The issue of firearms has always been a problem to the United States, and different tactics have been employed to act as measures against this challenge, although the impact has not been glorious. The paper shall consider gun control at the federal level as all states have experienced mass shooting in the past twenty years except Idaho and Hawaii.[1]
Though legislatures are mandated to work for the better good of the entire nation, their reluctance allows most of the massacres to happen.
Gun control is among the most decisive issue of politics in the United States. After every shooting incidence that kills at least four people, antagonists arise and argue on both sides of whether to do away with guns or continue with them. Today, the number of weapons held by citizens in the U.S amounts to over eighty-eight-percent. Between 1999 and 2013, gun deaths were more than 464,000 with suicide carrying 58.2-percent, homicide 37.7-percent and unintentional deaths 2.2-percent.[2] Firearms were the twelfth cause of death with 1.3-percent, topping hypertension, liver disease as well as fire accidents, machine and drowning.[3] Today, more than two-hundred people go to the emergency rooms with gunshots every day, and children under fifteen years have higher chances of dying from guns as compared to other developed countries.[4]
Due to the increased number of deaths, both proponents and opponents of stricter gun controls fear their safety and that of their property; thus, they do not vehemently support any rule of restricting these weapons.
Possessing firearms is allowed by the second amendment, but the issue arises from how these weapons are regulated; loopholes exist that enable criminal to undertake massacres repeatedly across the nation. For instance, though the law concerning selling, possessing and receiving is clear, not every person in the gun transfer process requires the Federal Firearms License (FFL); meaning that all those who purchase does not have to undergo background checks. In turn, the method places guns at the hands of users not eligible to own them, and this makes the control a hectic and inefficient task.[5]
Again, lack of permanent laws that can diminish the killing chances plays a significant role. For instance, the AR-15 style semi-automatic rifles used by Cruz in Florida massacre was already banned in 1994 by the Congress and signed by President Bill Clinton. The law prohibited manufacturing and selling of magazines with more than ten rounds to civilians, but the law expired in 2004. The California senator, Dianne Feinstein had introduced a ban on assault weapon after the death of twenty-six people at Sandy Hook Elementary School. The ban did not pass, and she re-introduced it again in 2017 after deaths of another twenty-six people in a church in Texas, but it still went nowhere. The public has divided opinions as some oppose while other support a nationwide ban of all assault rifles, meaning there exists misunderstanding of advantages and disadvantages of bans to firearms.
According to the 1968 Gun Control Act that regulates firearms at the national level, only legal residents and citizens above eighteen years can buy rifles and shotguns. However, those above twenty-one years can access other guns such as handguns. States can raise the age at which one can acquire these ammunitions, but they cannot interfere with the federal regulations, thus causing more dilemmas on how to jointly control these firearms successfully.
Again, the issue of acquiring guns seems to discriminate some peoples. For instance, those found in possession of substances such as marijuana in the past two years cannot access these weapons even though it is legal in some states such as California and Alaska.
Brady bill passed in 1993 and mandated the national government to conduct background checks and purchases of firearms in the United States as well as individuals to wait for at least five days after buying. However, despite the emotional debates that occur and the number of passed laws and regulation, no study was done to evaluate the efficiency of these laws by 1997. The country used the multivariate statistical method to determine the connection between the number of gun deaths in every state and the set of determinants such as laws and regulations. After pursuing this model, it suggested that the presence of statutes had positive impacts that reduced the number of deaths even though the relationship was weaker.
If the lawmakers have a will of taming this menace, they can succeed, but it seems most of them are against gun bans as seen when they rejected various proposals laid before. However, this issue can be put under checks if plans such as verifying the buyer's background to understand the mental capacity and their criminal record. As several leaders have thought such a move before, they faced stiff measures. Since this problem affects every state and the Congress is unwilling to save the nation, it would be recommendable to devolve the idea of gun control; meaning that states can decide to impose bans without being affected by the federal legislatures as they block most of the solutions provided. For instance, Obama had a proposal to impose bans on high capacity guns, assault weapons as well as expand the background checks, but the bill did not meet the required number of legislatures, meaning that the Congress is a just an elite group advocating for their interest.[6]
In solving this problem, the Congress should be denied this responsibility, and the and the process passed to the grassroots movements. The objective of these approaches is to ensure that those with mental issues or criminals do not have access to the firearms as they cause tragedies.
Since this approach shall be for the better good of the country, media can also involve itself in spreading awareness to the public to ensure they understand the advantage of imposing strict laws to control guns. If these plans become successful, criminals and mentally ill people would not have chances of handling weapons as it shall close most of the loopholes; thus, many deaths against the public shall not occur through gunshots. However, such an outcome does not seem to take place soon unless grassroots organizations are comprehensively involved. And if they acquire that opportunity, then the federal government shall impose bans successfully, and reduce the dangerous weapons held by different individuals.
The U.S should be among the best nations to live in safety, but that does not happen as many people lose their lives and other become incapacitated as a result of guns. The federal government, mainly the legislatures should understand that firearms are not spoons needing no adequate control and should step in and solve the problem permanently. The will of the people should also guide them by comprehensively involving the public before deciding the way forward. Nevertheless, the regulation can also be mandated exclusively by the state government.
Work cited
CDC, "Data " Statistics (WISQARS)," wisqars.cdc.gov (accessed April 19, 2018).
David F, "Are Gun Accidents 'Very Rare'?," www.thedailybeast.com, Feb. 20, 2013
Schuster, k. 2015. 8 facts about gun control in the U.S. available at: http://www.dw.com/en/8- facts-about-gun-control-in-the-us/a-40816418
Vardavas, S. 2015. Which states in the USA have not had a single mass gun shooting incident - meaning two or more casualties at the hands of the same shooter - in the last twenty years? available at: https://www.quora.com/Which-states-in-the-USA-have-not-had-a- single-mass-gun-shooting-incident-meaning-two-or-more-casualties-at-the-hands-of-the- same-shooter-in-the-last-twenty-years
Weisman, J. 2013. Senate blocks drive for gun control, New York times. Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/18/us/politics/senate-obama-gun-control.html?_r=0
[1] Vardavas, S. 2015. Which states in the USA have not had a single mass gun shooting incident -meaning two or more casualties at the hands of the same shooter - in the last twenty years? available at: https://www.quora.com/Which-states-in-the-USA-have-not-had-a-single-mass-gun-shooting-incident-meaning-two-or-more-casualties-at-the-hands-of-the- same-shooter-in-the-last-twenty-years
[2] CDC, "Data " Statistics (WISQARS)," wisqars.cdc.gov (accessed April 19, 2018).
[3] CDC,
[4]
David F, "Are Gun Accidents 'Very Rare'?," www.thedailybeast.com, Feb. 20, 2013
[5] Schuster, k. 2015. 8 facts about gun control in the U.S. available at: http://www.dw.com/en/8-facts-about-gun-control-in-the-us/a-40816418
[6] Weisman, J. 2013. Senate blocks drive for gun control, New York times. Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/18/us/politics/senate-obama-gun-control.html?_r=0
