The Issue Of Gun Violence

The two articles that I have read were “Connecticut School Shooting ‘An Attack on America’” by Ted Anthony and “The Price of Gun Control by Dan Baum. All around I believe these articles were both very interesting and both took different perspectives on the issues of guns in America. Both Anthony and Baum illustrated the different problems that we have in America and our communities with gun control and gun violence. But, they both brought the text together to relate it on a personal level. I enjoyed reading both texts and connecting to each one on a different level.

With the popular culture providing positive images of guns, the United States has a gun prevalence that is very rare in the modern world. While many people appreciate the “gun culture”, guns are heavily involved in violence in the United States. According to U.S. Department of Justice, since 1960, more than 750,000 Americans have died under firearms, including homicides, suicides, and unintentional injuries. The figure 1 provides a comprehensive survey of U.S. violent crimes for the period from 1993 to 2011.This figure illustrates that from 1993 to 2011, about 60% to 70% of homicides were associated with a firearm. Over the same period, between 6% and 9% of all nonfatal violence, with about 20% to 30% of robberies and 22% to 32% of aggravated assaults involving a firearm.

Many students in America, might consider school almost like a home because they spend about half a day in. We need students to be safe at school, so why not have an officer patrolling the hallways. To make the school much safer, the officers should have guns in case there is a threat towards the students. In the eyes of many United State citizens a gun can symbolize death; however, a gun can save several people’s lives. As U.S citizens, we have the right to keep and bear arms, so why do we not have police officers with guns patrolling schools. “Gun violence is a major social issue in America and American schools and university campuses have become targets of gun violence” (Bond). In the U.S we had several severe situations when someone comes to the school and starts to kill not only students, but teachers and staff, this could have been prevented if we were prepared and secured. Although the opposition may suggest it could be more dangerous to have an officer or guard be allowed with a gun; however, having an officer with a gun would decrease the number of shootings and other minor problems at schools.

Gun violence is the sign of a far greater universal problem in America today. Violence and gun violence specifically, is surrounded within, and spread all through every part of our society. All the reasons remain intimately related to the actual solution, which can only be a general solution one by treating it as one issue. The region that I live in is considered a peaceful part of Harvest, which I am particularly grateful about. I do not have to worry about gunfights in the roads of my community, nor maybe being helpless confronted by students with a gun at school. That, nevertheless, does not mean that my community is impermeable to gun violence. Huntsville has seen its share of gun violence from the incident at the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH), where three people were murdered and three others injured on February 12, 2010. Throughout the course of a routine gathering of the biology department attended by about 12 people, professor Amy Bishop stood up and began shooting those next to her with a 9-millimeter handgun (Hall 2010)

Just imagine sitting in class one day and hearing a loud bang and the next moment there is a confusing, abrupt, commotion. Imagine walking into a movie theater and not walking out. It is hard to imagine things like this happening because we have never experienced these moments ourselves, but to victims of gun violence, these moments are familiar and very real. Gun violence is becoming too common in this country. So common, that when there is a shooting, people are unaffected by such news. There has been desire from the people of America to change gun policy, but there are also people that argue against this because it goes against our Second Amendment rights. Although there are reasonable arguments on behalf of and against more regulations on guns, more regulations and background checks would reduce crime and death due to guns.

The United States has 88.8 guns per 100 people, or about 270,000,000 guns, which is the highest total and per capita number across the globe. The current public gun control debate in the United States seems to be placed on standby until it is sparked up by a major mass shooting. There were at least 126 mass shootings between January 2000 and July 2014.(pro). Opponents of more gun laws accuse supporters of using a horrific event to further a lost cause, saying that more laws would not have prevented the shootings. Advocates of more gun control often want more laws to try to prevent the mass shootings and call for smart gun laws and background checks . Pew Research Center did

Gun violence in America is a huge topic of discussion. Many people have heard about this topic on the news or in the newspaper, but have very little knowledge on this ongoing topic. Those who have a lack of information on gun control tend to not feel strongly towards guns or people owning or carrying guns. People that have never been around guns are often scared of them, but the truth is a gun is nothing more than a hunk of metal. For a gun to go off the gun needs a shooter, so should the real topic of discussion be “Should there be stricter gun laws for the owner?” However, in the United States it isn’t very difficult to obtain or own a gun. Guns are very common in America and anybody could simply sell their firearm to another person with the ending result of now anybody can own a gun. (Degrazia 2) “The Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act mandates background checks of gun buyers, but only if the seller is a licensed dealer; private sales, including those at gun shows and those conducted online, are exempt.” Degrazia states that anyone can get a gun without having a background check, this including anyone over 18. Being able to purchase firearms easily in America can be a serious topic of discussion because many people are getting killed with firearms, school shootings are on a rise, however in zones where guns by law have to be in every household the crime rate is significantly lower than surrounding areas.

