The topic on the regulation of firearms has been faced with different opinions for a long time now. There are those who support the enactment of stricter gun laws and there those who fight the regulation of firearms. Those who support the restriction of gun claims that it would lead to a decline in crime rate while those against the gun control laws reason that there is no direct relation with this claim. The Second Amendment 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," implying that anti-gun control laws works contrary to this act (David). Keeping and bearing a gun is a Constitutional right for every American and should not be denied because of unreasonable and made-up denunciations. The government should not restrict the gun use for in doing so it will invade the Second Amendments, will fail to deal with violence and crime related issues, the laws are ineffective, they do not offer counter-attack in case of mass shooting and they infringe individual ’s right to keep guns for hunting and sport.
Anti-gun control laws infringe the right of an individual to keep and bear firearms which are well stipulated in the Second Amendment and it is also part of the Bill of Rights (Weins, and Flynn 6). It is a fundamental right for a citizen to keep and bear firearms for purposes of self-defense, protecting own family and also defending their states. Opponents claim that the Second Amendment has resulted in the increased mass shooting and they advocate for its revision with the enactment of stricter gun control laws. However, in Heller v District of Columbia, it was evident that banning individual’s right to keep and bear handguns for self-defense was a violation of that important right (Frow 95). This Supreme Court backing of the Second Amendment clearly shows that stricter gun control laws should not be induced for they would take away this fundamental right of self-defense from the deserving law abiding citizens. Also, it is untrue to say that doing away with the Second Amendment would result in reducing death caused by guns.
Imposing stricter gun control laws would not translate into solving issues related to violence. Those who support the gun control laws make claims that when the gun is restricted, violence and crime rate would significantly decline but this is an unfounded claim (Kleck 222). Just like with drug abuse, criminal will always find ways on how to get these firearms mainly through theft as how the drug traffickers get to sell drugs with the many laws against the issue. Criminals or evil-minded people will not get their firearms in a store, they will not expose themselves through background checks but they will utilize the existence of the black market in acquiring the guns of all sorts depending on their specification. Laws like the Brady Bill which advocate for regular careful background checks and other laws will not hinder the criminals in accessing the guns (Spitzer 9). They will go to whatever length to protect and defend themselves through the available means, and many criminals believe guns are everywhere. It is this attitude that makes anti-guns laws ineffective in making the society safer from violence and crimes and they make it harder for the normal citizen to acquire guns for self-defense (Kleck 222).
Laws that are against the legal use of the gun are ineffective and in most cases, in States that imposes this laws crime rate are documented to be even higher than the States where they are legal right to keep and bear arms (Rossi 11). These states have laws that make it harder to obtain guns which include getting the gun license which may take a lengthy process, background checks and wait for a longer time before attaining the legal right to carry the weapon. This lengthy and tiresome process makes it difficult to legally obtain gun works contrary to the States because it opens the temptation of illegally looking for other means to acquire the weapons. In Chicago for example, it was considered easier to acquire the weapons illegally than legally thereby promoting more unregistered guns in circulation thus raising the risk of violence and crime (Rossi 12). The government instead should promote the right to bear and keep guns and this would enable the State to regulate the guns in circulation better and effective measure would be taken in case any need arises.
Further, gun control laws make it easier for the attackers for they are aware that their victims will not have guns when they bout. Mass shooting would be prevented or damages controlled if citizens are allowed to carry weapons for self-defense where they would stop the attackers even before they commit the predetermined crimes (Kleck 33). In recent times, people are enrolling in classes to be able to know how to carry and use the guns all with the intentions of getting to know how to act and defend themselves in case such unexpected event occurs. In the case of Maryland, the attack was stopped when the attacker met armed resistance thereby averting what would have been a bloody incident. “It takes a good guy with a gun to stop a bad guy with a gun,” ("NRA: ‘Only Way To Stop A Bad Guy With A Gun Is With A Good Guy With A Gun’"). Even with the increased campaign of gun controls laws by the media, citizens devise the need to take personal responsibility for their individual protection.
Depriving the citizen to keep and bear firearms denying them the opportunity to engage in recreational activities which include targeting practice, hunting, and biathlon. For example, biathlon is a sport that involves cross-country skiing and shooting using a rifle and it is practiced during winter (Rose 635). The continued attempt by the government to enact stricter gun controls laws may result to such sporting activities becoming a thing of the past thereby denying the youth the opportunity to utilize their God-given talents. The government may also end up losing avenue which is achieved through this sports. Hunters would also be affected by the gun control laws because they would be limited on their right to keep and bear firearms even when their intent is legal (Yamane).
It is untrue to assume that stricter gun control laws will lead to a safer society with reduced violence and crime rate. Criminals will continue to obtain the weapons illegally no matter how stricter guns laws are and they will still do the crime. Guns control laws infringe the Second Amendments, they greatly fail to solve the violence and crime-related issues, they are ineffective, they facilitate the happening of a mass shooting and they invade the individual’s right to keep and bear guns for hunting and sport. As stated in the U.S. Constitution, the government should, “ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity.” All the rights of the American should never be taken away and the government should ensure that it adheres to the very end. Stricter gun control laws will not in any way promote the peace of the Americans and greater effort should be directed in ensuring no citizen is denied his or her born right to keep and bear firearms for self-defense.
Work Cited
"NRA: ‘Only Way To Stop A Bad Guy With A Gun Is With A Good Guy With A Gun’". Washington.Cbslocal.Com, 2018, https://washington.cbslocal.com/2012/12/21/nra-only-way-to-stop-a-bad-guy-with-a-gun-is-with-a-good-guy-with-a-gun/. Accessed 2 Dec 2018.
Frow, John. "Reading With Guns: Institutions Of Interpretation And District Of Columbia V. Heller". New Literary History, vol 47, no. 1, 2016, pp. 83-107. Johns Hopkins University Press, doi:10.1353/nlh.2016.0008.
Hemenway, David. Private guns, public health. University of Michigan Press, 2017.
Kleck, Gary. Point Blank. 1st ed., Routledge, 2017, p. 222.
Rose, I. Nelson. "End Game For Daily Fantasy Sports?". Gaming Law Review And Economics, vol 19, no. 9, 2015, pp. 634-637. Mary Ann Liebert Inc, doi:10.1089/glre.2015.1992. Accessed 2 Dec 2018.
Rossi, Peter H. Armed And Considered Dangerous. 2nd ed., Routledge, 2017, pp. 1-20.
Spitzer, Robert J. The Politics Of Gun Control. 6th ed., Routledge, 2014, pp. 1-18.
Weins, W. Jesse, and Sean J. Flynn. "Bill Of Rights". The Encyclopedia Of Criminology And Criminal Justice, 2013, pp. 1-8. Blackwell Publishing Ltd, doi:10.1002/9781118517383.wbeccj019. Accessed 2 Dec 2018.
Yamane, David. "The Sociology Of U.S. Gun Culture". Sociology Compass, vol 11, no. 7, 2017, p. e12497. Wiley, doi:10.1111/soc4.12497. Accessed 2 Dec 2018.
