... GUN CONTROL Is there a way to control gun distribution? I’m not sure. The control of guns has been an ongoing issue going back before the 2nd Amendment was introduced (December, 15, 1791). Prior to this Amendment people that owned guns basically made up their own laws. They were able to carry and use guns in a way that fit their life style. For the most part they would use them for hunting and self-protection being able to carry their guns either concealed or in the open was a decision they were able to make themselves. As stated, people could use their guns for hunting which provided food for their family or possibly an income if they could sell the game killed. But there were some people that would use their guns in more destructive ways. They would use their guns as a source of power to control different situations. Some examples would be, bank, train, or stagecoach robberies, territorial fights for land (The Hatfield’s and McCoy’s) the fight for political power. In each of these examples if things went wrong or if someone died there is a very good chance that guns were involved. It was only a matter of time that manufacturing of firearms for the purpose of distribution needed to be controlled. Hence the 2nd Amendment, whereas the people of this great nation have the Right to Keep and Bear Arms through the eyes of the law. Though this amendment is a big part of our constitutional right as people of this land we must abide by the decision made by the United States...
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...The Gun Control Debate in the United States Republicans vs. Liberals The ineffectiveness of gun control is quite evident in the United States. Gun rights have been an ongoing social battle for many years (Kopel). People will always find a way to gain access to weapons if the person wants one badly enough. The United States is fast approaching the halfway mark in favor of stricter gun laws; however, the nation still questions the effectiveness of gun control. Republicans support the right to own, use, and carry guns as stated in the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution (Kopel). Republicans also believe it is an individual’s right to protect family and property through gun ownership. Gun laws should be left to the individual states...
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...Stricter Gun Control In The United States The Second Amendment permits Americans the right to bear arms. An estimated third of Americans own firearm or someone in their household owns a gun. Incidents involving the possession and ownership of firearms have resulted in heated debates in American society. Gun control is the most prominent issue. Stricter firearm regulation is crucial in order to lower violence in America. However, I understand that it would be an infringement on our second amendment rights of the people to absolutely abolish gun use for residents of the United States. The consequence and degree of a gun control regulation would have strong political implications because it would politically change the the Second Amendment....
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...Navarrete Essay 3 April 23, 2015 Gun Laws Law breaking and guns, the two seem to always be associated with each other. But are the two really connected? Do laws placing restrictions on firearm ownership really protect the average citizen from other citizens? These are only some of the questions many citizens and lawmakers are asking themselves when setting about to create gun control laws. The debate over gun control is always changing, and is in need of some improvement before all hell breaks lose. Clearly this debate still goes on today and is the very reasoning for the formation of gun control laws. Guns are extremely potent weapons. They can cause destruction, cause death, and most importantly, cause a city to retaliate. However, they can be used to defend and protect. No matter what way you look at it, guns are powerful tools, not only physically but also in society. As college students, it is important to stay up-to- date of the current events and issues circulating our country today, one of which is the controversial issue of gun control. It is extremely important to pay attention to where gun control laws are headed. With all the recent shootings in the past years, there is something to be said about how easy it is to acquire a gun. The courses they take will not only affect our nation and society but also the future and the families that plan to raise children. The gun war has been going on for years and new actions...
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...The debate on whether or not citizens of the United States should legally possess a gun has been an issue present all throughout history. With the ongoing violence and crime involving guns, may people, including political figures, believe stricter laws on guns will lower the rate of gun related violence. But who should be the one to determine these laws? Who is to say these laws and bans would even work? Each state has their own individual law when it comes to owning a gun. Should each state continue to have their laws, or should the government set a national law regarding the ownership of guns? If these said laws were to take effect, would those committing these acts of gun crime obey, or continue to wreak havoc? Which raises another important question; instead of the laws on guns themselves being more firm, what about the sentencing to those who use the weapon in order to harm other citizens? Would a harsher sentencing for gun crimes lower their rate, or simply be another consequence these criminals just deal with? Gun related violence is a rising issue in America. Putting a ban, or even limitations, on guns owned my citizens would do more harm than good. Many anti-gun groups, like the ones in Connecticut, have succeeded in passing a law that will reduce the amount of ammunition held inside a gun’s magazine. Since the passing of this law, the debate on whether it will bring positive or negative repercussions has been at a constant. The law came into play due to the...
