The Pros And Cons Of Gun Control In The United States

There are always heated debates about laws and types of policies, but the Second Amendment seems to be the most controversial no matter what level of government you are at. There are usually people who are far left or far right but there could be some in the middle who could easily be pushed in a certain direction depending on the topic at hand. The Second Amendment has a very long history and has some major acts and restrictions placed in it. There is also the political force that is pulling in both directions depending on what you think about the issue. I will also give my opinion as to what I think a good position would be on guns and the different restrictions that are placed on them.

All types of weapons have been used over time by many …show more content…

There are many concerns about the types of weapons and what steps you need to obtain a weapon depending on the state you live in. The federal government has an overarching act that puts restrictions on many firearms. The NFA or National Firearms Act was put in place in 1934 by Congress as a form of a tax (ATF). All of these items are regulated by the ATF (Alcohol Tobacco Firearms) a branch of the government that has a large say is what is regulated in the firearms industry. There are eight items listed under the NFA, they are “1 a shotgun having a barrel or barrels of less than 18 inches in length; 2 a weapon made from a shotgun if such weapon as modified has an overall length of less than 26 inches or a barrel or barrels of less than 18 inches in length; 3 a rifle having a barrel or barrels of less than 16 inches in length; 4 a weapon made from a rifle if such weapon as modified has an overall length of less than 26 inches or a barrel or barrels of less than 16 inches in length; 5 any other weapon, as defined in subsection (e); 6 a machine gun; 7 any silencer; and 8 a destructive device”. Some of the items on the list can be a source of great concern for people who are uninformed. When you purchase any of these items there is a $200 tax that is paid so that you can get a stamp, and the waiting period is …show more content…

For example in MA there was a large amount of legislation passed restricting the ownership of firearms. Massachusetts is considered one of the states with the most strict gun laws. In 1998 there was the introduction of the licenses and the different restrictions that could be placed on a license (Woburn). For example there is a Class A license this gives you the right to own and carry a firearm concealed but the state can have restrictions on ability to carry and what you can own. This then leads into the approved list of what guns you can buy (mass.gov). There is a list of guns that you are unable to purchase in the state of MA because the Attorney General has had testing done with these guns and are found not be be safe for it’s residents to own.The most recent law was the ban on “assault weapons” by the attorney general. This means they you are no longer able to purchase a new AR-15 in the state of MA but you are able to transfer them between people in the state. Another major law that people feel isn't doing too much is the magazine restrictions on firearms. This means that when you load a gun the amount of bullets it can hold must be less than 10. This is the case in MA, CA, NY, D.C., CO, CT, Hi, MD, NJ all have this