Restricting Gun Licenses and Possession
Restricting gun licenses and possession is a contentious issue in the United States, with some in favor and some against it. Some people believe that guns are necessary for self-defense, while others believe that gun owners are more likely to commit crimes. Both licensed and unlicensed firearms in civilian hands are considered illegal. Any violent incidents in schools, such as colleges, are the result of pistol shootings by students (Boyer, 2015). It could be impossible to decide whether to legalize more weapons or delete them from the public domain, leaving only the state to provide protection to residents. The US government should ban gun ownership to eliminate violence since this will help reduce the number of firearms in the hands of unauthorized civilians, decrease crime rates, and lower accidental firings.
Increasing Security Through Banning Gun Ownership
Banning gun ownership can increase security of the US citizens by reducing the number of guns in the hands of civilians and entrusting the police force with the role of protecting the public. The government of the United States should allow the law enforcement officers to protect civilians instead of allowing many people to have weapons. In 2013, 33,636 deaths resulted from firearm injuries, which accounted for 17.4 percent of deaths caused by injuries in 2013 (Xu, Murphy, Kochanek, & Bastian, 2013). Out of these deaths, suicides constituted about 63 percent, and homicides – about 33.3 percent (Xu, Murphy, Kochanek, & Bastian, 2013). This is alarming and controlling them is the only solution to reduce death rates and injuries among the citizens. Many deaths occur through suicides, murders, and accidental firings, which can be avoided if guns were regulated. The citizens need to have faith in the police force and the government for protection instead of carrying weapons for self-defense. Many people that die because of gunshots are the working class, and America is losing young energetic men via firearm misuse, yet such deaths can be avoided if guns were banned. Family violence is common and those owning guns end up shooting their spouses and killing them. During conflicts including the ones involving romantic cases, the presence of a firearm may make the argument more violent leading to crime. People are likely to use weapons, which are close to them increasing the chances of injuries. Armed civilians may also be involved in mass shootings, which can result to loss of many lives at a go. Since people are misusing guns, no one should be allowed to own them because some use them at the slightest provocation. Policies that allow gun use are to be blamed for the increased mortality rates since gun deaths contribute to the statistics every year.
Lowering Crime Rate Through Gun Control
Gun control may help in lowering crime rate in the US especially by armed gangs. Crime has increased in the United States most of which is carried out by people from poor backgrounds. Some of them do not receive quality education, end up forming gangs, and use their firearms to terrorize others. The gangs steal guns or borrow them from licensed owners and use them to commit crime. If only the law enforcement officers were allowed to own firearms, America would experience a reduction in crime rate. American movies involve characters with licensed guns but in several scenes, others steal the weapons and commit crime. This can be taken as representation of the actual happenings when many people own guns and other dangerous weapons. Individuals rarely use guns for self-defense and instead, they engage in homicides and end up injuring or killing their victims. Some people that buy the firearms have a motive of killing thus; controlling the ownership of rifles is an excellent move of disarming the US citizens. Many legally owned weapons are stolen by criminals and used to commit crimes such as burglary and theft. Banning all kind of assault tools is an excellent move by the authorities, and policy-makers should focus on eliminating any dangerous weapons circulating in the nation. Mentally, ill individuals should never be allowed to own any kind of firearm since they can harm others very easily. The Federal Government has a responsibility of tracking firearm sales and come up with legislations that make every citizen safe. Performing background checks may also help in reducing the number of guns sold to the public especially criminals.
Reducing Accidental Firings Through Banning Ownership and Licensing
Banning ownership and licensing of guns to civilians can also increase security by reducing accidental firings. Again, some people injure themselves and others since some of them do not know how to handle handguns. Restricting gun ownership can help a lot in reducing such incidences and save lives of many Americans (Crandall et al., 2016). Only the security personnel should be given the mandate of carrying weapons instead of allowing every interested individual to have one. Institutions of learning should never allow students to own handguns since this can harm teachers and students. At home, there are cases of children shooting their siblings, friends, and parents over insignificant issues. One of the incidences reported that a child shot people in a shopping mall using his mother’s gun, which could have been avoided if weapons were only allowed to be carried by police officers (Crifasi et al., 2015). Some of the deaths are considered careless and avoidable if proper measures are taken by the state. The government should focus on measures that can help in controlling crime besides banning guns as Mann and Michel (2016) argue. With low crime rate, civilians will not have a reason of owning weapons. If citizens can access quality services, there is no need of engaging in crime or using guns. The government should focus on developing facilities such as recreation centers, learning facilities, rehabilitation centers, and initiate other projects that help in promoting peaceful coexistence. The focus should be on addressing social, economic, political, and cultural factors threaten the security of citizens in the United States, forcing them to buy handguns for self-defense.
Conclusion
In conclusion, controlling guns can help a lot in reducing crime and the related consequences in the US. If only the law enforcement officers are allowed to carry guns, deaths may reduce and crime rates will be lowered. However, there are better ways of reducing crime such as improvement of people’s standards of life through provision of important facilities. Quality education, healthcare services, recreation centers, and resolving the issue of income inequality may help in reducing crime, and civilians will not see the need in buying guns. The government should aim at disarming its citizens and support the policy force and other law enforcers in securing the nation.
References
Boyer, D. (2015). Obama says gun control to be top issue of final year. The Washington Times. Retrieved from http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/nov/17/obama-says-gun-control-be-top-issue-final-year/.
Crandall, M., Eastman, A., Violano, P., Greene, W., Allen, S., Block, E., & Goldberg, S. (2016). Prevention of firearm-related injuries with restrictive licensing and concealed carry laws: An Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma systematic review. Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery, 81(5), 952-960.
Crifasi, C. K., Meyers, J. S., Vernick, J. S., & Webster, D. W. (2015). Effects of changes in permit-to-purchase handgun laws in Connecticut and Missouri on suicide rates. Preventive Medicine, 79, 43-49.
Mann, J. J., & Michel, C. A. (2016). Prevention of firearm suicide in the United States: What works and what is possible. American Journal of Psychiatry, 173(10), 969-979.
Xu, J., Murphy, S. L., Kochanek, K. D., & Bastian, B. A. (2013). Deaths: Final data for 2013. National Vital Statistics Reports, 64(2). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr64/nvsr64_02.pdf.