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...Gun violence is not a new issue, nor is gun control a new argument. The “war on guns” dates all the way back to the infancy of the United States of America; the right to bear arms was guaranteed in the Second Amendment to the US Constitution, and has been seen, in the more than two centuries since, as a cornerstone of American liberty. However, in the last few years, repeated mass killings have placed the gun control debate at the eye of the American political storm. In an effort to balance beliefs from both ends of the political spectrum - that gun ownership needs to be protected, while restricted enough to keep guns out of the hands of those who may do deadly harm with them - has come a lack of serious, effective legislation on the matter. The Brady Handgun Violence Protection Act - seen at its enactment as a milestone in the gun control movement - has proven itself ineffective at preventing the type of mass shooting that is, unfortunately, all too common today. These killings, and the high rates of gun violence overall, challenge the core values of social work practice, and the short- and long-term economic impact of this violence is, at best, counter-productive. Based on the research outlined in this document, it is necessary as social workers to create a culture of safety, and as a country to enact sensible gun...
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...Why Gun Free Zones Are Not Safe Since the year 2007, there has been over three major public shootings in the United States. On April 16, 2007 Cho-Seung-Hui shot and killed over thirty two students and faculty members at Virginia Tech College. On December 14, 2012 Adam Lanza shot and killed twenty students and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary school. On January 18, 2013 James Holmes shot and killed twelve people an injured fifty at the Century 16 Movie Theatre in Colorado. (Center for American Progress Action Fund, 2013). These public shootings all have one thing in common with one another. Each shooting was conducted in a ‘gun free zone.’ With the exception of one, the attack on Congresswoman Gabrielle Gifford in 2011, every public mass shooting since the year 1950 occurred in a ‘gun free zone.’ When an area is rendered ‘gun free’ a false sense of safety for the surrounding citizens is provided. Many people assume that ‘gun free zones’ are safe places but in reality they create an optimal environment for a mass shooter looking for a place where they would not be faced with and resistance from their defenseless victims. In most criminals’ and mass shooters’ minds, there is no better place to open fire than one where their victims cannot fight back. There was an enormous issue recently and that is still ongoing today about rather to add to the gun control laws in the United States or not. In many states there are laws in place that prevent citizens carrying...
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...The Second Amendment of the United States Constitution, ratified in 1791, has been the subject of passionate debate and interpretation since its beginning. Ensuring the right to bear arms, its original intention, subsequent evolution, contemporary relevance, and potential for modification have been central to discussions on individual liberties, public safety, and governmental authority. This paper delves into the framers' intent behind the Second Amendment, its incorporation and evolution over time, its significance in modern society, and the prospects for amendment. The framers of the Constitution created the Second Amendment with the intention of safeguarding individual liberties and ensuring the security of the newly formed nation. The...
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...has been an ongoing debate over the Second Amendment and how it should be interpreted. The issue that is being debated is whether our government has the right to regulate guns. The answer of who has which rights lies within how one interprets the Second Amendment. With this being the case, one must also think about what circumstances the Framers were under when this Amendment was written. There are two major sides to this debate, one being the collective side, which feels that the right was given for collective purposes only. This side is in favor of having stricter gun control laws, as they feel that by having stricter laws the number of crimes that are being committed with guns will be reduced and thus save lives. However while gun control laws may decrease criminals" access to guns, the same laws restricts gun owning citizens who abide by the law; these citizens make up a great majority of the opposing side of this argument. These people argue that the law was made with the individual citizens in mind. This group believes that the Amendment should be interpreted to guarantee citizens free access to firearms. One major group that is in strong opposition of stricter gun control laws is the National Rifle Association (NRA). The NRA argues that having stricter gun control laws will only hinder law-abiding citizens. The final outcome on this debate will mainly depend on how this Amendment is going to be interpreted. The Second Amendment of the Bill of Rights states: A well-regulated...
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...On a new matter, one of the ongoing issues talked about in the media today is the issue of the Seconded Amendment in the United States Constitution. As most know, the Seconded Amendment in the United States Constitution “preserves the right of the people to” ‘keep and bear arms’ (Harr, Hess, Orthmann, & Kingsbury, 2015, p. 22). Despite the fact that, this is well documented in the Bill of Rights, some government officials, throughout history, have wanted to revise this amendment in the name of national security (Library of Congress, 2015). How are these officials justified in calling this an issue of national security? They justify this by the number of deaths that have taken place in the United States due to mass shootings. For example, the...
