Russia's Gun Control Laws

The studies and research on gun control has opened up many ideas on how weak the current laws really are. Crime rates consist of high numbers. “Since 1982, there have been at least 62 mass shootings across the country, with the killings unfolding in 30 states from Massachusetts to Hawaii”

The issue at hand has been the focus of news, social and political debate in the recent years. Gun control refers to the attempt by government to regulate the right to keep and bear arms based on a preconceived criterion. This debate has been due to prominent cases of mass gun violence, especially against civilians and children. Gun violence affects every American citizen. About 40% of all Americans carry or own licensed guns. This gives value to the issue and its implication on society. There has been an equal uproar on both sides of the debate. The issue at hand is the addition of measures to

In fact, countries that have strengthened their gun laws after tragic school shootings have seen a dramatic decrease in them reoccurring. Adam Gopnik in his “Shootings” article described what happened when the British changed their gun laws, “In Dunbane, Scotland, in 1996, a gunman killed sixteen children and a teacher at their school. Afterward, the British gun laws, already restrictive, were tightened … and nothing like Dunbane has occurred there since” (2). A similar event happened in Quebec, Canada which resulted in a prompt response from the government, leading to far less shootings and fewer casualties (Gopnik 2). Screening potential threats and cutting them off from access to guns

The United States is one of the few countries were the right to bear arms is protected by the constitution. Unfortunately, it is also one of the most violent with incidents involving guns this year reaching an estimated 36,212 and an approximate 9,050 deaths (“Gun Violence Archive”). There are an estimated 310 million firearms in households across American, these are only estimates because current gun laws do not require them to be registered or tracked. A more staggering estimate is that most of the guns owned by private citizens are semi-automatic guns, the same type of gun used in almost all mass shootings. While these privately owned guns are legally purchased, many times, they land in the hands of criminals, and owners never report them stolen. Mass shootings and gun crimes are not the only issues with gun violence the one never talked about is suicide, more guns available equals more suicides. The United States is one of the easiest countries to own a gun legally or illegally, stricter gun control laws are necessary.

Gun control should not exist at all in the United States. Mass shootings have almost become seen as normal event in the United States. What people do not understand is that gun control is not the answer; there are countries with little to no control that have fewer shootings. According to The Washington Post,Finland is ranked number 4 in countries with the most guns despite that they only had 24 homicides by firearm (“Gun homicides and ownership by countries” n.pag.) . In the article Did Gun Control Work In Australia “it is shown that gun control has reduced the problems but it still has not completely got rid of all firearm deaths”(Matthews n.pag.). The number of murders, homicides, or suicides do not go up due to people just owning more guns. Clayton Perry, a staff writer at the University of Maine, even points out “Stricter gun laws were in place during the Assault Weapons Ban between 1994 and 2004, but that didn't stop the shooters at Columbine in 1999 ”(Perry n. pag.). In Iceland, thirty out of a hundred people own a gun and they have zero homicides caused by guns a year(“Gun Homicides and ownership by country” n. pag.). In this day and age, everything is unpredictable, guns are a form of protection for everyone and there should not be restrictions on protection. The U.S. Department of Justice released a data brief that states, “ On average in 1987-92 about 83,000 crime victims per year used a firearm to defend themselves or their property”(Rand BJS Statistician n. pag.). The National Sheriffs Association released that the average police response time is at eighteen minutes while the average school shooting only last twelve minutes (“Embracing Technology To Decrease Response Time” n. pag.). Gun control should not exist because other countries do fine without it , high gun ownership has no link with increasing death rates , and guns are not harmful when instructions are followed.

If gun control becomes as strict as other countries, the only citizens who would be allowed to have guns would be law enforcement officers, and they cannot be everywhere at one time. Big city police chiefs are more likely to support gun control (Perez-Pena). The population in big cities is much higher which means that more people would have access to guns. The police want to keep guns out of the hands of criminals. I believe that a criminal will find any means necessary to commit a crime. “It’s not the device, it’s the people (Solis).” Most mass shootings are preceded by warning signs usually in the form of social media or behavior changes (Hockley). We need to look into ways to keep guns out of the hands of those with mental issues and those who have criminal records. Gun shops have the capability of accessing the background history of a customer. Many mass shootings have been linked to people who have been recognized as being deeply disturbed (Perez-Pena). We are on track to educate more than two million children and adults across 50 states on identifying at-risk behaviors and depression (Hockley). If

As the population increases its stocks on firearms, a significant number of citizens are at risk of being harmed. According to statistics, “In 2000, almost 30,000 persons died from firearm injuries in the United States more than the number of deaths from, alcohol abuse, or drug abuse… [in spite of] almost 20,000 laws and regulations regulating gun usage to some degree” (Kwon and Baack). Though several individuals are in fear of losing guns as weapons for protection, a greater number of laws will continue to be useful in maintaining the security of citizens upon significant new laws addressing gun control. Although the existence of guns is necessary to protect bear arms, gun control laws help reduce violence, decrease the homicide rate, and help prevent accidents from around the globe. New gun control laws should be enforced to ensure the safety of the entire population, and most importantly to prevent any gun violence as necessary to help save the lives of the innocent.

