Gun Control



Gun Control

Introduction

Guns and ammunition are not a sociological problem. Rather, it is entirely psychological. Many individuals are of the belief that if guns are banned, not only will it make the world safer; it will surely rid the world of crime. Unfortunately, such is not the case. Criminals never have, and never will line up to register their ammunition. Nor will they show their permit to use the weapon before they unleash a rain of fire on their target. With that being said, a complete ban on ammunition seems rather pointless. Many people argue that Congressmen, the President and our money are protected by individuals that carry semi automatics. Why should one be allowed to bear arms while another should not? To those who do not know, approximately 20 states allow residents to own and shoot trespassers on their property without the fear of prosecution. Only 10 states actively and severely restrict and prohibit individuals from carrying firearms in public. Furthermore, the individuals that are protecting our Congressmen, our President and the money in our banks are not your average Joes. They are masters of their craft and are professionally trained to handle live ammunition. Such training is not easy to come by and is the number one reason why they are allowed to carry the weaponry they do.

Unfortunately, many gun owners do not have prior training. And it was not until recently that guns were registered, required permits or had to be reported if stolen. Traditional Americans believe that ammunition is a part of their culture and heritage. The fact that 'the right to bear arms' is part of our constitution does not mean that every individual should be entitled to have one. Each and every individual with a gun should prove that they are aware of the consequences of using a gun, that they have knowledge of how a gun works and that they are trained to use it properly. They should also be held liable for making sure nobody else uses their gun because should it fall into the wrong hands, the most likely scenario is that a lot of people might lose their lives.

In 2010, the FBI states that approximately 13,000 individuals were murdered. Of that number, approximately 9,000 were caused by the use of firearms. Compared to the United Kingdom, the very nation that we gained our independence from, murders involving firearms in the UK were around 600 only (Melanie and Lester, 1998). The FBI claims that this data is incomplete. This is only the cases that have been reported. There is a great number of murder related crimes that are never reported and thus cannot be considered when gathering data. This specific number could be much greater in reality. The purpose of this paper is to take a closer look at gun control. By studying the history of gun control and the number of deaths caused by firearms, the paper will take a look at the notion of banning firearms ...