Why Gun Control is Still a Major Problem
It is well known that gun violence is a major issue in the US. Many people have died as a result and lawmakers are being hassled to create new laws that will prevent more atrocities from happening. Carefully constructed gun control laws have the potential to decrease crime. For criminals, access to firearms makes killing easy and efficient which increases the lethality of crime. Lawmakers also have to consider the second amendment when creating laws so that they don't contradict the Constitution.
Gun control is an attempt to regulate the production, distribution, and use of weapons to ensure everyone's safety. Many people believe gun laws in America need to be changed to make it difficult to obtain guns and believe convicted criminals should face harsher penalties. Recent mass shootings across the US have left many people wondering what else we can legally do to stop gun violence.
Gun control protesters rally at the capital in 2018
One Stanford scholar, Stephanie Chao, found that states with tighter gun policies also save more lives. She also found that states with stricter gun laws have lower rates of gun deaths among children and teenagers, and states with child prevention access laws are linked with fewer gun suicides in the same age group. "'If you put more regulations on firearms, it does make a difference'" she quoted.
Mass shootings garner the most attention, but suicides accumulate a majority of gun deaths. Some lawmakers believe allowing untrained people to carry guns puts others at risk and it can result in self-inflicting injuries both by suicide and unintentional incidents. With many people being at risk of mental health and others just being irresponsible, the government has implemented background checks. It still seems as though it isn’t enough as many people may appear to be sane and happy, but then really have deeper and darker feelings for themselves or others.
Another problem is the fact that it is too easy for criminals to get their hands on guns. A recent study showed that more than half of armed convicts obtained their weapons someplace other than a regular gun store. They were able to get them from other criminals, family members, crime scenes, or stealing them from others. Lawmakers believe the only way to solve this is to reduce the production flow of guns and the amount on the street.
Gun control isn't something everybody agrees on. One article from The New York Times contradicts many optimists saying that in reality, there may not be a way to stop all gun violence and that the laws don't work. "Gun control burdens the free exercise of the constitutionally protected Second Amendment right to bear arms, so it’s subject to compelling legal challenges and is flatly rejected by many Americans." You can't permanently stop people from stealing because you can't control the way they think. The same is true for gun violence. People may legally buy a gun and have no history of crime or insanity, but still go out and become a mass murderer because of a single bad event or series of them.
America isn't the only country to have had problems with guns. Countries Including, Britain, Canada, and Australia also have had mass shootings, but they have been able to develop effective laws and measures to prevent them from happening again. In New Zealand following a major mass shooting, the country was able to ban almost all assault rifles and semi-automatic weapons. The US has been unable to do so primarily because of the second amendment.
Another article found that the increase in violence may be related to current music culture. The new wave of lyrical content and imagery including guns, drugs, etc. promotes gangster type of behavior. Many young teens and even adults are influenced by it and want to fit in. With the addition of the internet, rappers have the ability to share their music with the entire world within minutes. It has created a generation of violent youth. Although of course rap cannot be solely blamed for recent jumps in violence in cities, you cannot deny the fact that the ideas and images that rappers are putting out to their fans are influencing their listeners.
Some people also believe that we should just completely eliminate guns in the US as a whole, but this idea will never work. First of all, the Constitution protects gun owners, so in order to get rid of guns, you have to abolish the second amendment that was adopted way back in 1791. Good luck on that. Secondly, let’s say somehow you did manage to erase the second amendment. Well, if people are able to smuggle millions of dollars' worth of drugs into the US, then they are definitely able to smuggle guns in and distribute them. It won’t be too long until the atrocities are happening again. Lastly, if you ban guns for all non-military personnel and police are back to using batons, who’s going to stop the criminals?
Many people believe that since we can’t disinvent or completely ban all guns, that everyone should use one for protection. Many people might ask, “If someday you happen to be where an armed thug or deranged killer strikes, would the people there be better off with you armed or unarmed?” Most people would rather have an armed partner than not.
Gun violence is now a daily occurrence in the US. Every citizen has the responsibility to abide by law to ensure the nation is a safe place to live in. The government, on the other hand, should use its resources to ensure the safety of its citizens. Gun control cannot be achieved without identifying the reasons for the increased incidents of gun violence. We do not need to prohibit guns because they are only a tool used in crimes. The main problem isn’t the guns themselves; it is the person that perpetuates the violence. Once violence perpetrators have been reformed, and levels of criminal activities have reduced, we can then deal with gun control.
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