NOTE: Free essay sample provided on this page should be used for references or sample purposes only. The sample essay is available to anyone, so any direct quoting without mentioning the source will be considered plagiarism by schools, colleges and universities that use plagiarism detection software. To get a completely brand-new, plagiarism-free essay, please use our essay writing service.
One click instant price quote
Gun Control in the United States: Pros and Cons Introduction Gun Control Situation in U. S. Pros of Gun Control Cons of Gun Control Conclusion Bibliography Introduction Perhaps with the one exception of abortion, gun control is the most controversial issue in American politics, and it appeals strongly to the emotions of those who support as well as those who oppose further regulation of firearms. Although people take many different positions on the issue, supporting some proposals for control and rejecting others, the more uncompromising on both sides tend to collapse pro- and anti- gun control categories into two.
The pro- gun forces see themselves as the supporters of a vital constitutional right to keep and bear arms pitted against the gun grabbers. Strong advocates of gun control see themselves struggling for a more civilized society against the gun nuts and profit hungry firearms manufacturers and dealers. This paper discusses pros and cons for such controversial issue as gun control in the United States. General gun control consists of policies to regulate the manufacture and sale of guns.
Such measures include requiring police permits, background checks, waiting periods, or licensing and registration for all gun owners. (Cook 3) Supporters and opponents of gun control disagree over the significance of firearms as an independent variable in explaining the high level of violence in the United States. The term gun culture is used by both sides in explaining their respective views of the special role firearms have played in American history and continue to play in contemporary society. (Utter 5) Gun rights advocates point with pride to the role that average Americans played in the Revolutionary War, especially because of the skill they demonstrated with firearms against an intimidated British force. Firearms are seen as an important ingredient in the unique ability of Americans to maintain their independence from a potentially oppressive government. Those less impressed with the gun tradition see that the American love affair with firearms has contributed to a violent past and a continuing belief that many problems can be resolved through violence. While not denying this predilection for violence, gun supporters note that other cultures not having as extensive a supply of firearms also experience high levels of violence, that some societies with high concentrations of firearms have much lower levels of violence, and that the level of violent crime in the United States did not increase proportionately with a marked increase in the number of firearms available. (Cook et al. 6) Situation With Gun Control in U. S.
In United States guns are widely available for purchase, even mail orders for guns are available without going through a waiting period, except for some states. It is the example of handguns related crime are higher than any other crime in the U. S, and the law is not stopping people from buying guns. Many politicians and citizens believe that the number of handguns in the U. S. is too high, and are making an effort to reduce the number of handguns in circulation is unimaginable.
According to the 2 nd Amendment of the Constitution of the United States, which guarantees that the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed. (web) Those opposed to controls interpret this to mean that the government has no right to limit or ban ownership of guns. Ownership of guns is extraordinarily widespread in the United States, and has been for some time. Indeed, since the late 1950 s, when surveys on this question were first done, the share of American households reporting at least one firearm has remained fairly constant at just under 50 percent. (Rosen 47) Needless to say, this does not mean that there is a gun -owner behind every second door in any American community. Guns are much more common in the Rocky Mountain states, South, and Midwest; in every region of the country, they are most likely to belong to middle-class, middle-aged men who live in rural areas or small towns.
A useful shorthand for all this demography is that the average American gun -owner, both today and in the past, has tended to be a hunter or target-shooter. (Smith) What has changed dramatically over the last several decades is the size and composition of the American gun stock. The total number of firearms in circulation across the country has expanded at an astonishing rate, from about 75 million in the late 1960 's to some 230 million today. (Firearms and Crime Statistics) At the same time, and despite the continuing predominance of the long guns (that is, rifles and shotguns) favored by sportsmen, an ever-increasing share of these firearms has consisted of handguns, whose primary use, as the supporters of stricter controls like to say, is against people. Such weapons have proliferated both among criminals, who use them in more than four out of five gun -related crimes, and among law-abiding citizens, especially urbanites, concerned about self-protection. As a result of these trends, Americans are now thought to possess somewhere in the neighborhood of 80 million handguns. (Rosen 47) Pros of Gun Control Gun can promote unnecessary violence in people.
