...Gun Control Gun Control in the United States should be more limited because Gun Control would reduce gun violence and would limit the amount of people killed each year by guns. According to Watkins “We will never fully solve our nation’s horrific problem of gun violence unless we ban the manufacture and sale of handguns and semi-automatic assault weapons.” USA Today, December 29, 1993.” [ (Watkins, 2012) ]. Gun control has been a hot topic for many years, because conservative Americans believe they should have the right to bear arm and the liberal side believe that it is not safe to have guns in the home. Both sides believe that they are right, because of the Fifth Amendment but the facts speak for themselves, “with nearly 400,000 gun crimes committed every year, the United States has the highest rate of firearm deaths (more than 30, 000 each year) among twenty –five high-income nations. Clearly, stronger and more effective gun control laws are needed to keep guns out of the wrong hands and to better protect the public. Furthermore, despite what the gun lobby claim, most Americans are in favor of common-sense gun laws because they understand that such laws will, in fact, help reduce gun violence.” [ (Watkins, 2012) ]. Over 270 million people are estimated to own guns in American but does that mean we are safer in our homes because we have a gun or the fact that we have a gun increase the likely hood that we may be killed with our own gun? Watkins went on to say that “many people...
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...Government and Gun Control Guns have been a controversial topic since the founding of the United States. Our forefathers decided that "a well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed". From the very beginning our government has controlled a citizen's rights in regards to firearms. In 1999, citizens are being limited just as our ancestors were only the government has taken the responsibility away from the individual and placed it on the manufacturer of the firearms. Media coverage and firearm-related deaths have caused the government to intervene on the manufacturing and banning of firearms. In order to discuss firearms we must understand its definition. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary a firearm is "a weapon from which a shot is discharged by gunpowder- usually used of small arms". The Oxford Dictionary simply states that a firearm is “a rifle, pistol, or other portable gun". These definitions are vague and somewhat confusing to those who are not very knowledgeable in the firearm subject. Many reporters and anti-firearm organizations also include assault weapons and semi-automatic weapons. So I will go ahead and speak of firearms to include all guns and rifles. Anti-firearm groups have been around since the Constitution was written. These organizations believe that gun ownership should be limited and very strict. Their quest is to reduce violence, ensure that the government...
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...Gun Control For as long as I can remember, “The Right to Bear Arms” has always been one of the key essential rights to all American citizens. It went hand in hand with “Freedom of Speech”. Ask just about any high school freshman to name three specific rights provided to us by our United States forefathers in our U.S. Constitution and “The Right to bear Arms” will surely reach most lists. It was just one of those things that stood out as a young student of U.S. government. As I’ve gotten older, the more and more I came to realize that something that seemed so much like a given when it comes to basic rights of the American citizen, has become more and more of a not so given. This is largely in part due to the recent increase over the years of casualties involving minors and firearms which have put the issue of Gun Control on a political stage of its own. The Second Amendment of the United States Constitution states, “A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.” as written by Thomas Jefferson. It was adopted along with the rest of the Bill of Rights on December 15, 1791 and has been a staple to American citizen rights ever since. Several high profile court cases have been presented in front of the Supreme Court challenging the Second Amendment with no avail. One of the most notable and recent cases was Heller vs. District of Columbia (2008). Six plaintiffs were...
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...Gun Control: Protecting Society The second amendment states that “A well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.” The second amendment protects the right of the people to have weapons. Gun control should be extended because the crime rate would go down. Increased gun control measures such as background checks, restoring the ban on assault weapons, regulating ammunition and magazines, banning sales to domestic violence offenders, and creating a waiting period with training and registration to purchase a gun would greatly reduce crime in the U.S. Since 1984, there have been at least 44 mass shootings with 3 or more victims where the shooter used...
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...Gun Control- Pro Gun control is the control of firearms so that crime will go down. Roughly 16,272 murders were committed in the United States during 2008. Most of these, 67 percent or 10,886 were committed with firearms. Even though people have the right to bear arms, as said in The Bill of Rights, there should be laws in place to limit the amount and types of firearms people can own. (www.justthefacts.com) Crime rates in the United States are way too high with most crimes such as robberies, assaults, and murders being committed with a gun. Kids have easy access to most guns that are in the house because they are not properly locked away. Kids may be interested in how the gun works and do not properly know how to use it. Some sort of accident happens where it fires and possibly kills someone . In 1994 Governor Weld of Massachusetts signed a law that banned handguns for anyone under the age of 21.The crime rate in Boston decreased . There needs to be laws in place to restrict the availability and types of guns that are legal to regular citizens. (www.proquest.com) www.youdebate.com). Gun Control relates to governmental issues because of the 2nd Amendment in the Constitution. There are two Principles of Democracy that gun control directly is related to, first is Individual Rights and Freedoms because it is a persons right to own any firearm that they so please. It also involves Limited Government. Many people will argue that people have the 2nd Amendment protecting...
