There is an increased number of firearms among citizens especially in the US. Death Penalty – Should the Death Penalty Be Allowed? 7. Firearms are a staple of American culture and society. There are an estimated 101 guns for every 100 people. [79] Senators Rand Paul (R-KY), Mike Lee (R-UT), and Ted Cruz (R-TX) wrote that they would oppose any legislation that infringes “on the American people’s constitutional right to bear arms, or on their ability to exercise this right without being subjected to government surveillance.” [80], According to the CDC’s “Leading Causes of Death Reports,” between 1999 and 2013, Americans were 21.5 times more likely to die of heart disease (9,691,733 deaths); 18.7 times more likely to die of malignant tumors (8,458,868 deaths); and 2.4 times more likely to die of diabetes or 2.3 times more likely to die of Alzheimer’s (1,080,298 and 1,053,207 respectively) than to die from a firearm (whether by accident, homicide, or suicide). The ease with which criminals are procuring guns illegally suggests that one answer to gun violence is fewer guns overall, denying criminals their supply. Japan has a lower rate of gun ownership and a suicide rate of 18 per 100,000 people. (2020, August 7). 61% of men and 56% of women surveyed by Pew Research said that stricter gun laws would “make it more difficult for people to protect their homes and families.” [58] Nelson Lund, JD, PhD, Professor at George Mason University School of Law, stated, “The right to self-defense and to the means of defending oneself is a basic natural right that grows out of the right to life” and “many [gun control laws] interfere with the ability of law-abiding citizens to defend themselves against violent criminals.” [59] Constitutions in 37 US states protect the right to bear arms for self-defense, most with explicit language such as Alabama’s: “every citizen has a right to bear arms in defense of himself and the state.” [60][61] Wayne LaPierre, Executive Vice President of the NRA, stated, “The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.” [62] A May 9, 2013 48% of convicted felons surveyed admitted that they avoided committing crimes when they knew the victim was armed with a gun. One of the main reasons presented by defenders of gun control in the United States is a relatively simple one. [44] Japan has a low gun ownership rate at 0.6 guns per 100 people and a high suicide rate of 18.41 suicides per 100,000 people in 1997 (ranking it 11 out of 71 countries). [31][164] Female first-time firearm owners were 35 times more likely to commit suicide within 12 years of buying the gun compared to women who did not own guns; male first-time firearm owners were about eight times more likely to do so. [19] Ian Ayres, JD, PhD, and John J. Donohue, JD, PhD, Professors of Law at Yale Law School and Stanford Law School respectively, state, “with guns being a product that can be easily carried away and quickly sold at a relatively high fraction of the initial cost, the presence of more guns can actually serve as a stimulus to burglary and theft. There are loopholes in gun ownership that control measures could close. That doesn’t make Americans safer?—it … Even if the only measure passed is an expanded background check, then it creates more information for the government to use in one of their databases. Civilians today have access to folding, detaching, or telescoping stocks that make the guns more easily concealed and carried; silencers to muffle gunshot sounds; flash suppressors to fire in low-light conditions without being blinded by the flash and to conceal the shooter’s location; or grenade launcher attachments. [63] Pew Foundation report found that 79% of male gun owners and 80% of female gun owners said owning a gun made them feel safer and 64% of people living in a home in which someone else owns a gun felt safer. The Pros And Cons Of Gun Control 1877 Words | 8 Pages. Between 1999 and 2013, there were around four and a 1/2 lacs gun-related deaths in the United States. The number includes men, women and children. '” [100], According to David Lampo, Publications Director of the Cato Institute, “there is no correlation between waiting periods and murder or robbery rates.” [102] Banning high-capacity magazines will not necessarily deter crime because even small gun magazines can be changed in seconds.The “gun show loophole” is virtually nonexistent because commercial dealers, who sell the majority of guns at shows and elsewhere, are bound by strict federal laws. Gun control regulation is a set of laws and policies designed to regulate the manufacturing, sale, purchase, and use of guns by civilians. When states passed these laws, the number of multiple-victim shootings declined by 84 percent. Disadvantages of Gun Control . Gun control laws do not deter crime. Below are the proper citations for this page according to four style manuals (in alphabetical order): the Modern Language Association Style Manual (MLA), the Chicago Manual of Style (Chicago), the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA), and Kate Turabian's A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations (Turabian). Depending on how one defines a “mass shooting,” the United States averaged one per day in 2016. Of course, opponents of gun control totally disagree with all the arguments put forward by the proponents. 