The Pros And Cons Of Gun Control

The Second Amendment of the United States Constitution reads: "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." Courts have universally agreed, however, that the right provided by the Second Amendment is not absolute and that many kinds of gun legislation designed to protect public safety remain valid ("Gun Safety & Public Health," 2013). The ongoing debate between the gun rights versus gun control has caught more attention as number of cases involving gun violence increased significantly. In one study, it stated that major mental illnesses are associated with increased risk of violent act. In recent years, there were several news headlines on

The Constitution states the second amendment as, “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”1 This amendment gives the people the right to own and carry guns for their protection and for the security of their homes. There are many controversies surrounding the issue of people owning guns and gun related violence because of the second amendment. One of the biggest controversies is the regulations on gun control regulating what type of guns people may possess and what kind of registration is required. The tenth amendment says, “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”2 The second amendment (along with all the other amendments) is under federal jurisdiction; therefore the states do not have power in this case.3 The second amendment gives the right to all American citizens to bear arms, therefore, the States do not have the power to regulate what type of firearm they may possess and how they carry or keep it.

As Boss (2017) mentions, The Second Amendment of the United States Constitution reads: “A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed” (p. 164). Gun control has always been a controversial issue. Due to shootings related to culture, schools, robberies, movie theatres, and accidents, guns have become an object of violence, fear, and danger. All people have been affected by gun violence or have heard of an event related to gun violence. The two articles that will be analyzed are Erik Gilbert’s “Stop Worrying About Guns in the Classroom. They’re Already Here” and a testimony by Mark Kelly “Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing on Gun Violence on Gun Violence on January 30, 2013”. After comparing arguments through different premises from both articles, one essay will be chosen superior to the other.

Despite centuries of evidence that gun control laws do not lower crime, stop violence, or make society safer in any way, gun control advocates continue to chip away at our Second Amendment rights. For a group (yes, liberals) who typically don’t care for hard work, working hard to rob us of our freedom to keep and bear, seems to suit them just fine.

The second amendment states that “A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” taking away our second amendment takes away our protection that was given to the people in the original rights of the constitution. Gun control has been a topic of controversy since the New Deal in which the National Firearms Act of 1934 and the Federal Firearms Act of 1938 were enacted. Although some forms of gun control are useful such as background checks and the National Firearms act of 1938, people should not be limited by concealed carry permits or open carry laws. American citizens should not be restricted from the type of firearm they are allowed to buy, how they use them, or where they keep them unless it is unconstitutional.

On an average day in the United States, 33 people are murdered by guns, and 50 more are killed in gun-related suicides (Nuckols). Many people die each day in all countries, but especially in the United States of America due to the use of guns. Gun control is a tactic used to attempt to keep these deaths from happening. It is the belief that laws against gun usage and purchasing will stop violent crimes from happening. This is important to society because families and lives are being destroyed in communities all around the country due to the usage of guns on another or oneself.

The argument of gun control has always been a focal point of many politicians and concerned citizens. The current argument is based on a foundation that is hundreds of years old, and is one that reflects on the contemporary values of our society to this day. During what is now referred to as the constitutional convention of 1787, the United States enacted a series of laws that protected the people of the United States of America. The protections that were granted to us, became known as the constitution. In 1789, Virginia Representative James Madison introduced a series of proposed amendments to the newly ratified U.S. Constitution in a document known as The Bill of Rights. The most controversial of these rights commonly referred to as the 2nd amendment, it states, “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed” (billofrightsinstitute.org).This text has been the focus scrutiny by both state and federal government, as well as politicians that are looking to align their ideals with the views of the people. Many would argue that, with the evolution of firearms, the historic amendment to the constitution shall be considered null and void; or, that this amendment was referring to long guns such as rifles or muskets, and that with the development of high capacity magazines and fully automatic rifles, criminals will take to the streets to wreak havoc on anyone in sight. However, the argument that needs to be considered, is whether or not the current legislation that is being proposed by Democratic party is actually going to prevent crime, or allow it the opportunity to flourish.

