The Pros And Cons Of Gun Violence In America

This opinion piece from The Washington Post was written by U.S. Senator Chris Murphy from Connecticut. Published days after the recent Las Vegas Shooting, Murphy tells of his past experiences with gun violence urging for stronger gun control legislation. He states that the “phenomenon of horrific mass shootings is exclusive to the United States”, so the solution should be able to be solved by Americans. He argues that our response to “regular mass shootings” has been un-American, and how can a country that has solved the greatest problems in the world, not solve a problem that puts our fellow citizens in harm. “…we choose to be an increasingly distant outlier of exceptional violence”, Murphy states.

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.

Gun Control Gun Control has been a highly controversial issue in the United States for the past several decades. From assassinations to mass shootings, every time guns and violence come together the issue resurfaces. Should the nation act on stricter gun laws and legislation? Would new gun laws help or hinder the gun crime rate in the United States? The nation stands divided on the issue; both sides taking a firm stance as to what they believe should be done legislatively with guns. Gun control advocates state that the number ofand different types of guns in the hands of the American public is simply too great. There are an estimated two hundred and forty million guns in circulation across our nation made up of three hundred million citizens. Gun control advocates reason that more guns lead to more gun crime. They site the extremely tight gun laws in countries such as the United Kingdom and Japan and compare the gun number to gun violence ratio. The ratio in those countries is nearly one hundred times lower than that of the United States with .04 gun related deaths per one hundred thousand people compared to the United State’s 3.42 gun related deaths per one hundred thousand people. Furthermore, out of the fourteen deadliest mass shootings in the world, half of them have been committed in the United States. Even though there was a decline in gun related crimes during the 90’s, they have been on the rise since 2005. Currently, the United States ranks twelfth out of one

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, it’s a common topic that gets thrown around debates very often, whether the second amendment should remain legal or it should be banned in the United States. I, among many law abiding citizens, prefer to keep the second amendment within our government just like it has been since our founding fathers signed the Declaration of Independence. However, with this law still in place, it also means anybody over a certain age, depending where they live in the United States, can buy a gun. This puts me on edge because not everybody in our nation is a very self-controlling person, regardless of their gender, ethnicity, religion, and so on. This brings back those tragic moments in our generation such as the Newtown School Shooting, where a man walked into an elementary and shot little boys and girls, and also teachers. Or that time when the man shot many innocent bystanders inside the Pulse Nightclub in Orlando with a rifle and handgun. That is why there should be strict background checks for anyone who is going to buy a firearm, because it’s important to know just who exactly is going to buy a gun.

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.

Gun control is perhaps one of the most controversial issues in this country but seemingly not so strong in others. The debate has been present since before the bloody birth of the United States. It was, however, not as pressed then as it is now. There are several factors that contribute to this growing debate. Among such arguments include: the use of guns for self defense, civilian possession of machine guns and assault rifles, and the 2nd amendment's inclusion of the militias right to own guns to protect people and country if need be. An individual is entitled to their right to own guns, however there should be strict regulations on guns and gun ownership.

In my beliefs it will reduce violent crime by keeping guns out of the hands of people who are likely to use it to kill people with i.e. bikies, criminals and those on criminal watch lists will reduce crime.

I choose to talk on a topic that most people is clearly not comfortable talking about until something major happens. I chose to talk on gun control, not that this is an easy subject to focus on but one that is seeking the attention all around the world. The one thing I do not like when it comes to any law is that religion and politics is always brought into anything when someone wants to make and prove a point. “The second amendment protects an individual’s right to own guns; that guns are needed for self-defense from threats ranging from local criminals to foreign invaders; and that gun ownership deters crime rather than causes more crime” (Procon.org., 2017). One thing I find interesting for the argument is that guns are rarely used in self-defense. This is true most of the crimes that is being committed are most of the victims are not allowed to defend oneself making the crime seem very senseless. Another pro is guns that are owned legally will likely get stolen and used by someone with a criminal background. More gun controls lead to fewer suicides. Most adults, including gun owners, support common sense gun control such as background checks, bans on assault weapons, and bans on high-capacity magazine. Enacting gun control laws such as mandatory safety features would reduce the number of accidental gun deaths.

The pro side brought up that guns are responsible for many deaths in the U.S. each year. I was really shocked that about thirteen toddlers accidentally kill themselves with a parent’s gun each year. They came up with the idea of a gun that can only be used when unlocked with the owner’s fingerprint, similar to an iPhone. They also suggested more in-depth background checks.

In the wake of the recent Las Vegas shootings, the debate over gun control policy has been re-stoked to a higher degree than ever before. Both liberals and conservatives face the same looming question: Is there an actual solution to gun violence or is this just part of the unpredictable human condition? While many on the left believe that increased regulation is a step in the right directions, many on the right oppose this view. In an op-ed piece titled “Why gun control won’t end mass murder,” the author Tammy Bruce, a Tea Party conservative, argues that liberals are missing the big picture by focusing on gun control. Tammy contends that unpredictable behavior driven by our human condition is to blame for the mass violence. The point she makes is well received. However, we cannot deny that gun control laws may have prevented more acts of gun violence than we can begin to imagine.

Another policy that could be put in place to help prevent spree killings are gun violence restraining orders. These would help with public offenses, but mainly private offenses and since private offenses are more common, it would hopefully lower a number of offenses. Gun violence restraining orders prohibit a person from buying or possessing a gun for a specified amount of time. This is an emergency legal step for potential victims and concerned family members. If they believe that someone who is close to them is dangerous and could hurt them or others, then they can petition the court for the restraining order. Family members and close friends are most likely to know if a person has violent behavior and could potentially harm others (Crockett, E., 2017). There is not much the law can do behind closed doors unless someone speaks out to them and this is a great way for them to do so.

Millions of people die every year due to accidents, sickness, and natural causes. However, it is the more preventable deaths that are truly troubling. Gun violence is often preventable and yet, it seems that almost nothing is being done about it. This is highlighted in a video produced by Vox where it discusses how bad, especially in America, the problem has gotten. The video argues that although more than half of Americans believe in their right to own guns a majority of the people believe that there should be more regulations in place to help control gun violence. I argue that Vox is effective in its argument to create stricter gun regulations because of ethos, logos, and pathos.

Do you realize the number of firearm deaths are steadily increasing each year? In 2000, there was 28,663 deaths, in 2010 there was 31,692 deaths, in 2014 there was 33,599 deaths (Alpers, 2016). Today, the chance of you being killed by a firearm is equivalent to the chance of you dying in a car accident. The dialogue on firearm importance becomes a more discussed topic everyday. We must be aware of the supporting and opposing arguments, for the better safety of our society currently. We must also be aware of the physiological needs after a gun related incident. The American Psychological Association mentions coping with the aftermath; discussing the event, turning away from news and gathering your emotions with a break, or even helping others do something good (A. 2017). Firearm violence prevention is crucial; not only to save lives, but also to prevent hurting individuals psychologically. New York Times, and The Atlantic have different perspectives on firearms, but all the same intent, to end the violence between Americans.

A cartoon is defined as a simple drawing showing the features of its subjects in a humorously exaggerated way especially a satirical one in a newspaper of magazine, according to Wikipedia. In general, cartoons are often taken lightly, but not only are cartoons merely for entertainment; they are also powerful means of communication. Being that cartoons are created to showcase or relay a message to different groups of people they can often tend be very opinionated.