Guns do not kill people, people do. The American Dream is being able to work towards and achieve whatever makes you happy, whether it be owning your own business, joining the military, or staying at home raising a family, but the only way to reach your dream is to do it without living in fear that your dream will be taken away. In the last couple years mass shootings and attacks on schools have sadly become a common tragedy. Those who have been victims of public shootings or any other life scarring event due to a criminal, along with anyone else who has watched the coverage of the tragedies on the news is somewhat living in fear, but if concealed carry laws were passed then living in fear would be significantly lowered along with crime rates. According to Mike Miller, author of What Happened to Chicago’s Murder Rate After Illinois Upheld Concealed Carry and Why it Matters, “three to four crimes are stopped by a handgun than are committed in the United States every year” (Miller). People would feel much safer knowing they would be able to defend themselves if the time ever arose. When we think or hear about guns most of us jump to the negative effects and stories we have heard. The only stories we hear about guns are how a person’s life has ended because of it, but we never hear how they save a person’s life. It is important to remember the commonly used phrase when talking about concealed carry, “Guns do not kill people, people do.” However, guns are an effective way of protection and states should not make stricter gun control laws because it is ineffective and creates additional problems in today’s violent society. Allowing citizens to have guns aids in their protection for many reasons. There are simply instances today where... ... middle of paper ... ...rry Firearms in Public Comments. Time, 4 Mar. 2013. Web. 23 Apr. 2014. Evanovich, Janet. Three to Get Deadly. New York: Scribner, 1997. Print. "Fact Sheet: Guns Save Lives." Gun Owners of America. N.p., 29 Sept. 2008. Web. 27 Apr. 2014. May-Hayes, Gila. Concealed Carry for Women. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print. MIller, Mike. "What Happened to Chicago's Murder Rate After Illinois Upheld Concealed Carry and Why It Matters." Independent Journal Review. N.p., 2 Apr. 2014. Web. 30 Apr. 2014. Peterson, Eric. "The Consequences of Gun Control." Oklahoma Wesleyan University. The Keating Center, 18 Apr. 2013. Web. 28 Apr. 2014. Sadovi, Carlos, and Peter Nickeas. "Cops: No Charges for Man with Concealed Carry Permit Who Fired at Armed Male." Chicago Tribune. N.p., 05 Apr. 2014. Web. 29 Apr. 2014. "Second Amendment." Cornell University Law School. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Apr. 2014.
Safranski, and Muen Bae. "The Effectiveness of Gun Control Laws:." American Journal of Economics and Sociology 56.1 (2010): 41-50. Web.
Doeden, Matt. Gun Control: Preventing Violence or Crushing Constitutional Rights? Minneapolis: Lerner, 2012. 7- 61-63. Print.
Gun admirers have statistics that will prove their side on guns saving lives. According to one study by Lott “… for each additional year that laws allowing people to carry concealed handguns were on the books, robberies decli...
Wilson, H. (2007). Guns, gun control, and elections. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Rauch, Jonathan. “The Right Kind of Gun Rights.” National Journal Vol. 40 Issue 11. Academic Search Complete. 15 Mar. 2013. Web. 6 June 2015.
In America guns have been a part of the country’s society since it’s birth. Throughout history the citizens of the US have used firearms to protect the nation, protect their families, hunt for food and engage in sporting activities. The issue of Guns and gun control is complex. Weighing the rights and liberties of the individual against the welfare and safety of the public has always been a precarious balancing act. In the United States, gun control is one of these tumultuous issues that has both sides firmly entrenched in their positions. Those parties in favor of gun ownership and the freedom to use and keep arms, rely on the fact that the provision for such rights is enshrined in their constitution. In this climate of growing violence, rife with turmoil and crime, gun advocates feel more than ever that their position is justified. As citizens of the “Land of the Free” possessing a gun is a fundamental right, and may even be a necessity... Anti- gun lobbyists point to the same growing violence and gun related crimes in an effort to call on the government to take action. By enacting more laws and stricter control, these people not in favor of guns feel society would be better safer.
Gun control activists claim that banning handgun purchases will reduce murder and other gun related crimes. However, cases where handguns were declared illegal were shown to be ineffective. During the years in which the Washington, D.C. handgun ban and trigger lock law were in effect, the Washington, D.C. murder rate averaged 73% higher than it was at the outset of the law, while the U.S. murder rate averaged 11% lower (Agresti and Smith). Not only in Washington, D.C. was this banning of guns unsuccessful, but also in Chicago. Since the outset of the Chicago handgun ban, the percentage of Chicago murders committed with handguns has averaged about 40% higher than it was before the law took effect (Agresti and Smith). Chicago has recently been named the nation’s murder capital by the FBI and had about as many murders in 2012 as the entire country of Japan, further demonstrating how these ordinances are ineffective. More than 8.5 million Americans legally carry concealed handguns, yet only at a rate of less of 1% do they commit fire...
O'Brien, Dan and Betty Stanton. "Gun Control: Exploring the Issues." Inside Homeland Security. 2013: n. pag. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 19 Feb. 2014.
"Fact Sheet: Guns Save Lives." - Gun Owners of America. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Nov. 2013. .
“A gun is a tool. It has no emotion or feelings. It cannot make decisions or take action. It does not know hate. It does not discriminate, take sides, or judge others. It is morally neutral. It is no better or worse than any other tool. A gun has no action without a user. Remember that” -Anonymous. As our world seems to grow increasingly violent, and mass shootings seem commonplace, many government leaders are pushing for certain gun laws that would ban the public from owning firearms of any sort. This is wrong, because as United States citizens, we have the right to bear arms. Despite a recent increase in gun violence within the United States, government leaders should not create laws which would restrict gun usage, should it involve magazine capacity, concealed carry, or the eradication of assault weapons for the public.
John Lott once said, ”Some people use guns for horrible things, but some people use guns to prevent horrible things from happening”(Interview with John R. Lott Jr.,4). It is legal to use guns to prevent great bodily injury or death. The second amendment allows the individual to possess and carry weapons in case of confrontation (Right-to-Carry, 1). The definition of resist is to, “withstand, strive against, or oppose.” Healthy American citizens have the right to do just that when it comes to any crime that can potentially cause them great bodily harm, or has the potential to kill them. Criminologist Gary Kleck concluded,” robbery and assault victims who used a gun to resist were less likely to be attacked or suffer an injury than those who did not use a gun or any other method to resist, or those who did not resist at all”(Right-to-Carry,1). Concealed handgun laws lower violent crimes for two reasons. First, criminals are afraid of potential victims that can defend themselves. Second, victims with guns are capable of protecting themselves (Interview with John R. Lott Jr., 1). Criminals who face higher penalties, like a gunshot wound, tend to not commit crimes. For every year a concealed weapon law is effective, murder r...
Alpers, Philip and Marcus Wilson. 2013. Guns in the United States: Facts, Figures and Firearm Law. Sydney School of Public Health, The University of Sydney. GunPolicy.org, 14 March.10 April 2013.http://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/region/united-states
"Gun Control Facts." By James D. Agresti and Reid K. Smith. Just Facts, September 13, 2010. Revised 2/11/13. http://justfacts.com/guncontrol.asp
Listverse,. '10 Arguments For Gun Control - Listverse '. N.p., 2014. Web. 30 Oct. 2014.
"There Should Be Stricter Gun Control Laws." Information Plus Reference Series Spring 2005. Ed. Sandra M. Alters, et al. Vol. 8: Gun Control: Restricting Rights or Protecting People? Detroit: Gale, 2005. 119-124. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 3 May 2014.