is argued that stricter background checks would be an ineffective solution because nobody has the ability to predict the next mass shooting. (2) Gun advocates believe that giving more people guns would make people feel safer, and more civilians would be able to stop crimes. (5) Although it is true that background checks won’t predict who the next mass shooter will be, that is just part of the reason why background checks are important. People who oppose background checks need to look at the bigger picture. Giving more people guns would promote a more violent society. (5) According to Mother Jones, the number of mass shootings stopped by armed civilians in the past 33 years is zero (Gilson). (5) While increasing the number of armed civilians has not shown to decrease gun violence, background checks have been proven to lower overall gun related violence. Background checks ensure that the majority of people buying firearms aren’t

“Since the start of the year, there have been 105+ mass shootings in the United States” (Arnold). The number of mass shootings this year alone has only grown and has left people wondering what there is to do. A common viewpoint across the country is to have stricter gun control around put into place. Stricter gun control brings the value of safety to mind. If guns that are used to carry out the mass shootings are taken away, then overall people will feel safer due to the assault weaponry being taken away from psychopath’s access to them. Take the Orlando night club shooting in 2016, which was the deadliest shooting in United States history at the time, for example: during the month that the shooting took place, requests for background checks by the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) reached a monthly high; However private gun sales and sales made at gun shows do not require background checks, the number of background checks could underestimate the number of guns sold (Stroebe). If every gun sale that was made had a proper background check then the number of guns sold would see a decrease. James Hodgkinson was a 66-year-old with a history of alleged violence against women, he opened fire in Washington at Republican lawmakers; his only reason for opening fire was because he voted for Bernie Sanders and disliked Donald Trump (Daniel Dale Toronto). Decreasing the number of guns sold to people not mentally and/or physically capable of handling them would make the general population safer incase the incapable person had an outbreak at used the gun to harm someone and/or themselves. It would eliminate the people like Hodkinson who are using guns purely for hate crimes, and who have a history of violence.

After the United States endures any firearm’s related tragedy an increase in gun control is always a very heated debate. Violent crimes committed with firearms have kept gun control in the spotlight for last several decades. Mass shootings at several educational institutions have led the way for an increase in gun control, most recently the shooting at an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut that left 20 children and six adults dead. Certain individuals see an increase of laws and regulations on guns as a “quick fix” to the situation; however, its apparent that these solutions have failed to get their job done. In the United States today violent crimes committed with firearm are increasing at an alarming rate; the increase

School violence is an unfortunate subject that can’t be ignored; when guns are involved, The Virginia Tech shooting back in 2007 seems to come to mind (Perez-pena, Saulny n.p.). With 33 fatalities and several others wounded, people were in an outrage pushing colleges and universities to tighten their control on guns (Perez-pena, Saulny n.p.). These kinds of shootings are always massive headlines in the news, creating a negative connotation surrounding guns and concealed carry (Blackman n.p.). However, one point people seem to overlook in the Virginia Tech shooting is the fact shooter, Seung-Hui Cho who also attended as a student in

These are innocent children and teachers that are being killed by lunatics carrying a gun. Adam Lanza was the shooter in the Sandy Hook shooting that killed twelve students, six school employees, and his mother. Adam had many untreated disorders such as anxiety, excessive-compulsive disorder, anorexia, and aspergers. This proves that if we had stronger background checks this may never have happened. The gun sellers simply don't care about who is buying their guns, all they care about is making money. Adam was also using an AR-15 which is an assault weapon that should be outlawed for civilians. James Holmes was responsible for the mass movie theater shooting in Aurora, Colorado. This shooting killed 12 people and injured 70 others. Experts say the reason why James shot up the movie theater was because he had an untreated schizophrenia disorder. In these two incidences the killers were able to get guns, even though they were mentally ill. They were guilty of the crimes, but sometimes our Judicial System will find them innocent for reasons of insanity and may eventually be let back into society. The senseless shootings might all be prevented with more thorough background

This was the headline in “The New York Times” by Christopher Mele and Manny Fernandez on November 5th 2017. The authors highlights the events that led to a gunman by the Devin Patrick Kelly, 26, opening fire at a congregation worshiping on a Sunday at a rural church in Texas, killing 26 people and scores injured. According to this article, the motif of the attack was attributed to a serious mental health problem and a failed marriage which led to divorce the victim having assaulted his wife and child.

