The American culture is considered a gun culture according to (John 1) in the sense that guns pervade the debates on crime, and are constantly shown in the news and, movies. Many at times it is reported shootings; shots fired in self-defense, bad guys shooting the innocent, bad guys shooting each other, shootings in wars and, the police shooting criminals. America has an obsession with guns; however, the truth is very few of us have firsthand experience with using weapons and guns (John 1).
That gun control reduces crime is perhaps the greatest myth perpetrated today by gun ban groups according to (Gary 7). Empirical studies have not shown the effectiveness of gun laws on crime reduction. The studies show that, in areas having the greatest restrictions on firearm ownership, the crime rates are higher. This is because the criminals are well aware that their target victims are less likely to be carrying their firearms for defense.
Gun control opponents argue that gun control cannot prevent criminals from committing crime (Gary 7). They argue that an over motivated criminal will always be willing to commit a crime even without a gun. I agree that this argument is true. Certainly, it is unlikely that gun control laws will have an effect on motivated criminals such as terrorist, drug dealers, or political assassins.
Criminals will always ignore the law (Gary 8). Despite all the gun control laws, criminals still have access to guns. A survey of state prisoners that was conducted by the department of justice in 1997 revealed that 80% of the inmates had obtained guns from friends, families, or illegal sources (Susan 112).
According to (Susan 117) the author suggests that the way to cut crime even further is by improving the living conditions in inner cities where crime is highest. She adds that if the society focussed more on employment and a livable wage for everyone, crime rates would reduce.
Gun control advocates intend to do well. Good intentions, however, do not always have positive results. The strict gun laws only deposes lawful citizens’ guns hence they do not work. These citizens are left vulnerable or defenseless against armed criminals. If the premise that gun control decreases crime rates held, no American would be in possession of or use guns. It is thus prudent to note that bans do not necessarily make vices disappear (John 1).
Conclusion
The issue about gun control in the US arouses strong emotions on either side of the issue. When it comes to the question of crime rates, and how they relate with gun control laws in America, the answer at first may seem very simple; stricter gun laws correlate with reduced criminal rates. This correlation, however, is far from exact in my opinion. Research, for instance, has shown that while most of the gun violence is found in gun friendly states for example Arizona, a good number of gun crimes take place in restricted gun ownership areas like the state of Columbia.
Works Cited
John Carter, Gregg L. Guns in American Society: An Encyclopedia of History, Politics, Culture, and the Law. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, 2002. Print.
Gold, Susan D. Gun Control. New York: Benchmark Books, 2004. Print.
Kleck, Gary. Point Blank: Guns and Violence in America. New York: A. de Gruyter, 1991. Print.