People get crazy with guns any little noise they hear they grab their gun and check it out. Usually its nothing, it could just be their child getting a drink in the middle of the night. And their parents are standing there with a gun ready to shoot. That is unnecessary to have a gun in the house with children. Kids are very curious people, they like to look at and touch everything and they also like to show off. Millions of children each year are killed because their parents had a gun.
Guns are used for violence in various illegal acts like armed robberies and murders. Thousands of innocent people are killed in cross fire between police and robbers each year. Purchasing off the black market or gaining guns from family members attains most of these illegal activities from guns. Almost 40 percent of state prison inmates convicted of crimes involving guns in 1997 got their weapon from a friend or relative compared with 34 percent in 1991. (Smith) We are the last industrialized nation, of democratically based government, to do something about citizen's easy accessibility to firearms. Our overall homicide rate dwarfs these other nations. Consequently an individual has a far greater chance of being shot during crime in our nation than in any other.
Guns should be the hardest product to purchase in America; instead they are the one of the easiest. A barrage of paperwork and testing should have to be completed before anyone is legally allowed to purchase a firearm. It should be of no surprise that in the United States tens of thousands of people a year die from gunshot wound. In several states, the numbers of gun related deaths out-number automobile accidental deaths.
The number one cause of death for a black male in the U. S. is now gunshot wound. Today, an average of 14 persons under 18 years old will die from gunshot wound; more than 100 wounded. This year some 20, 000 depressed persons will use a gun to instantly commit suicide. In a nation with more gun dealers than gas stations (286, 000! ) it should be of no surprise. (Firearms and Crime Statistics) Some gun loving patriots say this is the cost of the freedom our guns allow us.
Without guns there would be very little death in a robbery and there wouldnt be a shoot out. Thats why guns should only be given to law enforcement. They shouldnt be allowed to be sold over the counter. If guns have to be sold over the counter let them have a longer waiting period before they receive the gun. Also they should be a background check on each person that wants to buy a gun. The government should also make the gun safety classes longer and more detailed.
Instead of the classes now consist of watching three or for videos and then taking a test that they practically give you the answers. (The Washington Times) Here are stated briefly following arguments, which advocate gun control in United States: Gun control saves lives. When America was founded guns only shot one bullet at a time. Gun control will keep guns out of the hands of criminals. Children should not have guns. Gun control will reduce the hazards to law enforcement.
If citizens carry guns, there will be daily shoot-outs in the streets. We don't want to ban deer rifles, just assault rifles. Why do you need an assault rifle? The entertainment industry is not at fault, it's the gun's fault! The 2 nd is a collective right and not an "Individual Right. " Cons of Gun Control In this section I will respond to claims stated above arguing in the favor of gun control prohibition. Gun control advocates say, gun control is a humanitarian issue since it saves lives.
My argument is: if gun control advocates were such humanitarians they should be pushing legislation to ban motor vehicles, because in 2001 there were 4 times more deaths from auto accidents, than gun homicides of that same year. (web) So I ask. "Who will give up their motor vehicle to save lives?" So why should gun owners give up their guns? Gun control advocates say, when the Constitution was written, the gun only shot one bullet at a time, thus it was not intended for Americans to have assault rifles. My argument: The musket was the weapon of assault in its time period, just like the AK- 47 is today. Equivalent weapons for equivalent times. (Fellenzer) Additionally, if the framers of the Constitution didn't mean for assault rifles to be protected by the 2 nd Amendment, then they certainly didn't mean for TV, radio, and the Internet to be protected by the 1 st Amendment. The intent was not to ban technology.
Gun control advocates say, gun control will keep guns out of the hands of criminals. My argument: Well, if you don't want criminals to have guns, keep them behind bars. Punish the criminal act, not the law abiding gun owner! Gun control does not control criminals; it only strips law-abiding Citizens of the Right to defend themselves, in effect making the law-abiding criminals. Gun control advocates say, children should not have guns.
