On Friday morning, November 6th, a man in New York city woke up and watched the news. There he saw former mayor of New York, Michael Bloomberg, announcing his ideas for gun control. The news stated that after spending millions of dollars to spread his “Everytown for Gun Safety” across the country, United States citizens were still not impressed. Bloomberg’s main goals are to enforce stricter background checks, remove guns from domestic abusers, and give families the right to remove guns from people they believe are dangerous. According to the “Gun Control Overview,” pro-gun control advocates only focus on a select few gun violence issues, and they tend to repeat the same examples in their rhetoric. The gun control is one of the most debated …show more content…
One of the ways gun control could have taken a strong hold in these countries is the rhetoric used. Andrew Jay McClurg states in his article, “The Rhetoric of Gun Control,” the differences between “good” and “bad” rhetoric and how gun control is a prime example because it uses both types. McClurg states that in this debate, the rhetoric “flowed freely on both sides.” One of several outcomes related to gun control can best be demonstrated by the recent terror attacks in Paris, France on November 13, 2015. Having a licensed weapon could have possibly meant the difference between life and death for hundreds of people when a shooter opened fire in the Bataclan theatre. Nelson Lund states in his article, “Second Amendment, Political Liberty, and the Right to Self-Preservation,” that the United States has twisted the Second Amendment in higher and lower courts, “Establishing that the Second Amendment protects an individual's right to keep and bear arms, however, is only one small step toward developing a sound interpretation of the constitutional guarantee.” The Supreme Court has created their own definition to fit their gun control ideology, and said definition does not correlate in any way the the definition in the Bill of Rights. By outlawing guns for self-defense in any country, but specifically the United States, the world will not be able to fight back attackers such as the ISIS terrorists in
Tragedy after tragedy, people find themselves mourning over the lives lost. And over and over again, they look back to see how they could have prevented it. People continue to argue and constantly debate what actions should be taken, and while doing so, more and more people lose their lives at the hands of gun violence. It’s clear to see that not much has been done to keep these weapons out of the wrongs hands: the shootings at Columbine High School and Virginia Tech have shown that. What would happen if there were to be another devastating shooting to occur? How would people react? Or would they just argue some more, while the wrong people can still easily get a hold of guns? The only way they can ever gain control of anything is by controlling the source of the problem, where people are able to freely purchase guns without restrictions. In order to reduce gun-related crime, unlicensed gun sellers should be required to run background checks on their customers.
Guns have possessed the spotlight of almost every news station. From the latest tragedy of a shooting killing innocent men, women and children to the arguments centering around if our gun laws possess strict enough qualities to keep our country safe. Charles C. W. Cooke, the author of “Gun-Control Dishonesty”, spreads his conservative view on the topic by ripping away any hope for a brighter day. Cooke’s main idea states that if nothing has happened to make gun law more strict even after the lives of innocent children were mercilessly ripped away from their young bodies than nothing should or could ever change. On the other hand, Adam Gopnik wrote his article, “Shooting”, uses a more liberal approach and inspires his audience to act upon the much needed change in our society
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.
Aroung the time of John F. Kennedy’s assassination, the controversial and widely argued issue of gun control sparked and set fire across America. In the past decade however, it has become one of the hottest topics in the nation. Due to many recent shootings, including the well known Sandy Hook Elementary school, Columbine High School, Aurora movie theater, and Virginia Tech, together totaling 87 deaths, many people are beginning to push for nationwide gun control. An article published in the Chicago Tribune by Illinois State Senator Jacqueline Collins, entitled “Gun Control is Long Overdue” voiced the opinion that in order for America to remain the land of the free, we must take action in the form of stricter gun laws. On the contrary, Kathleen Parker, a member of the Washington Post Writers Group whose articles have appeared in the Weekly Standard, Time, Town & Country, Cosmopolitan, and Fortune Small Business, gives a different opinion on the subject. Her article in The Oregonian “Gun Control Conversation Keeps Repeating” urges Americans to look at the cultural factors that create ...
The Ethics of Gun Control The phrase "Gun Control" means different things to different people. One bumper sticker states that "Gun Control means hitting your target." However one defines gun control, the mere mention of it brings controversy.
The issues of gun control are the subject of much controversy. In the article “The Killer Who Supports Gun Control” by Nicholas D. Kristof (2013), he argues that a strong gun control will yield fewer deaths. Kristof summarizes how the gun itself and the person are responsible for deaths, in order to show how dangerous the combination of the two is.