Due to many of the recent violent acts in our country involving guns, the question has arouse; Should a system of universal background checks be required for all gun purchases? What some Americans do not realize is that guns are constantly falling in the wrong hands of criminals and more often, the mentally ill. There are too many Americans loosing their lives because of this. Most of the people that are ineligible to purchase guns are able to because of the flaws in the universal background system or through private party sales, which do not initiate background checks. Shootings actually occur very frequently. Since 1982, there have been 61 mass shootings, all involving gun use. The United States also holds the record of having 15 of the nastiest 25 shootings. It is proven that more guns result in more murders. States with harsher laws on gun control do not have as many deaths from violence correlated to the use of guns. According to a map provided by The Washington Post, “…states which have one of three gun control restrictions in place – assault weapons’ bans, trigger locks, or safe storage requirements. Firearm deaths are significantly lower in states with stricter gun control legislation (Klein).” Seattle’s Mayor, Ed Murray states “Gun violence kills 86 Americans every day. It happens everywhere: in big cities, small towns, on our streets, schools, shopping malls, and places of worship (Klein).” It is apparent that individuals who have criminal backgrounds or who have a

In the United States today, gun control is one of the most hot button issues in the political and social world. The debate on whether or not current gun laws are strict enough, what types of guns should be sold, and if they should be sold at all, is a large and ongoing one. While there are two very polarly different sides to the debate. The side of the debate, that aims to promote gun control is aiming to put a stop to the gun violence. However, Gun control or a gun ban, or even a complete repeal of the 2nd amendment, would not solve the problem of gun violence in this country. Not to mention, any ban on weapons should be considered as a violation of the second amendment. ( Document 2 ) Document 2, the second amendment, was put into the

Two thousand, four hundred fifty-eight: the number of gun-related deaths in 2017 in the United States as of February 28, the 59th day of the year (“Number of Gun Deaths,” n.d.). Twenty of these occurred on the 27th alone. Just hearing the words “gun control” puts many people on edge; the explosive and divisive nature of the issue leads them to tread cautiously whenever the topic arises. Gun violence is a national dilemma that no one wants to exist. This is where the consensus seems to end: few people agree on how to end it. Gun violence has gotten an ever-increasing amount of press over the past few years, leaving it in the forefront of American attention, and many are frustrated that nothing is changing. In order for any progress to be made,

Multiple videos of police involved shootings have surfaced on the internet over the past few years raising the question; should police be carry firearms? A few countries have already disarmed their patrol officers and left only a few specialized armed units. There are some that would believe the same should be done in the United States. However disarming officers would have disastrous results. Police officers must be armed to project force, secure a crime scene, and defend the lives of others.

Gun control is a very controversial topic for Americans. Many feel that due to the recent tragedies, Congress should enforce stronger gun control law while others believe that banning assault weapons will not help reduce crimes. In the article titled, “Treasure the Second Amendment, but Ban Assault Rifles”, Miller argues that assault weapons should be banned, but the second amendment right to bare arms should be valued. While in the article titled, “A Ban on Assault Weapons Would Not Reduce Crime”, Merino argues that banning assault weapons would not lower the crime rate because most criminals will just find a loophole.

The controversy of Gun Control is a topic that is needed to be talked about, especially with children in the upcoming generations. Gun Control is defined as a set of laws posed by a government, especially the United States that regulate the sale, possession, manufacturing, and use of firearms by its civilians. Written in the Second Amendment in the Constitution, is people have the right to bear arms. Although it is stated in the Constitution, people of today's era are taking these rights completely out of context. A lot of Americans are misusing these firearms, which is sadly, leading to disastrous events such as school shootings.

The active shooter, one who is involved in a shooting on an academic campus that is not in self-defense, has been at the forefront of news outlets over the last four years (Sanburn, 2015). There has been a marked uptick in the number of shooting incidents, including the notable event at Virginia Tech in 2007. There were 75 shootings on college campuses spanning the years 2013 to 2015 (Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund, 2017). Umpqua Community College and Northern Arizona University were the most notable active shooter incidents during this time, totaling 11 deaths and 12 injuries (Sanburn, 2015). By examining the campus and its current policies and procedures, we can ensure a safe educational environment for students and staff.