Guns in America
There about 393, 347,000 guns in supply in the United States. It means that every 3 out of ten people own firearms. About 22% of the citizens have at least one or more guns. Americans have complex relationships and deep history with guns. It is a point of pride while it creates fear in others. The culture spans from revolutionary roots, colonial history, and frontier expansion. They use the guns for self-protection, local criminals or foreign invasion and hunting. In recent years, the gun control issue ignited sharp debate. Proponents indicate that the Second Amendments guaranteed people to bear and keep arms in a Free State. Opponents of gun control laws indicated that the amendments intended to give rights to organized militia legal possession of arms. It will increase gun violence and the government should set policies to regulate manufacture, possession, transfer, sale, use, and modification of assault weapons by citizens. They support new gun restrictions to reduce crimes. The paper argues that it is the people have the right to keep and bear arms thus protects and defend themselves from criminals and foreign invasion.
New Laws Infringe Rights
The Congress ratified the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution in 1791. The amendments stated, "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 (Gerber, 2011). Americans began owning guns even before the constitution and declaration of independence. Any restriction to access and ownership will be infringing their rights guaranteed in the constitution. It implies that any action to prevent a section of the population will be unconstitutional. The right to bear arms is comparable to other civil liberties such as freedom of speech, religion, free press and encroachment of liberties as delineated under the Bill of Rights. Some states such as Maryland, New York, and California enacted laws that banned certain types of firearms (Hunter, 2012). They include handguns and 'assault weapons'. The new regulations limit who can buy a gun as well as make it illegal for the citizens to bear firearms. It violates the constitution as expressed in the Second Amendment.
Gun Control will deny Right to Protection
In 2014, a study by the Pew Foundation survey showed that about 57 percent of Americans believe that possession of guns protects them from victimization. Both men and female gun owners or lives in a home with a gun owner felt safer. Gun laws and restrictions will allow criminals with illegal weapons to terrorize victims without fear of retaliation. If the country outlaws guns, only the outlaws will own the guns (Pew Research Center, 2014.). Gun control will deny people a sense of safety and self-defense. The National Rifle Association argues that guns help to repulse over 2.5 million crime cases each year (NRA-ILA, 2014). It is a fact that the police cannot protect each and every citizen at all times. The restriction will increase the challenge experienced in protecting homes and families. The right to self-defense means the ability for the law abiding citizens to fight violent criminals. In Alabama, the law stipulates that every citizen has the right to bear arms thus defend self and the state (Volokh, 2006). This should be the trend across America.
Firearm Control Cannot Eradicate Crime
The gun control cannot eradicate crime. Rather, allowing gun ownership deters criminal activities. The ban on assault weapons did not have a significant murder rate in America (Rodríguez " Hempstead, 2011). According to Rodríguez " Hempstead, increased gun ownership contributed to a large drop in violent crimes. The state prisoners sentenced for using firearms to commit crimes indicated that they obtained it from friends and family members (Planty " Truman, 2014). Chicago banned gun shops, assault weapons, and shooting ranges. However, it recorded over 2,000 shooting victims where 390 died in 2014 (Chicago Tribune, 2014). The police recover thousands of guns but crime will never stop.
Control Cannot Eradicate Suicide
Lower guns ownership and control rate do not prevent people from committing suicide and deaths. Lithuania and South Korea have the lowest firearm ownership in the world. However, Lithuania recorded the highest gun suicide rate in 1999 with 45 deaths out of 100,000 people. The United States, in contrast to these nations, ranked 26 the in suicide rates in 2011 (Squires, 2015). Therefore, the elimination or gun restrictions cannot positively affect the US suicide rate. Besides, statistics indicate that Pneumonia, traffic accidents, and homicide killed more people compared firearms. Guns recorded only 1.3 percent of deaths that occurred between years 1999-2013 (Small Arms Survey, 2007). The international community exaggerates the firearm homicide problem. The US homicide rate is lower compared to other nations of the world (UNODC, 2014).
Tyranny of Government
New laws to regulate guns will grant the government too much power leading to tyranny and taking away rifles from law abiding citizens. The government will control every aspect of people’s lives. The government will need to keep the individual information on gun owners in the database. Such details include criminal records, mental health history, name, and address. Under the gun control laws, the government would keep purchases of guns indefinite. It will allow micro-stamping and searches for purposes not intended or required. The second amendment wanted to free people from subjugation and tyranny. The Senate must reject legislation that infringes on constitutional rights and subjected to government surveillance.
