Gun Control

A detailed Summary of Gun Control

The idea of gun control and regulation is becoming more and more popular throughout the U.S., although it still brings resistance by a lot of people. This country's freedom was won over through bloody wars with the same guns that protect us. Guns are portrayed throughout television, movies, and video games. The role guns play in our society is a highly controversial debate. Guns are a symbol of power, control, authority, and dominance and can be associated with defense. There are both avid supporters of the 2nd amendment guaranteeing American citizens the right to keep arms, and on the other hand there are people who strongly disagree with the widespread use and availability of guns to youth and criminals. Those in favor of open use of gun are often motivated by the 2nd Amendment, and the right they claim to hunt, protect the home, or for defense against potential militias or government overthrow which is highly unlikely in the U.S. The motive behind proponents of gun control on the other hand, is to restrict accessibility to guns to prevent violence in our society. My position ultimately, with relevance to my selected topic of this essay (Gun Control), is neither an attempt to convince or persuade anyone to use guns nor to restri

ct them. From here however, let me tell you, being a student, guns play a role of total non-importance in my life, and therefore I have sought out a reasoning that has led me to favor a world I and my family lives in with no guns altogether. This may sound rather idealistic or radical, but it is necessary considering my reasoning. Our world is in need of a profound, collective reformation where violence and guns are concerned particularly in United States. Firstly, the reach of gun violence is sort of beyond imagination, primarily in the U.S. among all other industrial nations. Next to automobile fatality, gun violence is the second leading cause of death by injury in the U.S. It should become first by the year 2003 unless something is really done about it. In the early nineties for example, four states - Nevada, Virginia, Louisiana, and Texas had trends of gun injury as the top most cause of death. This type of violence it seems is almost as epidemic as AIDS is in causing death. That is a very scary thing to consider. (gunfree.org) The National Center for Health Statistics reports that firearms have taken the lives of 35,957 people in the U.S. in 1995. There is a 21.5% firearm fatality increase since 1985. And, of these fatalities, suicides rank first at 18,503 people; homicides second at 15,835 people; unintentional shootings next at 1,225 people; and 394 were undetermined. (gunfree.org) Now I would like to demystify several arguments used against gun control. The first one assumes that gun control won't stop gun violence or crime. Most criminals get guns through legal means contrary to what the gun lobby says to justify having a huge availability of guns. This is proven by the Criminal Justice Research Center. They apparently surveyed that only 27% of adult inmates and 43% of juveniles have bought handguns illegally on the black market. On the other hand, of these inmates, 69% of adults and 55% of juveniles obtained guns through means like retail, gun shops, private owners, friends or family. This confirms that most guns are gotten legally through controlled methods. (gunfree.org) Isn't this enough to point out that the guns sold by owners and dealers are a risk to us and can be regulated to lower crime, murder, suicide, and other fatalities. (gunfree.org) The 2nd amendment of the constitution says: "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 Supreme Court made clear in its 1939 case decision of U.S. vs. Miller, that the 2nd Amendment doesn't really protect possession of a firearm unless there is some type of reasonable relationship in preserving a militia. Currently, the National Guard is regarded as today's form of militia. (gunfree.org) Also equally impressive is that in all Supreme and Federal courts, since the Miller decision, no gun control laws have been shot down on the case of the 2nd Amendment. And particularly lower federal courts have never supported firearm possession as being a fundamental and individual citizen right. (gunfree.org) Although it is true that the constitution is a fundamental part of our history and country, "the framers of the Constitution more than 200 years ago couldn't possibly have foreseen the multitude of high tech guns, their wide

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Approximate Word count = 2224
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Politics