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The metallic weight of a gun sits black, heavy, and half hidden in the hands of a sallow and unhappy teenager. He waits, tapping his foot a little while he watchesthe last of the students file into the classroom, their easy laughter echoing in the almost empty hallway. The voices in his head are echoing too, as he hears his tormenters again and again, calling him names, laughing in his face, pointing out his flaws and weaknesses; shaming him until he can’t even bear to glance at his reflection in the window, or hear his name, the ragged pain of humiliation tearing from him his humanity, his soul. Shunned and disgraced, the torn shreds of his compassion falling away, he turns to all he has left, the heavy gun, and the broken screams of his classmates. Violence has always been the lurking horror haunting the light of civilization, the terrifying example of mankind’s corruption. The modern world has placed all efforts into reducing, and even eliminating violence, yet the ‘crime and punishment’ approach of the criminal justice system, especially in the United States, does little to negate the harrowing effects that violence has on our society. Yet it is society itself that has produced this depravity, and perhaps it is within society that the central issue resides. In order to diminish violence in the United States, we must find the predominant cause of it, which I believe is shame, something caused by the culture of today. Therefore, I think that the only way to reduce violence is to reduce the effect of shaming societal issues. Only once these social problems are fixed can we begin to eradicate the violence within our nation.
Violence, and tendency to violence, while certainly multi-determined, has a central root in shame. In the...
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... consider other origins of violence. McMahan asserts that it is easy access to guns that has made our country into “the homicide capitol of the developed world” (McMahan, 38), and uses this declaration to insist that gun use should be the focus of preventing violence. However, this is a logical fallacy, as McMahan has failed to even mention other causes of violence, such as shame.
The teenager sits outside the classroom, watching the last of his classmates file into the door. Yet imagine if the voices that torment him were cleared from his mind, and the pain in his soul was alleviated because he was never humiliated or degraded by society. Perhaps he could look up from his position in the hallway, glance into the window, and look at his reflection square in the eye, and walk into the class, shame, humiliation, and societal pressures never turning him to violence.
¬¬¬Though most American people claim to seek peace, the United States remains entwined with both love and hate for violence. Regardless of background or personal beliefs, the vast majority of Americans enjoy at least one activity that promotes violence whether it be professional fighting or simply playing gory video games. Everything is all well and good until this obsession with violence causes increased frequency of real world crimes. In the article, “Is American Nonviolence Possible” Todd May proposes a less standard, more ethical, fix to the problem at hand. The majority of the arguments brought up make an appeal to the pathos of the reader with a very philosophical overall tone.
As described in the film “Tough Guise 2”, the U.S. is both obsessed with and is a victim of its own culture. On one hand, movies and video games that glamorize violence and books that argue that violence. Additionally, many other films and books highlight that violence is a core aspect of male masculinity and argues that men are losing it through the empowerment of women and the loss of employment. At the same time, the United States has suffered through countless gun-related deaths and the mainstreaming of media such as Bum Fights, where actual homeless people are assaulted on camera. But due to the politicization of the issue of violence and the news media to properly explain the issue to the U.S., many people are taught that violence stems from the youth, which is only part of the broader picture. Instead of identifying and preventing the largest source of violence in the country, young white males, the focus is instead shifted toward the potential of violence of young men of color in poor urban
Cormac McCarthy’s “Blood Meridian” does a marvelous job of highlighting the violent nature of mankind. The underlying cause of this violent nature can be analyzed from three perspectives, the first being where the occurrence of violence takes place, the second man’s need to be led and the way their leader leads them, and lastly whether violence is truly an innate and inherent characteristic in man.
Gun Violence Opposing View Points. Ed. James D. Torr. Greenhaven Presss.Inc., San Diego, California: Daniel Leone, 2002, Print
America probably has the highest rate of gun ownership in the world. In Canada, the percentage of Canadian households with a rifle is approximately equal to the level in United States. According to the statistics of gun murder rates around the world from ‘Bowling for columbine’, America has 11,127 gun accidents while Canada merely has 165. Is the number of gun ownerships a main factor behind a violent society? Indeed weapon does not commit crimes, the perpetrator does.
It is interestingly sad how debates on gun violence and gun control is being handled in our society by our top leaders and lobbyist. Gun control has become a serious issue and a national epidemic, however, the debate is far from over. In the article “under the gun” by writers Rottenberg, Rice and Franich, for entertainment weekly, the writers discussed the failing of gun control laws and the increase in gun violence. By setting sides of their argument, the writers discussed violence in movies, TVs and videogames and how this violence impact our society, thus allowing their audience to decide for themselves.