Gun Control Kill Sporting Activities
Gun control laws infringe upon the millions of Americans who love sport and hunting. An estimated 13.9 million Americans are hunters. Majority of them are 16 years and older. The population spends over 7.7 billion dollars in a gun purchase, ammunition, sights and other equipment required in the hunting activities (US Fish and Wildlife Service, 2014). The shotguns and high-powered semiautomatic rifles are common in the hunting tournaments. Participants use the rifles in marksmanship competitions. They have cartridges with standard hunting calibers used in deer hunting games. There about 32 percent of gun owners who use their firearms for hunting while another 7 percent owns guns for sport and target shooting (Pew Foundation, 2014). Any restrictions to 'assault weapon' will deny millions their tools of trade and exercise their freedom to sports and games.
Limit Ownership to Certain Groups
The gun-control debate created a sharp division in the political arena. The judiciary made various decisions but there seems to be no specific answer to these phenomena. Many Americans agree that restrictions are necessary to regulate the person who should buy and carry guns. Different states have various gun laws but a set of federal status applied across the nation. Importantly, the laws stipulate the classes of people prohibited from owning or possessing guns. The individuals or groups of justice fugitives, convicted felons, drug traffickers, and illegal aliens do not have the rights to guns. Others include persons convicted of domestic violence and minors (young people below 18 years). Additionally, the proponents agree with federal statutes concerning those who can buy, sell and use guns.
Create Awareness
More education is required compared to stringent gun control. The training should comprise safety measures to prevent accidental deaths. The children need to learn how to use guns and safety precautions (Cook " Goss, 2014). People kill people; guns do not kill people. Mental health screening and education will have a significant impact on the prevention of mass shooting. A knowledgeable gun owner has a few chances of accidents of any kind. Through education, a majority of young people will acquire safety and protection skills. Consequently, introducing guns to guns help in associating them with security, recreation, and freedom. Legitimate use of firearms by family members will lead to lower delinquency rates.
Conclusion
Many countries around the world established strict controls and policies concerning the use of guns by civilians. Only a few laws can be termed as permissive. The countries that regulate guns access restricts it certain category. Again only a certain group of people can be granted licenses and rights to ownership. Jurisdictions such as the United States have both federal and state-level legislation on gun control. The American citizens have more freedoms and rights guaranteed in the constitution than any other country globally. The founding father of this nation lived for some time in countries full of restrictions that denied human rights. The Second Amendment is clear regarding gun ownership. The State should not infringe on this fundamental right through other laws and regulations. The restrictions will significantly prevent the common citizen from acquiring guns and protect themselves in the face of danger. The nation needs to create awareness to citizens more on safety to prevent accidents rather than imposing bans on legal possession of firearms.
References
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (2005). US Department of Justice. Retrieved on December 17, 2018 https://www.atf.gov/file/58686/download
Chicago Tribune (2015). Chicago Shooting Victims, Retrieved on December 17, 2018 from chicagotribune.com/Chicago/shootings.
Cook, P. J., " Goss, K. A. (2014). The gun debate: What everyone needs to know. New York
Gerber, L. (2011). The Second Amendment: The right to bear arms. New York: Rosen Central.
Hunter, L. (January 2012).Gun control tramples on the certain virtues of a heavily armed citizenry. Forbes Magazine.
Pew Research Center for the People " the Press. (2014). Growing public support for gun rights: More say guns do more to protect than put people at risk. Washington, D.C: Pew Research Center for the People and the Press.
NRA-ILA (2014). Guarantees of the Right to Arms in State Constitutions. Retrieved on December 17, 2018 from www.nraila.org
Rodríguez, A. A., " Hempstead, K. (June 01, 2011). Gun control and suicide: The impact of state firearm regulations in the United States, 1995-2004. Health Policy, 101, 1, 95-103.
Small Arms Survey (2007.). Small Arms Survey. Retrieved on December 17, 2018 from www.smallarmssurvey.org
Squires, P. (2015). Gun crime in global contexts. London ; New York
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) (2014), "Global Study on Homicide”. Retrieved on December 17, 2018 from www.unodc.org
US Fish and Wildlife Service (2014). 2011 National Survey of Fishing Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation," Retrieved on December 17, 2018 from from www.census.gov
Uviller, H. R., " Merkel, W. G. (2002). The militia and the right to arms, or, How the second amendment fell silent. Durham: Duke University Press.
Volokh, E. (2006). State Constitutional Right to Keep Bear Arms Provisions. UCLA Law School. 11 Texas Rev. of Law " Politics 191
