Over the past few decades gun control has come to the fore front of debate in politics and the mass media. It's no wonder that in the wake of the recent school shootings and attacks on churches that people are beginning to fear guns. People are beginning to see guns as an object of death and destruction and not as what they are meant to be. While guns are used in war they are not intended to kill innocent people, guns are intended to be used by experienced gun handlers for protection and hunting. When used properly a gun is no more dangerous than a car or a knife, all of these can be used in crime but none of them are intended to be. Guns have been around for hundreds of years, so why is it that only recently people have been shooting up schools and churches. Proponents of gun control would have you believe that putting stricter laws on guns would nearly eliminate their illegal use this is simply not true. For example, in California there was recently a bill that allowed the District Attorney to make any gun he wanted illegal. Once made illegal a letter would be sent to all the people who were known to have that gun stating that they had a certain amount of time to turn in the gun or they would face felony weapons charges. While at first glance this may seem like a good idea the more you look at it the more you can see how poor this bill really is. The major flaw of this bill is that it puts the power solely in the hands of the DA; and all politicians can be influenced by public opinion. According to a Rolling Stone Article by PJ O'Rourke "Now Gore is in favor of gun control, but he voted for the NRA-backed 1986 Firearm Owners' Protection Act and against both a fourteen-day waiting period for handgun purchases and a federal r... ... middle of paper ... ...th their daddy's gun. Another rule was that after every time we used our guns we checked atleast twice to make sure the gun was empty. Also on the chance that a child didn't listen and went for a gun we always keep our ammunition in a different building. Having the ammo in one room and the gun in the other simply isn't enough since most kids like to wander around and look through stuff, so we always kept our guns in the house and the ammo outside in our barn on one of the top shelves. While these rules may seem almost to simple to work effectively when they are properly enforced they are all you really need to keep your kids away from your guns. Bibliography: Lessons unlearned Reason; Los Angeles; Jun 2001; Sara Rimensnyder; Volume: 33 Issue: 2 Start Page: 19 Rolling Stone How to tell Bush from Gore by PJ O'Rourke Issue 850 P28-30
Gun control is an issue that is constantly being debated. There are people who are pro gun control and those who believe gun control is unconstitutional to the citizens. Many political leaders and organizations have strong opinions on gun control, which keeps the gun control debate publicized. Gun control is limiting or taking the right of citizens to carry or purchase a gun. Guns are used for protecting the citizens by police officers and the military, as well as for many personal reasons like hunting and self-defense. There are times that guns are used for the wrong reasons like murder, or put in the wrong hands which lead to accidental deaths. Choosing a stand on gun control can be hard, but hearing both sides can help a person make a decision.
The debate over firearms has been polarized for too long. Gun law is a never-ending issue because there hardly is any true debate. Americans (and even gun owners) do support the governments efforts to make sure guns are less dangerous in violent hands, but that is the main problem-the guns getting in the wrong human hands. Millions of law-abiding Americans do own and do enjoy their guns. But criminals and sometimes-disconcerted kids often use firearms to kill. The use of firearms has increased tremendously. An average day in Los Angeles is four people dying in a gun related crime and the United States faces approximately 87 deaths a day. There are more than 200 million guns in circulation in the United States and if you don’t own a firearm, chances are that your neighbor or friend does (Fineman 27). Sure, the Founding Fathers incorporated the Second Amendment as “the right to keep and bear arms,” but it did not give the distinction of using guns to kill more children and people than anywhere in the world.
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 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
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 gun owner can be a responsible person but still anything can happen certain circumstances can come up where the gun can be used in a negative way. Nobody should be foolish enough to say that something bad could happen to them with a firearm. People saying that the answer is more guns less regulation isn’t the answer that obviously doesn’t work that would just lead to more chaos. Since 2009, three times as many pro-gun laws were passed in The United States as anti-gun measures this trend has only accelerated since then. A new demographic of people support the right to carry gun laws. Now more women support concealed weapon laws and now more women and moms are getting concealed weapon permits in states that allow them. Overall, 85 percent of Americans support the right to bear arms(Krieg,2016). Many americans believe that restricting gun rights anymore would be a complete violation of the constitution and would be severely fought by pro-gun activists if any sort of legislation was passed. Legislation has been passed in certain states to ban guns from certain areas like playgrounds and around schools if you are caught with guns anywhere around there stiff penalties will be put in place. In the late 1960s and into the early 70s, a gun control movement came about because
Despite the surge in numeral count of children and youth killed from gun related violence, research indicates that most Americans still remain adamant to any further restrictions on guns and firearms ownership and usage. It is even more surprising to learn that a large percentage of people tend to believe that communities are safer where individuals are free to purchase and use weapons to defend themselves from actual or potential threats or threatening situations.