In 1982, a survey of male inmates from eleven different penitentiaries, stated that sixty-nine percent of the prisoners knew another criminal that had been scared off, wounded, or decided not to commit a crime because they thought the victim had a gun (Agresti and Smith). As The United States heads to the end of 2013, current gun control debates are striking the nation, leaving everyone to develop their own positions on which side of the debate they want to be on. Gun control is defined as efforts to regulate or control sales of guns; however, most of what we hear from other people is that Obama wants to take away every gun in the nation. That’s not entirely true. Obama’s proposal to Congress is a law that would increase background check protocols, ban assault weapons, high-capacity ammunition, and armor-piercing bullets. The proposal also provides more funding for additional police officers on the streets, first response training, mental health programs, and school emergency plans.
The government wants to put restrictions on owning certain firearms, like rifles. It is said that if the United States lowers the amount of guns owned by civilians than the rate of firearm based crimes will be reduced. This cannot be any further from the truth, a study that was published in the Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy proves that countries with very strict gun control laws have many more crimes than countries with little to no gun control regulations. (Little) Just to further support this theory; in the United States people are 80 times more likely to use a gun to prevent a crime than to commit one. (Little) If strict gun control laws are implemented than an increase in crime and murders will most likely be the consequence. One of the scariest views about gun control is that all nations who have slaughtered their own citizens first disarmed them. Adolf Hitler once said “To conquer a nation, first disarm its citizens.” (Quotes) In no way is that saying that the citizens of the United States will soon be killed by their own g...
In recent years, political discourse about gun control and the Second Amendment has become increasingly volatile. Gun lobbies such as the National Rifle Association are more organized and aggressive and their issue agenda has evolved as new and more powerful weapons and militia appear. On the other side of the debate, the critical wounding of James Brady gave gun control advocates a visible martyr with strong ties to Republican conservatives. In sum, gun control and the right to bear arms have become hotly disputed issues where political alignments are constantly shifting.
“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.” The right of all Americans to bear arms is a right the Founding Fathers held to equal importance as the Constitution itself. Gun control laws directly violate this right and therefore should not even be under consideration. Even if that issue is overlooked, gun control advocates state that in order to reduce firearm related violence, gun control laws must be implemented to remove the violence caused by firearms. Although this may seem reasonable, the consequences of such laws are ironically counterproductive; they exacerbate the problem instead of fixing it. Besides the fact that the American Constitution guarantees its citizens the right to bear arms, the idea of restricting gun ownership in order to reduce firearm-related violence would ultimately fail given the previous experiments of gun control in England and in numerous states.
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...
Too many innocent lives have been lost for Americans to turn a blind eye to the issue of gun control. Citizens should not fear for their lives on a daily basis; we should feel safe in our country. Thankfully, however, politicians such as President Barack Obama are working to resolve this issue. In a nutshell, Obama’s strategy to reduce gun violence in America involves: requiring all gun sellers to obtain a license and run background checks on customers who wish to purchase guns, making background checks more thorough and holistic, and investing more money into the mental health industry to help troubled
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.
Central in the arguments against gun control is its ability to restrict any citizen of the United States the right to own guns which is protected under the constitution. Specifically, due recognition is made to its connection to the 2nd Amendment wherein it seeks to protect the individual liberties of people. This facet also applies to gun ownership regardless of the original objective and intention. “The second amendment from the Bill of Rights grants private citizens the right to bear arms. Thus, people who stand firmly against gun control insist that no legislation, technically, should have the right to take away a citizen’s guns without first repealing the amendment in question” (Groberman 1). A good approach to consider in highlighting this part comes from depriving the citizen of his basic right on the basis of specific presumption that it would be used for violence or crim...
When Americans hear the phrase “gun control,” what do we think of? If you have an opinion on this topic then your answer will inevitably, and by default, support and reflect one of two distinct positions, being of either the “pro-gun” or “anti-gun” stance. For a variety of reasons this issue seems to heavily divide anyone with an opinion; and there is not much middle ground or consensus in between. A recent CNN research poll of 843 adults nationwide (November 2013) asked, “Do you favor or oppose stricter gun control laws?” Of those surveyed, 49% were in favor of stricter gun control laws while 50% were opposed, and a mere 1% responded as unsure. This same poll further divided these demographics by political orientation with 71% of Democrats