5. Even if gun control laws where made much more strict, these criminals would still be able to obtain illegal weapons and use them to inflict harm and commit violent crimes. Another 17% of people chose poisoning as the preferred way to end their life. 3. To actually buy a gun, customers have to show proof of honest income, provide references, pass a criminal background check, prove any military duties were completed with honor, and be fingerprinted and photographed. 'I'll give you my gun when you pry it from my cold, dead hands!' 11. If we only focus on gun control, then the other methods of suicide will see a surge of interest. Mother Jones also found that in roughly half of the mass shootings that happened between 1982-2012, high-capacity magazines were used to commit the crime. [44] The United States, categorized as having “permissive” firearm regulation by GunPolicy.org, ranked first in international gun ownership rates with 88.8 guns per 100 people (about 270,000,000 guns total). People and organizations that is pro-control, (in favor of gun control) such as the Brady Campaign, believes that enforcing gun control will create a “safer America” and “will lead to a dramatic reduction in gun deaths and injuries.” 57% of people say that the reason why they don’t support most gun control measures is that they don’t want the government to have that kind of power over them. [158][160], A Mother Jones investigation found that high-capacity magazines were used in at least 50% of the 62 mass shootings between 1982 and 2012. 10. Gun control efforts could prevent accidental injuries. If we have learned anything from the war on drugs that has occurred over the past 30+ years, it is that making a product illegal does not stop access to it. Cons of Gun Control. Andrea McNabb shot two of the three men who tried to rob her business in 2015. [44]. v. Heller, wrote, “the Framer’s single-minded focus in crafting the constitutional guarantee ‘to keep and bear arms’ was on military use of firearms, which they viewed in the context of service in state militias,” hence the inclusion of the phrase “well regulated militia.” [3] Michael Waldman, JD, President of the Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University School of Law, stated there is nothing about an individual right to bear arms in the notes about the Second Amendment when it was being drafted, discussed, or ratified; the US Supreme Court declined to rule in favor of the individual right four times between 1876 and 1939; and all law articles on the Second Amendment from 1888 to 1959 stated that an individual right was not guaranteed. Current gun control laws are frequently aimed at inner city, poor, black communities who are perceived as more dangerous than white gun owners. [16], A June 2013 Institute of Medicine (IOM) report states that “[a]lmost all guns used in criminal acts enter circulation via initial legal transaction.” [18] Between 2005 and 2010, 1.4 million guns were stolen from US homes during property crimes (including burglary and car theft), a yearly average of 232,400. [55] Journalist John Stossel explained, “Criminals don’t obey the law… Without the fear of retaliation from victims who might be packing heat, criminals in possession of these [illegal] weapons now have a much easier job… As the saying goes, ‘If guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns. [162] A study in the New England Journal of Medicine found that firearms were the second leading cause of deaths for children, responsible for 15% of child deaths compared to 20% in motor vehicle crashes. [74], 57% of people surveyed by Pew Research in Feb. 2013 said that gun control laws would “give too much power to the government over the people.” [58] The NRA’s Wayne LaPierre stated, “if you look at why our Founding Fathers put it [the Second Amendment] there, they had lived under the tyranny of King George and they wanted to make sure that these free people in this new country would never be subjugated again and have to live under tyranny.” [75] Alex Jones, radio host, in a Jan 7, 2013 interview with Piers Morgan, stated, “The Second Amendment isn’t there for duck hunting, it’s there to protect us from tyrannical government and street thugs… 1776 will commence again if