Gun control is a very popular topic in today’s media. Webster’s dictionary defines gun control as the “regulation of selling, owning, and use of guns”. Gun control has recently become a major topic of discussion around the United States because of the recent increase in mass shootings. People are outraged that citizens, such as people with mental illnesses, are capable of getting their hands on an automatic weapon with little to no resistance. Sometimes the public is misled by statistics presented by the media. Therefore, the current gun regulations should be upheld.
The background of gun control is important for one to understand. The first step at regulating guns from the executive branch of government came from President Franklin D. Roosevelt. He passed gun legislation imposing a tax on the purchase, making, and transportation of all firearms and attachments. This was the very first attempt to decrease gun violence by creating laws to make it harder to obtain such weapons. The legislation set laws that the United States still uses today. Another example of executive action on gun control would be President Bush’s ban on imported semi-automatic rifles in 1989. Bush’s ban would help create more strict laws attempting to regulate the distribution of guns. These regulations were the stepping stones to what gun regulation is known as today.
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As time went on, gun control became a more popular topic to discuss. The Logic Of American Politics, says that “in the court case of District of Columbia v. Heller, it was decided that the 2nd amendment, the right to bear arms, was not a group right but rather an individual right” (308). People have a choice on whether to own a gun or not. According to a New York Times article, it states that “With the right to bear arms comes a great responsibility to use caution and common sense on handgun purchases’”. This quote, in response to the proposition of the Brady Bill, implies that with guns comes strict conduct. This bill required a 5-day waiting period on the purchase of a handgun in order for law enforcement to do a background check. Support from a lifetime NRA member and a former president was enough to get the Brady Bill passed. The bill was eventually put into commission and eventually passed by former president Bill Clinton. The passing of the law became one of the most important changes to gun control since the creation of the Gun Control Act of 1968.
Guns are not the major problem that is hurting the United States. If we had better control of the problems people have that lead them to suicide or commit crimes, we could change the amount of gun violence happening. According to Pew Research, 30% of all Americans own guns. Although everyone owns a gun for different reasons, the majority of people who own a firearm own it for protection or self-defense. If you look at Australia, a country that has gotten rid of guns completely, the numbers of knife-related violence have skyrocketed. Australia is the perfect example of how taking away legal guns does not equal less crime. Another statement from Pew Research states that “six in ten gun-related deaths in the United States in 2017 were suicides and 37% of gun deaths came from crime”. Guns are not the problem we should be worrying about. We need to find more efficient ways to help people who are hurting before they have to take that extra step.
Another problem with the statistics about gun control is the fact that they are easily manipulated by the media. When many people see newspapers or articles with the word gun included, they come to the conclusion that guns need stricter laws. The media does a great way of portraying all the negatives guns have. According to Pew Research, 30% of all Americans own guns. Although everyone owns a gun for different reasons, the majority of people who own a firearm own it for protection or self-defense. Police officers have saved multiple people from dying by using their guns. They use their weapons to protect Americans from the crummy people in our country. Taking away guns will not necessarily reduce the amount of crime committed, but it will reduce the number of people capable of deterring those criminals. Furthermore, stricter gun laws would increase the amount of crime committed.
According to PBS, the United States is ranked 20th in gun violence in developed countries. This includes suicides and accidental misfires along with homicides and mass shootings. With this information, the people of the United States want stricter laws on guns. However, the Second Amendment of the Constitution gives Americans the right to bear arms, making the order of gun control unconstitutional. The Constitution is just and has been the building block for America since its creation. The right to bear arms should not be altered because of the problems our society is causing itself. We need to come up with an alternative way to fix these problems instead of banning guns from people.
In conclusion, the gun regulations we have now should not be modified. The United States has been using these gun laws for hundreds of years and the problems we’re having now can be mended by different methods. We can get people more help before using a gun for suicide is the answer. Guns help protect our country and our citizens and without them, the United States could be in danger. Gun laws in America should be upheld and sustained.
Works Cited
- Bartels, L. (2019, March 6). Knife crime: Recent data on carriage and use. Retrieved from https://aic.gov.au/publications/tandi/tandi417.
- Gramlich, J., & Schaeffer, K. (2019, October 22). 7 facts about guns in the U.S.
- Holmes, S. A. (1991, March 29). GUN CONTROL BILL BACKED BY REAGAN IN APPEAL TO BUSH. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/1991/03/29/us/gun-control-bill-backed-by-reagan-in-appeal-to-bush.html.
- Kaplan, S. (2018, March 12). Congress Quashed Research Into Gun Violence. Since then, 600,000 People Have Been Shot. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/12/health/gun-violence-research-cdc.html.
- NRA Foundation. (n.d.). NRA Foundation. Retrieved from https://www.nrafoundation.org/about-us/.
- Santhanam, L. (2018, August 28). There's a new global ranking of gun deaths. Here's where the U.S. stands. Retrieved from https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/theres-a-new-global-ranking-of-gun-deaths-heres-where-the-u-s-stands.
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