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...Brian K. Whichard Instructor: Gabe Gregoire English 110: College Composition April 24, 2010 Gun Control The debate over the Second Amendment (the right to keep and bear arms) has been an ongoing issue for quite some time now and probably will continue to be a hot topic for years to come. I understand that people on both sides of this issue have very strong and varying opinions, but when it comes right down to it people kill people guns are just a tool they use. Our government has systematically over the years been trying to take our gun rights away. They have implemented waiting periods and permits that law abiding citizens have to stomach in order to purchase firearms for their own protection. Even if you go the extra mile and take a course to get a concealed weapons permit the government is still trying to make it hard for you by banning concealed weapons in more and more places every year. As American citizens we are supposed to be guaranteed certain rights by the Declaration of Independence, such as life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. But it seems to me we can have all of those things as long as it does not conflict with what certain members of our government believe is right or wrong. Our rights should not be based upon what other people think or like however all too often that is how our government does things. Just because one person does not care for skeet shooting, target practicing, or hunting does not mean we all have...
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...Gun Control No matter where you are in the world you are bombarded with issues that can raise a debate. Anything from same sex marriage to global warming you will hear about it. One of the biggest ongoing debates of our time that does not seem to have a solution to its end is gun control. While most topics have three sides of supporters: those who are for it, those who are against it, and those who are in the middle. Gun control seems to only have two sides. The National Rifle Association who is against gun control has a slogan that states “Guns don’t kill people, people kill people”. This makes a very bold statement that when left alone guns in and of themselves don’t and will not cause any harm. Which if anyone who is not truthfully reading this statement correctly will fail to see what this statement means. Anti gun control supporters believe with proper training and understanding and gun owner responsibility will ease the minds of the American public and will keep the public silent. But when school shootings such as Columbine, public shootings as with the movie theater shooting, and homeland terrorist attacks such as gangs are on the front page of every news paper and all over the media, it makes it hard for a person who doesn’t know much about guns to support the no gun control agenda. The other side of the argument that is for gun control has very good persuasive points on why we need gun control here in America. The claims of no more automatic weapons are sold...
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...incarceration, inequity and gun law disparities to name a few are constantly at odds with current affairs. The U.S. Constitution shapes the U.S. Criminal Justice System with rights and due process for all citizens. The US Criminal Justice System is currently faced with challenges of prison overcrowding, mental health, drug offenses, inequity and gun violence. American society keeps asking for changes to be made to each part of the system. Changes and the...
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...Legalization of drugs that don’t produce great harm would have a greater impact on the reduction of crime than greater gun control or tighter policing of urban areas. Stricter gun control, although an effective solution, would be difficult to implement in America. If done correctly, would take away a good amount of the firepower that those committing urban violence currently have. However, the above benefits could only be achieved assuming that that the proposed solution could be perfectly executed, leaving guns entirely out of reach for criminals. There are many barriers that exist in the United States in regard to guns that did not exist in the United Kingdom or Australia when they were undergoing gun reform. “Gun culture” in the US is very...
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...American Government 3/14/2013 Gun Control The gun control debate is clearly one of the most contentious and controversial issues in America today and the battle over gun control is now being waged through intensive media campaigns from both sides of the political spectrum to influence public opinion and to assert pressure on policy makers. It is a debate that has not been resolved and will never be. “The right to bear arms”, an amendment prioritized by our founding fathers, which earned the very second spot on the list of birth rights as Americans. However, with constant tragedies striking the United States, such as massacres in public high schools and universities, mall shootings, and attempted assassinations on state representatives, it’s no wonder law makers are constantly debating the topic of gun control. Given the strong evidence that the level of gun violence is related to “relaxed gun laws”, why don’t we do more to enact stiffer gun laws? In America guns have been a part of the country’s society since its birth. Throughout history, the citizens of the US have used firearms to protect the nation, protect their families, to hunt for food and to engage in sporting activities. Criminals on the other hand, they don't listen to laws, and will take advantage of the newly unarmed law abiding citizen. As shown in statistics and studies, cities with more gun control have more gun murders, due to the fact that a law abiding citizen can't carry a gun with him, but a criminal will...
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