you try to take our firearms!” [76], Background checks would require government databases that keep personal individual information on gun owners, including name, addresses, mental health history, criminal records, and more. There is roughly one firearm owned in the U.S. for every person. Each year, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms estimates that at least 2,500 of these shows occur annually. [44] Finland ranked fourth in international gun ownership rates with 45.3 guns per 100 people (about 2,400,000 guns total). [53] John R. Lott, Jr., PhD, author of More Guns, Less Crime: Understanding Crime and Gun Control Laws, stated, “States with the largest increases in gun ownership also have the largest drops in violent crimes… The effect on ‘shall-issue’ [concealed gun] laws on these crimes [where two or more people were killed] has been dramatic. Homicide is only one violent action. Therefore being informed about these various issues will help citizens understand which would be the best policy. [48] The Second Amendment was written at a time when the most common arms were long rifles that had to be reloaded after every shot. 2012. [37] A June 1985 study published in the American Journal of Public Health found that “the weapons used [in altercations]… were those closest at hand.” [38] An editorial published in the June 1985 American Journal of Public Health noted, “gun-inflicted deaths [often] ensue from impromptu arguments and fights; in the US, two-thirds of the 7,900 deaths in 1981 involving arguments and brawls were caused by guns.” [39] A 1993 study published in The New England Journal of Medicine found that “[r]ather than confer protection, guns kept in the home are associated with an increase in the risk of homicide by a family member or intimate acquaintance.” [40], None of the 62 mass shootings between 1982 and 2012 was stopped by an armed civilian. Between 1999-2013, firearms were only the 12th-leading cause of death in the United States, responsible for 1.3% of fatalities. 5. Gun Control: The Pros and Cons On December 14, 2012, a man named Adam Lanza brutally murdered 20 kids and 6 adults in a Connecticut school before killing himself after the incident. Read more background…, In the June 26, 2008 District of Columbia et al. Gun control suggests that part of that right should involve responsible and knowledgeable ownership. These incidents involved the deaths of at least four people happening inside or outside of the home. Most violent crimes are committed with guns; thus, restricting gun ownership will likely reduce the number of such crimes. [44] In 2007 Switzerland ranked number 3 in international gun ownership rates with 45.7 guns per 100 people (about 3,400,000 guns total). There are always stories of tragedy to find, but it is also important to review the stories of success where gun control could have prevented a successful outcome too. The idea of gun control is simple here. Fear is often what drives the gun control debate. Social Media – Are Social Networking Sites Good for Our Society? [90][91] Mexico’s gun store is on a secure military base and customers must present a valid ID, go through a metal detector, and turn over cellphones and cameras to guards. 2. Groups like the Coalition for Gun Control (CGC) and Canadian Doctors for Protection from Guns (CDPG) wanted Canada to ban handguns and some … The accidental shot struck 17-year-old Chad Carless while he was sitting next to him. Those who are for greater gun control see three basic pros to new laws: 1. [8] David H. Chipman, Senior Vice President of Public Safety for ShotSpotter and former Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) agent, stated that a high-capacity magazine “turns a killer into a killing machine.” [7] Some gang members use high-capacity magazines, such as 30 rounds or even 90 rounds, to compensate for lack of accuracy and maximize the chance to harm. Gun Control. 4. [51] Lawrence Hunter, Chairman of Revolution PAC, stated, “The Founders understood that the right to own and bear laws is as fundamental and as essential to maintaining liberty as are the rights of free speech, a free press, freedom of religion and the other protections against government encroachments on liberty delineated in the Bill of Rights.” [52], A study in Applied Economics Letters found that “assault weapons bans did not significantly affect murder rates at the state level” and “states with restrictions on the carrying of concealed weapons had higher gun-related murders.” [103] While gun ownership doubled in the twentieth century, the murder rate decreased. People commit acts of violence against other for a variety of reasons, but it is a core issue of value that we must look at as a society to begin fixing the issues of violence that occur. 