Gun Control: Not Fair to the People Trying to Protect Themselves

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"The constitutions of most of our States assert that all power is inherent in the people; that... it is their right and duty to be at all times armed." Thomas Jefferson said this quote almost 200 years ago and to this day it still applies. The right to bear arms was such a priority to the founding fathers of this country that it received the second spot on the list of the basic rights of all Americans. This right is in the process of being restricted in order to supposedly reduce crime and homicide. These gun control laws should not be permitted because they restrict law-abiding citizens’ access to firearms, leave people defenseless when a crime does arise, and have been proven futile in other countries. Gun control activists claim that banning handgun purchases will reduce murder and other gun related crimes. However, cases where handguns were declared illegal were shown to be ineffective. During the years in which the Washington, D.C. handgun ban and trigger lock law were in effect, the Washington, D.C. murder rate averaged 73% higher than it was at the outset of the law, while the U.S. murder rate averaged 11% lower (Agresti and Smith). Not only in Washington, D.C. was this banning of guns unsuccessful, but also in Chicago. Since the outset of the Chicago handgun ban, the percentage of Chicago murders committed with handguns has averaged about 40% higher than it was before the law took effect (Agresti and Smith). Chicago has recently been named the nation’s murder capital by the FBI and had about as many murders in 2012 as the entire country of Japan, further demonstrating how these ordinances are ineffective. More than 8.5 million Americans legally carry concealed handguns, yet only at a rate of less of 1% do they commit fire... ... middle of paper ... ...who breaks the law, then why strengthen gun laws when criminals do not follow the laws anyways? Works Cited Agresti, James D. and Reid k. Smith, “Gun Control Just Facts.” Gun Control-Just Facts. JustFacts.com, 13 Sept. 2010. Web. 06 Mar. 2014F Bell, Larry. “Disarming the Myths Promoted By the Gun Control Lobby.” Forbes. Forbes, Inc., 21 Feb. 2011. Web. 6 Mar. 2014 Fund, John. "The Facts about Mass Shootings." National Review Online. National Review Online, 16 Dec. 2012. Web. 27 Mar. 2014. Lott, John R., Jr. "Opposing View: Guns in Schools Can save Lives." USA Today. Gannett, 25 Dec. 2012. Web. 27 Mar. 2014. Rosen, Gary. "Yes and No to Gun Control." Commentary 110.2 (2000): 47. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 27 Mar. 2014. Snyder, Michael. "18 Little-Known Gun Facts That Prove That Guns Make Us Safer." Infowars. Infowars.com, 12 Aug. 2013. Web. 25 Mar. 2014.

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