The Pros And Cons Of Gun Control

Gun control is a very controversial topic that has has a huge impact on the United States of America. One side believes that if guns were taken away as a whole, the country would see significantly less gun related crimes and death, while the other opposing side thinks that taking away guns is not only against the Second Amendment but would lead to an increase in crime and death because the government would take guns away from people who are legally registered to own and conceal guns. The ongoing debate will continue until the foreseeable future but their are plenty of reasons why more gun laws should be made. Taking away guns is not the answer, learning how to deal with gun violence is the key.

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

Americans have argued over whether or not we should have gun control for a multitude of years. Some believe it should be stricter than it is now, while others believe it should be less strict than it is currently. There’s even those whom want to completely get rid of gun control, and those whom otherwise want to completely want to get rid of guns. To me the answer is crystal clear. Creating more gun laws does nothing but restrict the citizens whom abide by the law from having guns, not the people whom are actually looking to do harm with them.

One of the hot topics in society is the argument of gun control. Gun control is defined as the regulation of the purchase and ownership of firearms in an effort to reduce criminal or unsafe use. ("Gun Control" 1p. 1)These regulations include registration of firearms, banning the possession of firearms by minors, felons, the mentally ill, and people convicted of domestic violence; criminal background checks or specified waiting periods for gun purchases; limit weapon purchases at one certain time, or impose outright bans on the sale or possession of certain types of guns. ("Gun Control" 1p. 1) Even with these numerous restrictions on guns there are still roughly thirty thousand people killed with guns every year. Guns are responsible for 3.3

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.

There are many Americans who are opposed and many who are for the control of firearms. Robert Farago is an author and publisher of thetruthaboutguns.com, in his article, “Gun control is not the answer: Opposing view”, he states that gun control laws won’t stop criminals from committing mass shooting or other crimes. Farago gives an example of how president Obama created more gun control laws but he goes on to saying that with or without laws, criminals are still going to shoot or rob innocent people. He also gives reasons on how a law cannot prevent guns from falling into the wrong hands. The main idea of this article is to persuade and inform American citizens that with or without gun control laws, crimes will keep occurring. Farago has a strong belief that gun control acts will not

As I reflect on this past year’s top news stories and headlines, one of the main legal issues that continues to arise and cause terror in our own country is gun control. This is a controversial issue that has been debated for years, especially as more and more shootings occur. We’ve seen deadly mass shootings in our schools, churches, malls, nightclubs, concert venues, and most recently in Las Vegas, which is now classified as the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history, leaving 58 people dead and 546 injured. All of these mass shootings are senseless actions caused by a small few but have a nationwide effect on countless families and loved ones. People are afraid for their safety with a fear of not knowing when and where the next shooting will take place. This is why there are so many proponents of stricter gun regulations. As I was doing my research on gun control, I found that in America, there is an average of 88 guns per 100 people (about 270 million guns), which is the highest total and per capita number in the entire world, according to the 2011 Small Arms Survey. Additionally, the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence estimates that around 114,994 people are shot each year in the US, including murders, assaults, accidents, police intervention, suicide attempts, and suicides. There are also people who fear that stricter gun regulations will make them have a loss of security, arguing that restricting their right to bear arms would leave citizens unable to protect themselves in times of self-defense from local criminals or foreign invaders, or if in a rare case the government were to turn against the people someday. Many gun owners believe it is their birthright to have a gun in their possession as it is part of America’s great heritage, with the country’s colonial history and revolutionary roots. People are divided in their view of what gun control should and shouldn’t be. America has around 35-50 percent of the world’s civilian-owned guns, according to a 2007 report by the Switzerland-based Small Arms Survey. That being said, the United States also has the highest homicide by firearm rate among the world’s most developed nations. Over the years these statistics have gone up and down but one thing that

I believe the number one argument we hear when discussing gun control is that guns are dangerous and lethal weapons, that do nothing more than hurt people. And I would have to agree completely with these arguments, but just because this is true does not mean that no one should be allowed guns, or their choice of gun. Of course they are dangerous weapons with 8,300 people dying from unintentional shootings between the years 1999 and 2010 (Violence, 2016). Not to mention the average of 268 people shot every day in the U.S. alone (Record, 2013). It’s quite clear why people would be so eager about ensuring gun laws are strengthened to bring these statistics

Guns are used 80 times more often to protect a life than to take one. According to statistics by the FBI, nearly twice as many people are killed by hands and fists each year than are killed by murderers who used rifles. Our laws claim to regulate the manufacture, sale, transfer, possession, or use of firearms, but what they can 't control is the people themselves. This not only relates to gun owners but every citizen in the U.S. who doesn 't stand for the fact that these laws are restricting the rights and freedom a person has. Gun control is not effective as a law because it contributes to more violence, violates individual liberties and does not even accomplish it’s main purpose of preventing gun-related deaths and injuries and reducing crime.