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...know that own a gun? Everyone has at least had one in his or her possession. This country should have stricter gun regulations. Being 21 years old and having a clean background shouldn't cut it. If these gun regulations were stricter we wouldn't have so much crimes and deaths as we do. This country would be able to prevent many accidents and have fewer crimes. First of all, no one should be allowed to buy more than one handgun. What would be the purpose of someone owning so many weapons? The simultaneous or rapid purchase of multiple sales is a potential indicator of gun trafficking. If we had better gun enforcement, we would have less crime. Such as, Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which for several years has been the major federal initiative to combat gun violence, including several elements (such as, gun locks and other efforts to reduce gun availability) that research suggest are likely to have at best modest effects on gun crime. Children at young age seem to be affected by this as well. Kids think guns are cool and play pretend games as if they owned guns. For instance, a little seven-year-old was drawing the other day in class; unfortunately he drew a gun, and ended up being suspended from school. It happened in New Jersey, which also had four kindergartners sent home because of playing "cops and robbers." These incidents show that something has to be changed because are the kids the true cold blood killers? What if one of the kids got in contact with a gun from his father...
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...homes, and chances are, one of them will have a gun. In a study done by Harvard University in 2004, thirty-eight percent of American households reported owning at least one gun. For generations, it has been a proudly proclaimed by Americans that they have the right to bear arms. This right, however, is under attack from the forty-six percent of Americans who now believe that the United States needs to pass stricter gun laws or change the second amendment. This number is decreased three points from just four months ago (Diamond). The second amendment should not be repealed or amended due to the Supreme Court’s YEAR ruling on the second amendment, the lack of success of gun control in other countries, and the necessity of...
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...ask ourselves why. Therefore it’s time to really get to know the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution. When the Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787, federalists claimed the new government would only have limited powers. For the critics of the new government, known as the anti-federalists, this wasn’t enough. What they addressed was the fact that the original constitution lacked something to protect the liberties of each individual. One of the things they pleaded for was the right to keep and bear arms....
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...To this day, the debate over gun control rages on, especially with the United States’ decisions to put more regulations on gun ownership and use. People who are for gun control would agree with this. Advocates who don’t agree with stricter gun control would disagree on this topic. It might sound crazy, but many sources say that more lenient gun laws are actually better for our country and will actually keep us safer. Gun control should not be as rigorous as it has not cut back the number of gun-related crimes. First, stricter gun control is an attack on the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution. If we have stricter gun control laws, it would ruin the purpose of that amendment in the first place. The Second Amendment of the United...
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...of this repeated problem is to add limitations on the right to bear arms or the means to keep a weapon. President Barack Obama recently stated that, “We know that states with the most gun laws tend to have the fewest gun deaths. So the notion that gun laws don’t work, or just will make it harder for law-abiding citizens and criminals to still get their guns is not borne out by the evidence.” This thus shows that there are issues disregarding whether fire arm restrictions have an impact on American citizens. As a result...
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...Gun Control in America Alicia Buford COMM 215 Instructor Bruce Massis May 20, 2013 Did you know that in the United States that there are almost as many firearms as there are citizens (Wadman, 2013)? Consequently, the second amendment of the constitution gives each American citizen “The Right to Bear Arms.” The right to bear these arms is a just that, a right but, along with that right comes responsibility. Since the days of the pioneers, firearms have been an element of the American tradition as defense and a means of hunting or activity. However, as we progress through the 21st century the use of guns has changed significantly. Some of the reasons for the change are the steady increase in crime and the battle for the right to have possession of hand guns. Due to the number of gun owners in America, one might think that we have a strong affection for guns and gun ownership rights. This could not be further from the truth. Americans views towards guns have shifted significantly. In a 1998 Harris Poll taken a year before Columbine, shows that almost 70 percent of Americans favor “stricter gun control” (Contexts, Fall, 2003). So what should we do about this? I believe that stricter gun control legislation should be the solution to much of the gun violence that is plaguing our nation. Restricting the right to bear arms, especially assault weapons should make our communities safer. Granted, many people in community all across this country own guns. A large...