First and foremost is the Gun Control Act of 1968, and the 1996 amendments to the act, which restricts people who have been convicted of a felony, misdemeanor domestic violence, minors, illegal aliens, and those who have mental disorders to be able buy and own guns (Worrall, 2015, p. 161). There have been many studies that have looked into whether this law has reduced crime or not and they contradict each other supporting both sides of the argument. Another law is the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act or the Brady Act which required that gun dealers in states that do not require background checks that these gun dealers contact their law enforcement and get a background check on a person that wants to buy a firearm. These background checks took time so legislation said that the waiting period on the background check cannot take more than five days. A study that was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association looked at the mortality rate in states that invoked the Brady Act and the states that do not use it (Worrall, 2015, p. 161). The study showed that there was not any significant reduction in crime involving firearms. This act was later ruled by the Supreme Court unconstitutional. The “right-to-carry” laws discussed earlier have shown reduction in crime anywhere from good desirable portion to modest or slight reduction. Either way these laws show some
Gun Control, a very controversial topic here in the United States as well as various other parts of the world. No matter what type of gun related crime, society always falls back on increasing regulations on firearms. Does the Second Amendment apply to modern weaponry? Should we protect our constitutional rights? Or should we enact stricter regulations against the purchasing of a firearm? Despite having a strict constitution on the importance of firearms, the population remains divided on what to do.
Gun control is an issue that has been debated by Americans since the 1960’s (Dolan 1). The debate questions the right of Americans to bear arms, this including, handguns, shotguns, and rifles. Some say a simple restriction of these arms is in order while some think they should be banned altogether (Dolan 1). Both sides hold strong opinions often causing conflict in the matter and confusion among the citizens of the United States.
Regardless of how guardians feel about weapons, there is a possibility their child will come in contact with one sooner or later. Federal statistics show that as many as 50 percent of U.S. households contain guns. In today’s society, crimes are more violent and difficult to control because the number of weapons available. In the United States last year there were more than 18,000 people killed by a handgun. We have made it so much easier to purchase a weapon. If we did a criminal background check, you have to have them locked up, and also keep people safe then the world would probable a much a happier place without so many incidents including guns.
Being in favor of gun control won’t make anyone a bad person who follows a person with power and obeying what they say. Being in favor of gun control doesn’t make anyone a bad person, it simply shows that one is in favor of self defense or protection. In this bumper sticker, “all in a favor of gun control, raise your right arm.” The bumper sticker has a picture of Hitler with his right arm raised. People have different views when it comes to gun safety, laws and regulations.
Reports of mass shootings have been on the rise, with stories littering the media every month. Proponents of gun control argue that added restrictions on the attainability of firearms will seriously lower the statistics. However, I, as a fervent opponent of gun control, am strongly in favor of keeping the laws as they are. Arms control should not be increased as it is not a major factor in increasing crime rates, will leave people more vulnerable to attacks, and is a right protected by the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
One of the main reasons that people believe guns should be outlawed is because of school shootings. While I do agree that these are awful and horrible things, most people stop at the emotional part of the story, and never stop to think about what actually happened. On social media, where the gun control debate rages like wildfire, people say that if we get rid of all guns, school shootings will no longer happen. However people often miss one crucial thing: The gun does not make people want to kill. It is the person, rather than the weapon, that causes these monstrosities to happen. Getting rid of weapons to stop murder is like
...m? Helping children is a very emotional subject and it is very hard to argue against, But the fact is, responsible gun owners should know to keep their weapons unloaded and in a secure cabinet when children are around.. If a child died because someone left a loaded firearm lying around the house the problem is not the guns it is the stupidity of the people! There are many cases where children were injured or killed in gun accidents because the gun owner did not put it in a safe place. Instead of worrying about whether we should or should not have guns we should point out how to have responsible gun ownership, which should also be taught to children so accidents like these could be prevented.