Gun control is very controversial subject. There are many books written about gun control. Some people bring strong arguments that government should permit citizens to own a gun. The question is does the gun in house helps or brings more problems? Traditionally, Americans considered each person responsible both for self-protection and for the defense of the state. Well into the nineteenth century, people needed guns to protect themselves against hostile Indians. In addition, hunting was a major source of food. People legally carried guns as a matter of course, a practice accepted as both necessary and politically desirable (Edward 477).

             The federal government and all U.S. states have some gun control laws. These laws are based on several strategies: forbidding certain types of people from obtaining any firearms; prohibiting anyone other than the police, the military, and persons with special needs from acquiring certain types of guns; and requiring purchasers to wait some period of time before purchasing a gun or gun license.

             The most common gun control strategy attempts to prohibit unreliable people from obtaining guns. Federal and state laws prohibit people who have been convicted of a felony and other individuals deemed to be poor risks from purchasing guns. Federal law and many state laws also prohibit minors from obtaining guns. There is too much violent crime in the United States, and guns too often are involved in such crimes. Approximately half the families in the United States own a gun; estimates on the number in the country range from 60 million up to 200 million. About one American in twenty carries a gun for self-protection. Fourteen percent of the gun owning households in the United States report that they have used a gun for protection of person or property exclusive of military or police work. In 60 percent of these cases, the gun was not fired but was used as a threat, and in only 9 percent of the instances was anyone injured or killed (Edward 477).