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...Megan Padilla Gun Control Sociology November 12, 2013 Gun Control The issue of gun control has come up recently as an important decision opportunity for our country. Many people are asking whether guns really are the helpful tool that many of us have been saying they are, or if they are the killing machines they have recently been publicized as. The definition of a gun is "a device that discharges a shot, shells, or bullets from a straight tube by a spark-producing mechanism that ignites the gunpowder." Although there are several different kind of guns, they all work in the same way. Gun laws are the cause of much violent crime in America, and the best way to resolve the problem is to change the laws so that owning an illegal firearm is the cause of majority of the crimes today. The second amendment states that “A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” Since it states this in the bill of rights there is no way that we could abolish guns in the future. The ultimate question about gun control is whether people should be allowed this right, or should gun rights be abolished all together. The reason for the controversial topic of gun control is the mass shooting we have witnessed over recent years. On January 8th, 2013, the Newtown, Connecticut elementary school shooting occurred and took the lives of 27 students and teachers. This tragedy, at first, dropped jaws...
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...has been a strong push for gun control because of the rise of shootings involving a large group of people such as the Columbine massacre, Virginia Tech shooting and latest Aurora movie theater shooting involving people who have purchased firearms legally. Gun control laws in the United States have been established for many years but to maintain a civilized society with limited crime stronger control laws need to be enforced in which will help reduce crime in our country. Establishing stronger gun control laws will educate society, reduce the amount of accidental deaths, and decrease the number of violent crimes committed in our communities. An upright definition of gun control is necessary to understand the sides and issues relating to firearms. Educating Society The first step that should be taken by state legislators is to provide classes for young adults on the dangers of firearms. “An American citizen's right to own guns is upheld by the Second Amendment to the Constitution; However, many people feel that the amendment is outdated, and that gun control is of utmost importance in an increasingly violent society” (Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, 2012 p 6). The organizations such as The National Rifle Association "Believe that every law-abiding citizen is entitled to the ownership and legal use of firearms” (NRA.org 2012 p.1).” This organization also does many things to help display there beliefs and persuade society that they have a right without limitations. This providing...
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...Topic: Gun Control Purpose: Stricter Laws on Gun control Specific purpose: Gun Control Controversy Thesis: Most gun owners are responsible and law-abiding, and they use their guns safely. The President strongly believes that the Second Amendment guarantees an individual right to bear arms. But to better protect our children and our communities from tragic mass shootings like those in Newtown, Aurora, Oak Creek, and Tucson, there are four common-sense steps we can take right now based of the President’s Plan for Gun control. Introduction: I. While no law or set of laws will end gun violence, it is clear that the American people want action. If even one child’s life can be saved, then we need to act. Now is the time to do the right thing for our children, our communities, and the country we love. II. Congress must also do its part. To prevent mass shootings and other gun violence, Congress should take critical steps through new legislation, including: requiring Background checks for all gun sales; reinstating the prohibition on high-capacity Magazines; renewing and strengthening the ban on assault weapons; and creating Serious penalties for gun traffickers who help put guns into the hands of criminals. III. These actions will: help make sure information about potentially dangerous people who are barred from having guns is available to the national background check system; lift the ban on research into the causes...
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...Senior Research Project: Is the right to bear arms ethical? Lucas Van Duyn Senior Seminar: Business Ethics Dr. Jewe July 31, 2012 Introduction to the Project: In the United States, research into firearms and violent crime is fraught with difficulties, associated with limited data on gun ownership and use, firearms markets, and aggregation of crime data. Research studies into gun violence have primarily taken one of two approaches: case-control studies and social ecology. Gun ownership is usually determined through surveys, proxy variables, and sometimes with production and import figures. In statistical analysis of homicides and other types of crime, which are rare events, these data tend to have poison distributions, which also presents methodological challenges to researchers. (Just Facts, 2010) Americans own an estimated 270 million firearms, approximately 90 guns for every 100 people. In 2009, guns took the lives of 31,347 Americans in homicides, suicides and unintentional shootings. This is the equivalent of more than 85 deaths each day and more than three deaths each hour. 66,769 Americans were treated in hospital emergency departments for non-fatal gunshot wounds in 2009. Firearms were the third-leading cause of injury-related deaths nationwide in 2009, following poisoning and motor vehicle accidents. Between 1955 and 1975, the Vietnam War killed over 58,000 American soldiers – less than the number of civilians killed with guns in the U.S. in an average two-year...
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