Gun Control: Crime Issue or Rights Issue? Guns don’t kill people, people kill people. To many people gun control is a crime issue, to others it is a rights issue. The US should not adopt stricter gun control laws because, it 's the best source of protection, laws will not control criminals, and it takes away your Second Amendment rights. The majority of U.S. gun owners does not represent a threat to society ( Gun Control Reform par. 1). The other part is either mentally ill or a criminal. Many people will try to argue that the use of guns is dangerous, but it is the best source of protection in most cases. Without guns people are left helpless with no way to protect themselves. Without guns, criminals are more likely to break into houses, …show more content…
Gun control takes away gun rights from all people. No one should be forced to give up their rights because of someone that is mentally ill. People have guns not only for protection, but for hunting, sporting, and fun. President Bill Clinton signed The Brady Law, which imposed a five-day waiting period on the purchase of a firearm and required local law enforcement to carry out a background check on anyone attempting to buy a gun. This law was soon overruled because The Supreme Court ruled that having background checks was unconstitutional under the Tenth Amendment ( Gun Control Reform par. 14). The laws restricting access to guns would probably not prevent mass shootings. " Rampage killers tend to be meticulous planner." ( David Brooks Gun Control Laws par. 46). If the Government isn 't afraid to take your Second Amendment rights away, it probably means more of your rights will be taken eventually. The Bill of Rights might not even exist anymore in the …show more content…
They have a point, but only if guns are put into the wrong hands. A lot of shootings possibly could not have happened if gun control was stricter, but the guns were not the problem it was the people. An example is that in the killing at Sandy Hook the criminal had stolen guns registered to his mother. She had passed the background checks and he had obtained his hands on the guns. People are always going to get their hands on guns because there are too many guns in the world. The people shouldn 't be punished by having their guns taken away, because of the mistakes of criminals. Stricter gun laws will probably require better background checks, but the criminals can always pass a background check and then go insane. " You can strip all guns away, but the people who are going to commit crimes or have problems are always going to have guns." ( John Kasich Gun Laws par.
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.
Joseph Sobran argues that, “there are solid constitutional arguments against gun control. For one thing, nowhere in the Constitution is the federal government granted the right to limit an individual's right to own firearms”. He states that the government has no right to limit guns. Even though he has a point there is a limit to that statement such as serious criminals and mentally unstable people. Likewise Sharon Harris states that guns protect people against criminals, “the right to bear arms protects the individual from violent aggressors and from the ineffective protection state and federal government is offering its citizens … criminals benefit from gun control laws that make it more difficult for ordinary citizens to protect themselves.” She believes that guns keep people safe and that regulating guns will only benefit criminals. This is not true because regulations help prevent criminals from getting guns. Having less regulations is a dangerous
“Guns don’t kill people, people do.” This is a well known statement that is oftentimes considered true. However, it is not completely true. Someone who is mentally ill may be unable to make logical decisions and the perception they receive of reality may be tainted by the illness. Gun laws pertaining to those suffering mental illnesses should be more restrictive. Weapons such as guns make committing an act of violence, especially when there are multiple victims, much easier. It is difficult to assess the probability of a person to commit a violent act that harms anyone including himself/herself. Therefore, gun laws need be monitored very closely and made more consistent throughout each state in order to prevent violence that could occur in the future. To make any system effective, every state must have the same laws and regulations, as it is easy for a person to travel to a state more lenient on gun control and purchase a gun from a store that will sell firearms more openly.
One of the most heavily debated subjects today in the United States is guns. Over the last few years, mass shootings and spree shootings have been covered widely in the media. It leaves many Americans wondering how we can just sit by and let this happen. However, this is no easy task to attempt to solve or something that will just go away overnight. Taking away the guns won 't solve anything or just fix the problem as a whole. The United States constitution not only protects, but guarantees the right to bear arms as an American citizen. Why should we let the acts of a few sick and mentally ill ruin the right for the rest of law abiding citizens. The focus should center more around tougher background checks and mental health. Many Americans,
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.
“It’s not gun control we need, it’s sin control” (Si Robertson). The government can’t control what people do with their firearms or who has them in their possession. Gun control does not decrease crime. With or without guns people will still find ways to harm others and even with a gun ban people will still find away to either make or buy a gun illegally. With a gun control law in place there is no good way for citizens to protect themselves. Even though some may say it that it will stop some of the crime, there are many reasons that prove that gun control doesn't decrease crime.