"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." - The Bill of Rights.“The 21st century” a backdrop for the War On Terror, has since changed that view on the right to bear arms enough to call for major gun reform. Orlando, Florida 50 killed and 53 injured June 12, 2016. San Bernardino, California 16 killed and 24 injured December 2, 2015. The media slanders two weapons of so called “terror”, the infamous AK-47 and the AR-15. The AK-47 a soviet made weapon a by product of the cold war, and the AR-15 a weapon invented to combat the AK-47. Both weapons are used in many mass shootings, in fact the New York Times calls both assault rifles

A story the world has been talking about is the shooting in Virginia that killed two people and injured another. People with a mental illness should not be allowed to have guns. If people can be tested by their doctor to see if they possibly have some type of mental related issue and they come back positive then they should be prohibited from having guns period. According to the passage Guns and Mental Health “…an individual is prohibited from buying or possessing firearms for life if he/she has been ‘adjudicated as a mental defective’ or ‘committed to a mental institution’” (4). As a nation, we should have learned our lesson by now, and we should be doing something to prevent this from reoccurring again.

Almost daily, there is a story on the news about gun violence and the discussion comes up about gun control. What is gun control? As defined by Marriam-Webster, gun control is the “regulation of the selling, owning, and use of guns,” (Marriam, 2017). When is there too much control? How does it affect the law-abiding citizen? These are questions that need to be taken into consideration while taking a position, as gun control effects everyone in the United States of America. Gun control needs to cease due to the fact that it takes away from the rights and protection of the American people whilst increasing government control.

With mass shootings on the rise, street violence killing by the thousands, and suicide victims climbing as well, gun control laws have been a hot topic in today’s media. There are many state laws and a federal amendment that pertain to firearms. These laws try to restrict and regulate the sale, purchase, and possession of firearms through licensing, registration, and identification requirements (US. Legal, Inc.). These laws are in place to protect people who own or do not own guns from those who would be the most dangerous when in possession of one. However, there are large loopholes in these laws that allow people to get a gun without facing any of the laws’ requirements. It is these loopholes that give people whom wish to harm or kill other, the ability to purchase a firearm when otherwise they would have been prohibited. Stricter and more thorough firearm-related laws need to be put into place, so that previous loopholes will be eliminated.

There is no doubt that gun control is a topic that creates conflict between political parties, families, states, cities and neighbors. It is also obvious that all sides of the debate use information they gather to promote their own agendas and their own personal views. But what exactly is gun control? Who in society is responsible for gun control issues to have come to the forefront of one of society's biggest and most political debates? One could reasonably argue that criminals are what prompts the most interest in gun control and more importantly, gang members. According to National Gang Intelligence Center (NGIC) analysis, "Gang-related crime and violence continues to rise. “Many believe that gang members are responsible for an average of 48 percent of violent crimes in most jurisdictions

Gun control has become a pretty big argument. More now so than it ever has before. About 68% of registered voters want there to be stricter gun laws. That totals to be about 2 out of 3 people chose to have it (Shepard, Steven). As to where 25% chose to keep gun laws from being stricter (Shepard, Steven). The other 7% are the people who could care less (Shepard, Steven). I personally think that gun control is a bad idea, it's just another thing the government wants to be able to say yes or no to.

With all the shootings that have happened in the last couple years you would think that more people would be for gun control but 52% are actually for gun rights or the right to own a firearm while 46% are for gun control. Gun rights allow legal US citizens to own a firearm and that right is protected by the 2nd amendment.

Gun control has been a heavily debated issue over many years to whether guns or people are the brute force behind the violence all over the world. People are the main reason behind violence in the world, guns don’t kill people, people kill people. Those who are mentally unstable or violent masterminds are unstoppable when it comes to completing a task of violence: “They plan methodically to execute their victims, finding the means no matter what laws or other impediments the state attempts to place in their way” (Fox, 2012). There is no simple way to cure or stop these people from obtaining or even using the guns in a despicable way. The right to bear arms is written in the constitution as a precautionary measure to protect those who may be in harm's way: “The second- amendment is clear - under the Constitution, these rights may not be infringed upon by any level of government, unless due process of law should dictate that these freedoms have been stripped of someone for some wrongdoing” (tenthamendment.net, 2018).