The use of guns has been a controversial issue for many decades. The argument of gun violence and gun protraction has been an important discussion regarding political parties. “The Constitutional Second Amendment states that people have the right bear arms” . This means that people of society have the right to own a gun and protect themselves. Even though the Constitution states bearing arms is legal, there are many groups that do not think this is a good idea.
The crime that occurs in our country results in a lot of gun issues involved in these crimes. People who should not have had guns in their possession ultimately are the ones who commit these crimes. The government has put programs into place to help with background checks when people want to purchase a gun. These programs do not help protect people when the guns are being bought on the street, or dealt in a black market. There is no law that could be set in place to keep guns solely out of the hands of those who are not allowed to possess them. People who buy guns illegally, and trade to have a gun in their possession are not going to worry about the laws that say they should not own a gun.
People who are legally allowed to own guns do so for many reasons. They own guns because the Constitution says they can. The guns can be used for hunting, recreational, collection, and protection. When these guns are used for the legal purposes that they are allowed to be used for then there should not be any issues. When people shoot another human being because they are threatened or in danger, then they are protecting their home and family. If guns are allowed in the country with the respects of adequate background and ownership, why is the issue so controversial? The different scenarios regarding gun control will be discussed, and analyzed as to what accepted in society.
Gun Control and Criminal Justice
The Criminal Justice System has taken a look at the gun control issue in America after several school shootings took place in the past decade. The school shootings have sparked attention from the media and the Justice System. The debate across American to take away the right to bear arms has heightened society and caused massive controversy over the Constitutional Rights. The media has portrayed the horrific events across the world new to enhance the argument over gun control and protraction regarding the citizens of the country.
There are groups like the National Rifle Association (NRA) who believe in gun ownership, rights to bear arms, and the right to protect their home and loved ones. Other groups who are against gun violence have argued that guns are causing crime and harm in this nation. The people who are using these weapons for violence are not allowed to own guns due to criminal backgrounds, or mental illness. The fight to ban gun ownership and control gun violence is based on the individuals who had gotten guns illegally. Even if the ban on gun control was implemented in this country there would still be people buying guns illegally and on the street. This would not stop the criminals from getting their hands on guns. Criminals have no respect for the law and therefore the gun control is no concern for the criminals of this country.
The gun crime rate has decreased since 2004. “Fast Check had reported that violent crimes had been lower than they ever had since 2004” . The controversy over gun control has not impacted the lower rate of gun violence, but politicians’ make it a point to discuss this issue in their campaign. Even though the rate of violence with guns had gone down over the last decade, there are still debates regarding the Second Amendment of the Constitution, and whether it should be eliminated completely to deter the gun violence in the country.
Gun Control Advocates
Advocates are people who are either for gun control or against gun control. Both sides have been the base of this argument and the media thrives on the debated attention that the topic offers. “Citizens who are in favor of keeping gun rights or protection has made it clear that they feel safer owning a weapon to protect their family and home, than if they were unarmed against criminals” .
One scenario of this issue pertains to a person who has no weapon and is victimized by a criminal in the home. If that person had owned a weapon, then they could have protected themselves against the armed gunmen. The advocates for gun control see this scenario as a good example as to keeping the gun rights or citizens for protection against armed criminals. There have been numerous stories of people saving lives of their loved ones against gunmen because they did exercise their right to bear arms. They owned weapons and protect their homes and family by shooting the intruder who could have taken the victims life. Instead, the victim had shot and wounded or killed the intruder. The family was unharmed because of the outcome of protecting themselves from harm.
People who are against the right to bear arms feel that this is the cause of gun violence in America. They think that if people were unarmed and not allowed to own guns then the gun violence would cease. These groups of people think that the Second Amendment of the Constitution refers to law enforcement and the militia. They do not think the Amendment was in regards to all citizens having the right to own guns and use them for protraction. These same groups would like to see the Amendment be stripped out of the Constitution to put a stop to gun violence and criminals. This debate amongst citizens, politicians, law enforcement, and legislation has been a back and forth argument for a long time. It may still exist long into the future until the outcome is determined on how to control gun violence regarding criminals.