The last misconception is that the gun control works because of the lower murder rates witnessed in the foreign countries. In the wide array of nations and cultures, the suicide or murder rates cannot be correlated to the control laws as shown by the facts even though this is one of the favorite arguments by the gun control proponents. Guns can be easily obtained in Switzerland and Israel for instance whereby every law abiding citizen can get the license to posses the gun. The homicide rates

Gun control has become an increasingly controversial topic in the nation due to the continuous debates relating to gun control and whether or not laws should be passed to make it harder for guns to be obtained. Guns serve for a variety of purposes that range from good to bad. Guns are not for everyone. Some individuals cannot handle guns properly, and some choose to use guns inappropriately. Lately, guns have become more of a problem in our society. There has been an increasing amount of shootings that have taken many lives and have wounded people emotionally, not just physically. Although guns are used for protection, firearms are reportedly used more in crimes. More and more shootings are breaking out across the nation. As a result, the

In the following paragraphs Kamdar compares the United States' attacks to her own countries and admits that France, along with other European countries, are also not free of mass shootings. "In France, one of the worst mass shootings that was not terrorist-related happened in 1995, when Éric Borel, 16, shot and killed 12 people, including three members of his own family" (Kamdar 4). Kamdar also chooses to describe four other situations where there was a shooting that led to deaths

In history time and time again it has been proven that Gun control does nothing but increase violent crime and prohibit its people from protecting themselves. China: 20 million dissidents were murdered, Cambodia: 30 million people were murdered, 1939 to 1945: 10 million Jews and other prisoners were murdered at Nazi concentration camps, Soviet Union: 20 million murdered either in slave labor camps or by Stalin’s cronies. Every single nation that has had a genocide of some sort has implemented or used existing Gun control laws to control its people. Modernly when these laws are introduced violent crime rates sky rocket and overall Gun violence does not decrease. “Crime statistics from the late 1980s and 1990s indicate that the measure failed to have a significant impact on firearm-related crime.” (Boston Globe UK). Why would somebody that stands on the

As a result of all the violence occurring around the world, there have been many discussions about gun control laws. Many people want to say that there should be more gun control laws without even thinking of the consequences that could emerge, such as an increase of more violent crime. For example, a study by Harvard shows that Russia has only one‐ninth Norway’s gun ownership rate but a murder rate 2500% higher. Every other European country follows this pattern

Putting stricter gun laws in place in order to regulate what types of guns and ammunition citizens can buy are regulated by the Second Amendment and the National Firearms Act of 1934. The purchasing of semi-automatic weapons and automatic weapons manufactured prior to 1986 are legal in most states. (http://www.dw.com/en/8-facts-about-gun-control-in-the-us/a-40816418) However, recent events point to the government needing to regulate what types of weapons are allowed to be lawfully owned in this county. In the last 10 years, five of the deadliest shootings have occurred in the U.S. Dating back to 1949, of the 30 deadliest shootings, 18 have been within the last 10 years. (http://www.cnn.com/2016/06/13/health/mass-shootings-in-america-in-charts-and-graphs-trnd/index.html) The use of AR-15 rifles has become increasingly popular during mass shooting events however, semi-automatic handguns are also used. (http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2017/nov/08/facts-mass-shootings-united-states/)

Gun control and gun rights have been an issue that has been debated for decades. Whenever there has been a mass shooting of any magnitude, it seems that the debate heats up even more. Consideration must be given as to what the benefits are of these gun control laws. Gun control laws must also be written as to not violate the Second Amendment of the Constitution as well. There have been many studies accomplished to determine if gun control laws actually do reduce the amount of violent crimes. These studies have discovered that there is no link

Kelto writes that, when the amount of US gun deaths is compared to those found in countries in the six regions of the world, “in five out of [the] six regions, it would be right near the top in terms of gun deaths per 100,000 people (Kelto, 2015). It should be noted that most, if not all of these countries with low gun related homicides, have strict gun control measures. For example, as Jonathan Masters of cfr.org details, Australia instituted “the National Agreement on Firearms [that] all but prohibited automatic and semiautomatic assault rifles, stiffened licensing and ownership rules, and instituted a temporary gun buyback program that took some 650,000 assault weapons (about one-sixth of the national stock) out of public circulation” (Masters, 2015). Masters also provides an overview of Japan’s strict gun control regime. Japan’s gun control framework places heavy restrictions on what firearms are legally permissible, allowing only “shotguns, air guns, guns that have research or industrial purposes, or those used for competitions” (Masters, 2015). In order for a citizen to gain full access to these weapons, they “must obtain formal instruction and pass a battery of written, mental, and drug tests and a rigorous background check” and also, after completing the aforementioned measures, “inform the authorities of how the weapon and ammunition is stored and provide the firearm for annual inspection” (Masters, 2015). In the US, either at the state or federal level, there should be a conversation about gun control measures similar to the ones found in these countries and others, for the sake of decreasing gun related