Multiple mass shootings such in Aurora, Colorado, Roseburg, Oregon and Newport, Connecticut has sparked massive gun control disagreement. The media has influenced two point of views regarding this topic. One side argues that increasing gun control decreases casualties of mass shootings, while the other side claims decreasing gun control increases self-defense. In a US News article by Susan Milligan, she argues that “although gun control does not stop criminal activity, it decreases accidental deaths and suicide”, thus saving lives. LA Times writer and social policy professor, James Wilson claims gun control does not solve gun violence and makes it harder for law-abiding citizens to defend themselves. Both authors use language to convince the
“Guns don’t kill people, people kill people,” I have often heard. We know people kill people. The real issue now is whether or not people can change people. Some are of the opinion that we are capable of doing so; by implementing new reforms and tightening school security, people are, in effect, saying they have the solutions to the problems. The violence of recent school shootings has wrought anxiety and fear in parents, teachers, and administrators across the nation. The massacre of Columbine turned a public school library into a cemetery. The shooting in Oklahoma ripped us from the comfort of a stereotypical and easily recognized threat; now popular straight-A students pull guns without black trench coats. The violence has become unpredictable and, in all cases, extremely frightening. In response to the threat, schools have engaged in extensive prevention programs, often banning book-bags, implementing dress codes, setting up metal detectors, or requiring students to attend anger management classes. Such attempts at reform sound efficient on paper and may to some extent alleviate the anxieties of parents, but they are like storming castle walls with slingshots. The object of reform in this case is not tangible or always plausible. The object of reform is the human heart, the internal person. We need to understand that the problem is bigger than a trench coat or a gun; therefore, dress codes or metal detectors cannot solve it. These reforms are often vain attempts at prevention. They hinder education and provoke students. Policy makers and schools need to be aware that no simple public mandate can suffice as a solution.
In the wake of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the increase of killing sprees involving firearms in the U.S. since the Columbine Massacre, the case against guns is emotionally charged and captivating. The use of these examples has been a powerful recruitment tool in the case against private gun ownership and the lobbying for stricter legislation governing the sale, and distribution of firearms within the U.S. and internationally. In addition to this, Pro-Control supporters most often use startling statistics in firearm-related deaths and homicides as contention that these incidents are reflections of an ongoing killing spree in the United States, whom remains among the top countries in the world for firearm related deaths, a...
In Michael Moore’s film “Bowling For Columbine” he tries to discover the correlation between guns and violence in America. Through his research and findings he reveals that although our Canadian neighbors have a higher gun ownership rate than ours, their gun-violence ratio is far less then America’s. “Bowling for Columbine” looks deeper into the matter to sniff out the real cause for America’s violent behavior. Moore examines how fearful American culture is and points at the media and government’s scare tactics to be a mere market...
Gun violence is studied to determine its causes and how to reduce it within society. In many studies, it has been proven that firearm owners have used their weapons in self defense many times (“Methodologies for Studying” 2). When citizens were given the right to concealed carry, crime was reduced, especially violent crime (“Methodologies for Studying” 3). This has been proven in Florida, where the concealed carry law has been active since 1987. However, there will always be some form of danger around when guns are present. One theory is that often, a person killed in a homicide is an owner of a firearm, proving that being around guns causes crime (“Methodologies for Studying” 2). Studies say that even if firearms were inaccessible to criminals, they would not hesitate to use other legal weapons to commit acts of violence. Crazy people do not grasp reality the way normal people do. This prob...
Guns are not all bad they provide protection and have recreational benefits. When guns get in the wrong hands is when violence occurs. Keeping them out of the wrong hands is more difficult than you would think; “30 to 40 Percent of all guns in circulation were purchased without a licensed firearm dealer.” Many stolen guns are used in crimes with 500,000 guns stolen on average each year (Ludwig, Cook 4). People argue that if you take away guns you can reduce violence but, violence can occur without guns. If you take away a childs toy are they going to stop having fun or find another thing to play with? Although guns make for more lethal crime they can also be used to fend off crimes(Ludwig, Cook 3). Guns are a necessity for many families in the United States, especially in the south. Many people believe that the number of guns affect violent crime rates. In the 1960s and 1970s the United states had an increase in violent crime rates; in the 1990s violent rates dropped substantially. The amount of guns owned by Americans increased every year(Burger, Warren 13). The amount of guns in circulation will keep increasing and the violent crime rates will fluctuate with other variables if this stays true. The Kansas City Gun Experiment, a test where poli...
Gun violence has always been a problem in America. Whether it is promoted in video games or television, it is in the face of the average American citizen daily. The main argument has been whether or not civilians should be allowed to exercise their 2nd amendment. Additionally, there have been many cases of gun violence due to individuals suffering from mental illnesses. Furthermore, as of late, there have been a string of civilian deaths at the hands of police. These events have led to anti-police mentality, especially amongst minorities. Now, I believe that an individual should have the right to defend themselves. However, with the growing numbers of deaths due to guns, there has to be a change in how society views violence.
...fect that the observation of violence would have on the subject’s social behavior. The experimental group, which was exposed to the violence, was shown to push the red button, which was believed to hurt another child’s chances of receiving a prize. More often and for a significantly longer period than the children were shown an exciting non-violent film. The conclusion was that the exposure to violence is related to the acceptance of aggression. All of these studies lead to one thing, the fact that violence affects children and adults.