Advocates also believe that if they remove gun ownership out of the equations it would reduce the rate of suicide, crimes, and accidental shootings that involved innocent people such as children. It all boils down to if guns are removed from the equation for legal citizens that were capable of ownership, then what will happen to the guns that are being sold on the street or black markets. Those guns would still be available or criminals to buy and use to promote violence and crime.
Gun Ownership Facts
Gun ownership in America has been on the rise since the 2011 terrorist attacks. The statistics relate to the 2009 year of ownership of weapons regarding guns. In 2009, there were approximately 308 million people who lived in the country. Out of those people, there was a reported number of 300 million who owned at least one firearm. “The gun manufacturing companies had reported that as of 2010 there were over 1 million people who had ownership of handguns” .
Out of those people, the percentage of males who owned a gun was about half of the 1 million individuals. Many politicians involved in republican and democratic status also owned guns. Out of the one million gun owners in American approximately 67% had purchased a gun for protection and safety of their home and family. Almost the same amount of people estimated at 66% had purchased the firearm for target practice. Another percentage of approximately 58% had purchased a gun for hunting purposes.
President Obama and Gun Control
President Barrack Obama had put an effort to deter the gun violence in America. He had made tougher rules which could help decrease guns being put into the wrong hands of criminals. “The National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) was one of the targets that Obama had revised to make the checks more useful for gun purchasers” . The system has been in place or years but the system will utilize the process with enhanced checks. The checks are to be made faster than before, and gun purchasers need to wait on the results before the gun would be in their possession.
The gun control plans that Obama is working on consists of several areas concerning guns. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) have required that any business or organization who sells firearms have a federal license to promote sales. The businesses are required by this federal law to run a background check on all alleged sales of firearms. The sales of guns are required to have a license and do the background check for any person or business selling a weapon even it is online sales. If the person selling the gun does not sell frequently then they are still required to uphold the law and fill these requirements. If a person is caught selling guns without a license or conducting background checks they will be punished by law. “The punishment could range up to five years in prison, and a fine of no more than $250,000” .
The Federal Bureau of Investigations is required to oversee the background checks for gun purchases. Any issue that arises should be dealt with immediately and more communication between local, state and federal governments will ensure a better knowledge of illegal gun sales. The people who attempt to buy a gun and are not legally allowed to, action will be taken from law enforcement. The FBI is hiring more people to conduct the background checks regarding gun sales and these checks will be conducted limitless. Background checks will be able to be ran 24 hours a day and seven days a week with a faster result concerning the check.
Need for More Gun Laws
Gun control issues are raising concerns on both sides of the debate. “In America, there are approximately 270,000,000 guns that are owned in the country”. This number per capita is the highest amount amongst all countries in the world. This means that the number of guns owned in America has trumped all other countries across the globe. The high amount of gun ownership or purchases in the country has stemmed from several reasons. The first reason that people are increasing purchasing weapons is because the second amendment says they can. The second is for protection against criminals, and the huge increase in terrorist attacks. People who had witnessed the increase rate of terrorist attacks had become scared and felt their safety was possible violated. To make them feel safer in the violent country they purchased a gun for protection.
The need for better protection against guns being bought by people who are not allowed to obtain one is a must. The criminals who purchase guns know they are not allowed to own one for reasons of criminal background or mental state. Instead of walking into a gun store and getting rejected they will buy one off the street or borrow a gun from a friend. The laws on guns may not help reduce violent crimes as much as lawmakers think it will. Instead, the criminals are getting guns elsewhere. The same scenario can be compared to drugs. Drugs are illegal in most of the country but people still find the drugs and purchase them. If someone wants something they are not going to let the laws stop them from purchasing guns or drugs. Gun control needs to be focused on shutting down black markets, and getting guns out of the hands of individuals who are legally are not allowed to own weapons.
Work Cited
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Fredrick, Susan. "PRESIDENT OBAMA’S 2015 EXECUTIVE ACTIONS ON GUN CONTROL." National Conference of State Legislatures (2016): 1-5. web.
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