1. There are both Pros and Cons to Gun control laws. [67] According to the National Shooting Sports Foundation, “So-called ‘Assault weapons’ are more often than not less powerful than other hunting rifles. About 14 million hunters purchase firearms and accessories for their activities each year. 3. Defensive stories are everywhere when you look for them specifically. A 2013 study published by Dr. John Lott, Jr, author of More Guns, Less Crime, found that in roughly 30 years of gun control bans, homicide rates at the state level were not significantly impacted by the legislation. [90][92][93] Between 2006 and 2010, Mexico’s one gun shop sold 6,490 guns, [92] yet as of 2012, Mexicans own about 15,000,000 guns, or about 13.5 guns per 100 people. [25] Homicide rates doubling has been associated with a 12.5% decline in property values. Unfortunately in the US, many legally owned guns are stolen by criminals and felons, most commonly through car theft or property break-ins. Gun Control Pros And Cons . As well as killing others, guns also make it easier for people to commit suicide and kill themselves. An increase in gun-related crime can even lower the property values of a neighborhood by more than 10%. [148] Gun licensing laws were associated with a 14% decrease in firearm homicides, while increases in firearm homicides were seen in places with right-to-carry and stand-your ground-laws. The country has only one legal gun store (the Directorate of Arms and Munitions Sales), compared to at least 63,709 legal gun stores and pawn shops in the United States as of Feb. 10, 2014. As Time Magazine reports, the international standard for private healthcare plans and government-run facilities around the world is that a human life is only worth $50,000. They’re even 2.5 times more likely to die because of the complications they experience because of diabetes or 2 times more likely to pass away because of Alzheimer’s disease. Gun Control: Pros, Cons, and the Impact of Legislation. [154] Guns don’t kill people; people kill people. They are 18 times more likely to die because of a malignant tumor. Last modified on August 7, 2020. [88][89]. Retrieved from https://gun-control.procon.org/, ProCon.org. Reducing Firearm-Related Death. By any definition of mass shooting used, most come from guns that were purchased legally. [44][45] Jim Barrett, author for TheTruthAboutGuns.com, stated, “the theory that the restriction or elimination of guns would have a positive effect on the overall suicide rate in the U.S. does not hold up under scrutiny.” [81], 95% of all US gun owners believe that children should learn about gun safety. In order to protect themselves, their family, and their property, it is a legitimate right of citizens to own weapons. Anything can become a weapon for someone if their mind is set on causing harm. If allowed to purchase a gun, the customer may buy only one gun (choosing from only .38 caliber pistols or lower) and one box of bullets. Additionally, 90% of women, 91% of 0- to 14-year olds, 92% of 15- to 24-year-olds, and 82% of all people killed by firearms were from the United States. [165], Five women are murdered with guns every day in the United States. [15], Of the 29,618,300 violent crimes committed between 2007 and 2011, 0.79% of victims (235,700) protected themselves with a threat of use or use of a firearm, the least-employed protective behavior. Gun control doesn’t stop people who are determined to purchase a firearm. 67% support a nationwide ban on assault weapons, and 83% support mandatory waiting periods for gun purchases. Something somewhere failed that person, making a gunshot the only way out. If the government knows who owns all the guns and can keep that information indefinitely, then there is nothing that can stop them from targeting those people first. v. Heller US Supreme Court majority opinion, Justice Antonin Scalia, LLB, wrote, “Like most rights, the right secured by the Second Amendment is not unlimited… nothing in our opinion should be taken to cast doubt on longstanding prohibitions on the possession of firearms by felons and the mentally ill, or laws forbidding the carrying of firearms in sensitive places such as schools and government buildings, or laws imposing conditions and qualifications on the commercial sale of arms.” [3] On June 9, 2016 the US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 7-4 that “[t]he right of the general public to carry a concealed firearm in public is not, and never has been, protected by the Second Amendment,” thus upholding a law requiring a permitting process and “good cause” for concealed carry licenses in California. [10][14] 76% of women murdered and 85% of women who survived a murder attempt by an intimate partner were stalked in the year before the murder or murder attempt. One of the options