Gun Ownership and the Second Amendment

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Gun ownership and the Second Amendment have come under fire in recent years in the wake of major tragedies such as the Newtown, Aurora and Tucson shootings, amongst other major shootings. Although gun control is not a recent idea, it has grown attention and is argued by more liberal leaning individuals, who tend to believe more in gun control, that guns should be strictly regulated or completely outlawed, while more conservative leaning individuals, who are more in favor of gun rights, believe that regulations on firearms should be lessened or abolished completely. The major issues involving firearms are whether gun control is unconstitutional, whether increases in gun ownership correlate to increases or decrease in gun related crimes, whether certain or all individuals should not be in possession of firearms, and whether gun control laws actually decrease gun related crimes. The issue of gun control is national issue, as it affects every individual in the country, whether they own firearms or not. Since it is a national issue, this essay will focus on gun control from the perspective of a gun advocate and provide evidence as to why gun ownership must be preserved and enforced. If gun control measures become too severe, civilians would be disarmed against criminals who would cause them harm, as the civilian population would have no way to defend themselves. Since gun control is a largely controversial issue, there are many political individuals and groups on both sides of the issue that struggle to either preserve gun ownership or increase regulations on firearms. In recent years, gun control supporters, such as President Barack Obama, former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the Brady Campaign and the Coalition to Stop Gun Vio... ... middle of paper ... ...r "assault" weapons, as to pass legislation to prevent gun owners from possessing such firearms. Although the debate still rages on about gun control, what remains important is that the right of the people to bear arms to be preserved, as a society with a disarmed people will be at the mercy of the criminals, and possible oppressive government, who will use force against those who can't defend themselves. Bibliography 1) "Assault Weapons Ban of 2013." Assault Weapons Ban Summary. Feinstein.Senate.gov, n.d. Web. 19 Apr. 2014. "What’s In Obama’s Gun Control Proposal." The New York Times. The New York Times, 15 Jan. 2013. Web. 21 Apr. 2014. "The Declaration of Independence." Archives.gov. National Archives and Records Administration, n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2014. "Second Amendment." LII / Legal Information Institute. Cornell University Law School, n.d. Web. 19 Apr. 2014.

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