The United States of America has been described by many people as the Land of the Free; a Land of Opportunities. There has always been a gun culture in America; however it has also been a gun-control culture. Whenever a devastating mass shooting occurs, such as the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre, a deliberation about gun violence follows suit. Depending on whom you discuss this with, that case is not always true. There are those that are for gun control and those that are against. There are also conspiracy theories that claim that the events that occurred on that day were, in fact, staged with “crisis actors” playing the part of the deceased, yet they kept “popping” up in all the news photographs? Did it really occur or was this a way to bring to attention the fact that the Government want to stop honest Gun Owners in having weapons to protect themselves? Was there a complete lack of documentation of the school shooting and did it really occur? There certainly has been a lack of, or perhaps, a complete absence of any photographic proof of dead bodies, or what is noticeably staged, emotionless actors walking around in circles looking lost! Was the purpose to move the anti-gun movement forward?

The mistaken belief that there is a direct link between mental illness and violence is disrupting the gun control system. Individuals with mental illnesses only cover a very small portion of violence in general, and even less with gun violence. Instead, the focus should be on criminals and drug users. “Individuals who have exhibited dangerous behaviors in the past, have a criminal record, or have a history of drug abuse, for example, are much more likely to commit future crimes” (Wolf, 2015, p.851-878). The reason the government is focusing on certain groups of people are to predict future violence, so if they limit the ability of the mentally ill to purchase weapons they are thinking it will reduce gun violence. This hypothesis would not make a significant dent in the gun violence problem of the United States, because again the mentally ill only make up a very small portion. The shooter of Sandy Hook middle school used his mother’s legally purchased weapons and ammunition to commit the murder, even if the ban of the mentally ill were in place it would not resolve the problem. The only way to make sure future mass shooting done by someone with schizophrenia, or other severe illnesses is to fund the mental health programs, and at the moment the country is doing the exact opposite. “Unfortunately, funding for mental health care has diminished significantly; over the past few years states have cut approximately $4.35 billion from their mental health care budgets” (Wolf, 2015, p.851-878). The best way to stop violence is to recognize there is a

Guns have been is society for centuries. They have been used for hunting, war, and even safety. However, in the past several years they have begun to take the lives of many innocent victims, often young children. In response to the killings in Newtown, Conn., it has been noted, “If this were a country, the number of children killed by gun violence would violate international law.” (Browne-Marshall) F.B.I. data shows in 2011, 1,668 African American children were killed due to guns. Day by day gun violence is rising and it is not only in ghetto neighborhoods.

A standout amongst the most warmed and talked-about about issues in this day and age is that of weapon control. In recent past years, there’ve been many cases reported in light of gun use. Since then there are debates going on either there should be gun control bills. There have been high quantities of passing’s including guns in the United States, and individuals are starting to stand firm against the savagery and search for approaches to take care of the issues. Firearm control is exacting stricter and more brutal directions on owning and conveying guns, which numerous individuals accept is the answer. In any case, arguers trust that the privilege to have firearms is a piece of each American 's sacred rights. Gun laws are the reason for much rough wrongdoing in America, and they should be changed to make it less demanding for Americans to buy handguns, convey them as hid weapons, and better protect themselves.

I am writing to you today about the recent gun problems in America. In the past, America has been notorious for its’ mass shootings. From 1966 to 2012, almost a third of the world’s mass shootings took place in America and this is only the shootings where four or more people were killed. The number would be significantly higher if every single shooting was counted. Since the beginning of this year, there have been 384 shootings and we still have two months left in the year. That’s more than one shooting a day. However, it’s not a surprise there are this many shooting in America because there was a study done that shows that there are approximately 270 million guns owned by U.S. citizens. That means that in every hundred US citizens, 88.8 of

The United States is home to approximately 5% of the world’s population and 31% of all mass shootings. Through these mass shootings and various other methods of gun violence, tens of thousands of people die every year. These gun-related deaths primarily originate from murder and children accidentally shooting themselves. Although those in favor of gun control tend to believe that guns should be terminated completely, the second amendment prevents lawmakers from being able to do so. Therefore, in order to combat these causes, alternative gun control solutions must be made for each one. Gun-related murders can be decreased through the use of universal background checks. Additionally, accidental shootings can be minimized through the

It is impossible not to open a newspaper, watch the television, or listen to the radio with out hearing about some type of gun violence. Perhaps the main reason for such high gun violence is that guns are so plentiful in the Unites States. In fact, there are sixty five million handguns in America ("The `facts' about Guns"). These guns contribute to an annual medical cost of fourteen billion dollars, which is spent solely on treating gun victims ("Handguns in America"). Not surprisingly, handguns are the cause of eighty percent of homicides, seventy percent of suicides, and almost every accidental shooting ("Youth and Violence"). Handgun violence is a problem that is easy for everyone to see. How to solve this predicament is another

Former Governor of New York Eliot Spitzer once said "Yes, people pull the trigger - but guns are the instrument of death. Gun control is necessary, and delay means more death and horror". Spitzer’s words makes one think: should we fear the person behind the gun or the gun itself? The majority of violent crimes that happen in America are not only caused by a criminal, but also the weapon in which the criminal is holding. America’s gun violence problem stems from the increasing accessibility of firearms. Many of the mass shootings in America could have been prevented if access to semi-automatic and automatic weapons were completely banned. Gun violence is an arising issue, and a change needs to be made concerning the gun laws in the U.S. Stricter gun control laws is necessary to prevent high accessibility to firearms and mass shootings, also research shows that Australia’s strict gun control laws are proven to be more efficient in preventing gun violence.