Guns don’t kill people, people kill people. Limiting guns will only lead to violent people simply using other methods of killing. Pro-gun control advocates
In 1968 Congress passed the Gun Control Act. This act regulates interstate commerce in firearms, making it so that you must be a licensed manufacturer, dealer, or importer. The Gun Control Act was the first attempt at restricting easy access to a firearm. In 1976 the District of Columbia City Council prohibited it’s residents from owning a handgun. Dick Anthony Heller sued the district in 2007 for denying him the right to keep his handgun in his home on Capitol Hill. In June 2008, the Supreme Court ruled the District of Columbia’s handgun ban was unconstitutional. The people of this country believe in their reserved rights, Mr. Heller’s fought for his second amendment right and won, showing the spirit of democracy. Since the Columbine High School shootings in 1999, 27 separate mass shootings have left five or more people dead each time. These randoms acts of violence have taken place in schools (Sandy Hook, Virginia Tech), the workplace (Fort Hood), movie theaters(Aurora, CO) , and even in the church (Charleston, S.C.). Everyday seems to bring new tragedy involving guns, but is it the gun that is killing people or the operator? As with anything, there are pro and cons to the right of own a firearm. With a firearm in your possession, you can protect yourself and your family from just about any threat. Having a gun gives you power over your own life, but this power also extends over someone else life
There is an American consensus for some form of gun control. “…[F]irearms were involved in two-thirds of all murders in the United States and [t]he United States leads the world's richest nations in gun deaths…murders, suicides, and accidental deaths due to guns - according to a study published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the International Journal of Epidemiology” (Lepore). There might be some far extreme people who think that all guns should be banned but most sane Americans do not think that gun rights should be abolished. Americans regard self-defense as the most compelling reason to have a gun and twenty-two percent of households have handguns in the United States. However many people do think that gun control laws must be enacted and enforced. Pro-gun extremists and the National Rifle Association’s (NRA) must understand that there is a real for many people at the uncontrolled s...
Also gun control has been proven in many ways that it does not reduce violence or crime. Gun control should be important to many people because it can help a country but in some cases it does not always help. Therefore people need to stop blaming gun control for everything and start taking into consideration that gun control is not the only factor in violence and crime. Gun control is important because it gives a citizen the right to be free and own a gun but when that citizen decides to not follow the law then he/she will have to deal with a punishment but the other citizens will have to hear about it and this will tempt governments to increase gun control laws and the more that gun control laws increase, as proven, gun related death rates will happen more and more. As you can see gun control is viewed as being a good law but others oppose and say that gun control does not reduce
“A fourteen-year-old sister might have stopped the man, a family member said, but her father’s guns were locked away” (Lunger). If there were no gun control laws the girl could have saved herself and sibling. “Canada is an exception, and is often cited as a country with significant gun ownership rates but low gun violence rates” (Lee). Canada is proof that gun laws are not needed to control gun violence. Obama’s kids have armed guards at their school, but he wants to ban guns so everyone is defenseless. Washington D.C. has the highest murder rates in the U.S., and the residents cannot have any sort of firearm. This shows that more gun laws are not a good thing. In states that allow weapon concealment without a government permit, crime rates are almost at zero percent. The second amendment was made six years after the revolution because most troops were in volunteer militias, and used their own guns. So gun laws would have caused another revolution if they were present back then. And the majority of the time guns will injure someone rather than kill them. Gun control does not keep guns away from criminals. “Someone who is bent on murder will find other ways to acquire a gun-or just use a knife or a rock” (Lunger). So, gun control laws would not solve problems, but rather make new ones. Gun control takes guns away from law-abiding citizens. “IF GUNS ARE OUTLAWED, ONLY OUTLAWS WILL HAVE GUNS” (Lunger). This is
Gun control is an awfully big issue in the United States today. Many people in America don’t agree with the gun control laws that they have today. Gun control laws only take guns and freedom away from law-abiding citizens. Many citizens have their own reasons for owning a gun. Why would the government want to make it harder for people to own a gun? People that own guns aren’t very likely to be attacked by criminals. Owning a handgun is one of the best ways of protection when used correctly. The second amendment states “the right to bear arms”; does this grant everyone the right to own a gun? Gun control laws have not been proven to do anything for citizens. Gun control laws just make it harder for the good guy average Joe to own a gun. Gun control laws are not a good idea, and are taking part in the loss of our freedom that was given to us.
The problem with guns is fairly obvious: they decrease the difficulty of killing or injuring a person. In Jeffrey A. Roth's Firearms and Violence (NIJ Research in Brief, February 1994), he points out the obvious dangers. About 60 percent of all murder victims in the United States in 1989 (about 12,000 people) were killed with firearms. Firearm attacks injured another 70,000 victims, some of whom were left permanently disabled. In 1985, the cost of shootings was an estimated $14 billion nationwide for medical care, long-term disability, and premature death. In robberies and assaults, victims are far more likely to die when the perpetrator is armed with a gun than when he or she has another weapon or is unarmed.
Gun control in general has been and still is a controversial issue in our world today. People see violence from gun usage on the news, in their neighborhoods and unfortunately sometimes they are the victims of it. Although these things are true and that violent crime does in fact involve the use or firearms, it is the people that use them to harm other people. Guns don’t kill people; People kill people.
Those who oppose gun control laws have just as many arguments against gun control. One of their oppositions to gun control the argument that guns do not kill people, people kill people. Yes, it is true that guns cannot harm others by themselves. They are though the most common way to kill people, as well as the most efficient way to do so. Being both easy to obtain and easy to use, it is no wonder why it is the most common way to murder someone. Even if there were fewer guns due to more gun control laws, people would still kill.