The arguments of those in favor of gun control are primarily based on numbers- the statistics. The New York Times stated that the United States has more guns and more gun related crimes than any other developed country. A recent study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention proved that the nation had more that 33,000 firearm deaths; more than 70% of all homicides and 50% of all suicides. Currently, it is incredibly easy to buy a gun. In fact, there are more restrictions on buying a pet (these include a minimum age, personal references, ID check, and a home check) than a gun. For this reason, gun control advocates desire fewer guns, better records of who owns them, and higher restrictions on the purchase of a gun. This compromise will not completely abolish the right to bear arms, but will make it less available. The advocates believe that the more people carry guns, the more likely it is for a shooting to occur. This belief is rising with the escalating amount of mass shootings. A mass shooting, as defined by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), is "four or more shot and/or killed in a single event [incident], at the same general time and location, not including the shooter." In 2016, 31% of all mass shootings occurred in

The Second Amendment of the Constitution has drawn a great deal of criticism especially in recent years. The topic of gun control is controversial throughout these past few years because of the many mass shooting being committed through the the use of guns. The Second Amendment 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.”(“Guns and Violence”, 2016) I came about this issue because of the recent events that took place involving guns causing a mass shooting done by a person legally allowed to get weapons. This even made it seem as if weapon killing innocents are the norm in the United States because of all the mass shooting that have taken place throughout the past few years. I wanted to do research on what would happen if there are gun control laws placed in the U.S government, would it make America a safer place or a more dangerous place. “Expanding background checks for gun purchasers to a wider range of gun sales was also judged effective and popular. It is an idea that was considered by Congress in 2013, but failed to win enough votes to become law (Bui, 2017).” This quote got me thinking why do people not want to limit gun control if it might help the safety of Americans. Gun laws need to be changed so that guns are harder to obtain for those who are not deemed fit to hold a gun and allowed for those to carry as a method of protection from the government from overpowering us and from criminals.

Although some people argue that there should be gun control in America, history and evidence proves that there should not be gun control in America. Many people claim that if there aren’t any guns, it keeps people more safe. They also claim that no guns would prevent mass shootings. First, guns do keep people safe. Second, guns don’t kill people. Lastly, having a gun isn’t a bad thing; it can be used as self-defense in times that it is

Although I did not agree with the article How Gun Control Advocates Could break the NRA’s Blockade by Ronald Brownstein, it states some points that were hard to refute about gun control and that helped shape my argument. My stance on gun control is that we should not ban guns as a whole, but have more of a centralized approach on how people can obtain a gun. Being an American citizen allows you with certain alienable rights that are outlined by the Bill of Rights. We as a nation were given these rights at the creation of our great nation based on the fact that all men were created equal. Some of the rights that are given include things such as, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of the press, and the right to bear arms. The Bill of Rights was made because they wanted to place specific limits on government power. The author of the article is suggesting that we as a nation should ban all types of guns. This topic of banning guns or not banning guns is important because in recent events there has been a lot of mass shootings that have ended lives too early. These mass shootings are becoming more and more common the number of people that have been killed by guns within the last year has been four hundred and sixty-one. Also, there have been over three hundred mass shootings in the last 477 days.

Since 1791, the United States has allowed citizens the right to bear arms; citizens have depended on the ability to carry and use firearms. What if that just, went away? Every citizen would give up their firearm and there would be nothing for civilians to use to protect themselves with, at least, not something that they are used to carrying or having in their homes. The government should not restrain the ownership, the use, or the concealed carry of firearms for the reason that owning guns has shown to lower crime rates; keeping guns prevents the Second Amendment from being violated; and banning guns does not prevent criminals from disobeying the law.

Lastly, a major component to the right to bear arms comes from the interpretation of the Second Amendment to represent an individual’s rights to bear arms not only for individual protection but also for the protection of tyranny from a government. Previously in the United States the idea that the Second Amendment was meant to protect this right, was only one that shared by fringe individuals however, in recent years this has become a more legitimate argument. It appears that on a daily basis the government may be corrupt and many American citizens doubt if they can trust the government at all. David Welna, of National Public Radio wrote an article referencing the idea that tyranny is now a mainstream idea. He explains that in the aftermath