that is frequently discussed is the idea of gun control. Many proponents believe that gun control will lead to reduced crime rates and suicide among the citizens although it hasn’t been proved. Instead, it has everything to do with decreasing the number of guns in America and making them more difficult to legally purchase. At the same time, 52% of people say that the “average American” can’t be trusted with a firearm and only 41% say that people should be able to carry guns in public in the first place. [145][146] A 2018 study found that 91% of the 1,153 court cases with claims stating a government action or law violates the Second Amendment between the 2008 DC v. Heller decision and Feb. 1, 2016 failed. People in the United States are over 20 times more likely to die because of heart disease than they are because of an act of gun violence. There have been recent terrorist attacks that killed dozens of innocent people because someone used a car as a weapon. Gun control measures may have the best interests of everyone in mind, but it is also an effort to reduce the amount of privacy that is available in society today. [22] 84% of those injured by firearms are uninsured, leaving taxpayers responsible for most of those bills through programs like Medicaid. Rape, armed robbery, and similar acts also decline when there are more legal weapons owned by private individuals in society. ], [Editor’s Note: The MLA citation style requires double spacing within entries. [102] According to a Mar. [47], President Ronald Reagan and others did not think the AR-15 military rifle (also called M16s by the Air Force) should be owned by civilians and, when the AR-15 was included in the assault weapons ban of 1994 (which expired on Sep. 13, 2004), the NRA supported the legislation. [163] A study in the American Journal of Public Health estimated that hospitalizations for firearm-related injuries cost Medicaid and Medicare $2.7 billion over nine years. [35] Marjorie Sanfilippo, PhD, Professor of Psychology at Eckerd College who has researched children’s behavior around guns, stated, “We put gates around swimming pools to keep children from drowning. 3. Gun control laws could save a lot of money from a societal standpoint. There were over 4,400 gun shows in the United States operating in 1998. 1. A debate on gun control has been a major concern. Accessed March 11, 2021. https://gun-control.procon.org/, More Guns, Less Crime: Understanding Crime and Gun Control Laws, International Civilian Gun Ownership Rates, Leading Causes of Suicide, Homicide, and Unintentional Death. Guns make it much easier to kill people. Lunatics, bullied school kids, disgruntled workers, and others can inflict mass casualties with guns that otherwise wouldn't be possible. Permit requirements and bans on sales to minors were the most effective of the regulations analyzed.” [32] In Indiana and Connecticut, after “red flag” laws to remove guns from people who may pose a threat were enacted, gun suicides decreased by 7.5% and 13.7% respectively, while suicides by other means did not decrease during the same time. When weighing gun control pros and cons, dealing with the supply is a positive. But, there are concealed carry laws in place varying from state to state with some state making it difficult to get a concealed carry permit. [100] A 1792 federal law required that every man eligible for militia service own a gun and ammunition suitable for military service, report for frequent inspection of their guns, and register their gun ownership on public records. Pros of Gun Control The main argument for gun control is that it would reduce violent crime and shootings, especially in urban areas. A father in Jonesboro, GA, was attacked by an armed robber while walking with his daughter. '” [56], According to the National Rifle Association (NRA), guns are used for self-defense 2.5 million times a year. [57] The police cannot protect everyone all of the time. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) worried that Senator Harry Reid’s 2013 proposed background check legislation (the bill failed 54-46) would have allowed the government to keep databases of gun purchases indefinitely, creating a “worry that you’re going to see searches of the databases and an expansion for purposes that were not intended when the information was collected.” [77][78] Micro-stamping similarly requires a database of gun owners and the codes their personal guns would stamp on cartridge cases. Identifying people who are contemplating this action is the step we must take to provide them with the help they require. Gun Control – Should More Gun Control Laws Be Enacted? The United States is ranked 28 in international homicide rates with 2.97 gun murders per 100,000 people in 2012. This article will give you arguments for and against the gun control. 