One of the biggest and most controversial issues in America today is gun control. How should the government regulate guns and how can we limit mass shootings?
Well unfortunately, mass shootings will never be stopped even if there was to be an entire ban on all guns because people can still access them. So what should we do? Well some gun laws are necessary and in fact I agree with all the laws present on http://www.tracetheguns.org/#. I think these laws don't prohibit guns or impede on the constitution or on my personal rights. They are simply safety checks that hold people responsible and accountable. Accountability is a major aspect that needs to be used. \
However, the current suggestions by congress and President Obama, I strongly disagree with. Background checks are a must, but limitations on magazine rounds are pointless, when one can reload a gun just as quickly anyways. Also, a semi-automatic weapon ban isn't much useful either. While there is no "real" need for them by the public, they are nice to have and add to a sense of security by civilians. Many criminals choose to use these and no matter if they are banned or not, criminals will still have access to them. They do now anyways and criminals don't follow the law anyways (hence they are criminals) so what makes us think they will in this case then. THEY WON'T! (98% of guns used in shootings are obtained illegally)
When looking at recent shootings, guns are used in self-defense purposes (hence the reason many civilians carry). For example in the Aurora, CO shooting. The shooter picked the one movie theater that was within a mile from his home which banned weapons (there were more than 8 other options). http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2012/09/10/did-colorado-shooter-single-out-cinemark-theater/
As the article notes, all mass shootings since 1950 have occurred in gun free zones. These criminals are smart and know that in gun free zones there is less chance of being stopped. Clearly by disarming the population even more, we are only left more vulnerable to criminals with guns.
I think that you are right: there is a lot of simple steps to focus on that would actually reduce everyday gun violence. Thinking of the problem primarily in terms of mass shootings, and designing policy designed at mainly stopping these, will distort our understanding of the issue. I also think, as silly as it sounds, that the "guns are fun" argument is actually a good one. We could prevent a lot of deaths by banning alcohol, but don't do this because it is conflicts with our culture's sense that alcohol is an appropriate form of recreation. On the other hand, this raises the question of whether we should ban alcohol or guns if it were hypothetically feasible: how do we actually balance fun and safety?
ReplyDeleteI agree with you. The problem with gun laws in American today is not the lack thereof, rather the problem is the lack of uniformity and enforcement of the laws that are in the books already. Additionally, banning semi-automatic assault weapons will not reduce the violence that is unleashed on society by a handful of mad men. If someone has the intention of committing a crime, they will find the means to do it.
ReplyDeleteI like the point where you say even if we ban guns, people could still gain access to them. So maybe we're looking at the problem all wrong. People always say that it is the person holding the gun causing the trouble, not the gun itself. Maybe the solution to less gun violence is enhanced counseling programs in schools, seeing as most of the gun violence stems from some sort of mental illness or mentally troubled person. That way they could perhaps identify the problem early on and address it.
ReplyDelete"98% of guns used in shootings are obtained illegally"
ReplyDeleteThis is zeroing in on shootings in general. This is often a result of gang violence where one person is shooting one person. The larger focus is mass shootings. The last four guns used in mass shootings have been legally acquired. Most of the people who commit mass murder have no real motives due to the fact that they are often considered mentally insane. These people just one day decide they want to do things and since a gun is available to them, they do it. Had these people not had these guns available, they usually move on.
My main point is that getting rid of these will lower mass shootings -- the real gun problem.