My argument: I have one question and one statement. First the question; "Do children have a right to protect themselves?" Yes, they do! Now the statement; "I had guns as a child, and I grew up to be a law abiding citizen." The government cannot regulate a parental responsibility, because the children belong to the parents and not the government. Gun control advocates say, gun control will reduce the hazards to law enforcement. My argument: Many times law enforcement is the problem. Remember Rodney King?
Ruby Ridge? or Waco, Texas? Thomas Paine once said, "The balance of power is the scale of peace. " (Freedom And Guns Rights Quotes) Gun control advocates say, citizens should not be allowed to carry guns, because there will be daily shoot-outs in the streets. My argument: As of today 32 states have right to carry laws and your worst fears have not come true. (Lott web) Crime has actually decreased in states with right to carry laws. Gun control advocates say, we don't want to ban deer rifles, just assault rifles.
My argument: That's a lie, because the Violence Policy Center on the World Wide Web, has indicated their next goal is to vilify the deer rifle by labeling it a sniper rifle. (web) Gun control advocates say, why do you need an AK- 47? It serves no purpose but to kill. My argument: Why is it that, over the centuries of world history, the right to liberty, (that our Declaration of Independence declares to be "unalienable") has been more often abridged than enforced? Who knows what the future holds? Remember Higher, Stalin, and Pol Pot? Remember the Great Depression of 1929 and now 9 - 11?
Could they happen again? Yes! For these reasons, in order to maintain your "freedoms, " you need an AK- 47, because the demand for police to defend us, increases in proportion to our inability to defend ourselves. Thus "the right to keep and bear arms" is preventive it reduces the demand for a police state. (Shamaya) The Framers left in place the infrastructure for Citizen Power. Gun control advocates say, that the entertainment industry is not responsible for gun violence. They claim the 1 st Amendment and say, "art imitates life. " My argument: They can claim the 1 st Amendment, but we can't claim the 2 nd Amendment.
Even though there was greater access to guns in the 1950 's, we did not have a problem with misuse of guns. Thus, at a time when there was almost no gun control on the books, we had very few shootings. Could the entertainment industry be responsible for socially conditioning our youth, into violent behavior? Example: Violence in video games, "The Jerry Springer Show, " music lyrics, and movies like "Natural Born Killers. " Gun control advocates say, the 2 nd Amendment is a collective right and not an "Individual Right. " My argument: If the 2 nd Amendment was just a collective right, then why as an individual citizen do I own a gun? Is not the "Bill of Rights" the Rights of an Individual? The fact is, gun owning Individual Citizens make up the state militia.
Again, the 2 nd Amendment Right is Individual in nature, even if for a collective purpose. The militia members are Individual gun owning Citizens. Not the National Guard! Bibliography Cook, Phil Moore, Mark and Braga, Anthony.
Gun Control. Faculty Research Working Papers Series. John F. Kennedy School of Government Harvard University, December 2000 Firearms and Crime Statistics.
U. S. Dept. of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2004 < web > Lott, John R.
Gun Control Advocates Purvey Deadly Myths. Wall Street Journal. 11 November, 1998 Lee, Nisbet. Gun Control Debate: You Decide. Prometheus Books, 2001. Not Bulletproof; Gun Control, the Law and Crime. The Washington Times, March 2, 2004 Rosen, Gary.
Yes and No to Gun Control. Commentary. Volume: 110. Issue: 2. September 2000. Smith, T.
W. 1999 National gun policy survey of the National Opinion Research Center: Research finding. Chicago, IL: NORC, 2000. Utter, Glenn H... Encyclopedia of Gun Control and Gun Rights. Phoenix, AZ: Oryx Press, 2000 web Freedom And Guns Rights Quotes, 2004 < web > Violence Policy Center Website, 2004 < web > The latest deadly numbers about children and gun violence, 2001 < web education / gun violence /gun report 2001. pdf> Lott, John R.
What we can do after Wakefield. December 28, 2000 web Shamaya, Angel. Suicide in the Gun Debate. 2004 < web > Fellenzer, Nicki. GRPC Informed Voting Is Key. September 26, 2004 < web >
Free research essays on topics related to: gun control advocates, law abiding citizens, gun violence, assault rifles, bear arms
Research essay sample on Gun Control Advocates Law Abiding Citizens