1. When this feature is available to a shooter, the fatality rate rose by more than 60% for each incident. 8. Gun control laws eventually lessen deaths due to gun-related incidents. Here are the unbiased pros and cons of gun control to review as they pertain to the United States. [4] Internationally, the claim that the United States has a major problem with firearm homicide is exaggerated. Collectively, 143 guns were possessed by the killers with about 75% obtained legally. Even if the gun owner had a permit to carry a concealed weapon and would never use it in furtherance of a crime, is it likely that the same can be said for the burglar who steals the gun?” [20], The more than 100,000 people shot in the United States each year generate emergency room and hospital charges of nearly $3 billion. [27] 77% of Americans support requiring a license to purchase a gun. Illegal Immigration – What Are the Solutions to Illegal Immigration in America? Background checks prevent criminals and other dangerous people from getting guns.” [29], Between 1999 and 2013 there were 270,237 firearm suicides in the United States, accounting for about 52% of all suicides during those years. [16] Despite Chicago’s ban on gun shops, shooting ranges, assault weapons, and high capacity magazines, in 2014 Chicago had 2,089 shooting victims including at least 390 murders. If you take the ability to own weapons that are potentially dangerous from people who are likely to use them, then it offers the possibility of making society safer. [17] Of the 84,495,500 property crimes committed between 2007 and 2011, 0.12% of victims (103,000) protected themselves with a threat of use or use of a firearm. Gun control laws give too much power to the government and may result in government tyranny and the government taking away all guns from citizens. America’s pervasive gun culture stems in part from its colonial history, revolutionary roots, frontier expansion, and the Second Amendment, which 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.”. School Uniforms – Should Students Have to Wear School Uniforms? [64], In 2011, there were 13.7 million hunters 16 years old or older in the United States, and they spent $7.7 billion on guns, sights, ammunition, and other hunting equipment. He shot the criminal in self-defense and did not face charges. Info: 1862 words (7 pages) Essay Published: 8th Feb 2020 in Politics Reference this Potentially fewer school shootings: The harder it is for someone to get their hands on a gun, the less likely they are to commit a crime with said gun. According to the opponents of gun control, it is every citizen’s right to bear arms, and that society would be better off with unrestricted gun rights. The Supreme Court already ruled that individuals have the right to own guns. We must think that all human life and its potential is priceless for us to begin moving beyond where we are at. [41] Gun rights activists regularly state that a 2002 mass shooting at the Appalachian School of Law in Virginia was stopped by armed students, but those students were current and former law enforcement officers and the killer was out of bullets when subdued. [165] Don Macalady, member of Hunters against Gun Violence, stated, “As a hunter and someone who has owned guns since I was a young boy, I believe that commonsense gun legislation makes us all safer. Gun control doesn’t stop people who are determined to purchase a firearm. "Gun Control." [16] In 2010 there were 230 “justifiable homicides” in which a private citizen used a firearm to kill a felon, compared to 8,275 criminal gun homicides (or, 36 criminal homicides for every “justifiable homicide”). 2 The Effect of the Brady Law and the Pros and Cons of Gun Control Abstract Gun control has been a prevalent topic in criminology for many decades. About 3.5% of background checks are not finished in those first three business days. Most of the gun violence statistics involve suicides. The guns came from all 50 states, and more than half came from outside of Illinois. 8. There was a mass stabbing attack in China in 2014 that killed 29 people at a railway station. Measures to control guns create a violation of privacy. Mandatory National Service – Should the United States Have Mandatory National Service? According to the United States Code, a “militia” is composed of all “able-bodied males at least 17 years of age… under 45 years of age who are, or who have made a declaration of intention to become citizens of the United States and of female citizens of the United States who are members of the National Guard.” [99] Therefore, the militia mentioned in the Second Amendment would have been composed of almost all adult men and, in turn, that most adult men should not have their right to own firearms infringed.