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Gun Control.

Gun control is defined as any legal measure put in place with the intent to prevent and restrict the ownership as well as the utilization of firearms by civilians. Gun control may be defined as a set of regulation and strategies, and the implementation of the strategies will lead to a decrease in gun violence and in return promoting the safety in schools, homes as well as safety in the community (Lott, 106). Some of the gun control strategies include; the promotion of gun safety which revolves around the implementation of sensible gun laws. The sensible gun laws will certainly reduce the access to the lethal weapons and in return reduce the risk of crimes or even loss of life that are often associated with the possession of firearms. The cultivation of a culture of gun safety is another key and important gun control strategy. The gun safety culture can be established by; ensuring that the youth and other individuals who are at a higher risk of harming themselves as well as others have a reduced access to the fire arms. The government has the responsibility of holding the gun industry accountable and to also ensure that the marketing and the sales of guns is done in a transparent and deviation freeway (Jehan, 11). It is also paramount to seek the counsel of the responsible gun dealers and those that own in the guns in on the solutions that will ensure the communities run smoothly and that crime stays nowhere closer to the state. It is also necessary for the owners to undertake training as well as responsible licensing before they can have a gun with them. The last strategy on ensuring the establishment of gun safety is to ensure the guns are stored in a safe and secure place to prevent them from getting into wrong arms (Luca, 123).

From reliable research it is stated that the Statistics on gun possession in the United States stands at 120.5 guns per 100 individuals which may be translated as 393,347,000guns and it is registered as the highest number in the world. From the statistics approximately 22% of the American population are in possession of firearms. Out of the percentage 35% are men and 12% are women. The gun culture in the United States is dated back to its colonial period, the activities of that early life as the country rose to supremacy and it led to the second Amendment (Manier). The terms of the amendment stated that; the security of a free state heavily relied on having a well-organized and equipped community and also ensuring it is well-regulated in that the arms are not misused and it that case people have the right to keep and bear Arms.

Certain individuals, advocating for gun control admit that the second Amendment was meant for the military and that if gun control is correctly implemented then there will be great reduction in gun violence and that restrictions on the guns have always existed and most of the gun owners are receptive to new gun regulations as most of them cooperate. The other key element of gun control is seen in the terms of the Second Amendment, where it is clear that the militia were given the right to bear firearms not to utilize them wrongly.

It is important to note how gun control will drastically reduce deaths related to the guns. Between the periods of 1999-2016 the authorities have reported the death of 572,537 individuals due to the gun, out of the cases a greater percentage is contributed by suicides homicides and other unintentional causes of death (Spitzier, 67). It is necessary to have some control on certain things, because the lack of gun control may result in other heinous mistakes and even the loss of innocent souls such as children, from articles it is clear that the when an individual purchase aa gun they may resort to negatively use it and in return they harm innocent people and hence the importance of having the strategies of gun control in place. During the purchase of the firearms it is the responsibility of those selling to do background checks so as to ensure the item is being sold to an individual who will be responsible enough and not harm other citizens. It is also projected that when background checks are effectively done then the deaths significantly drop by 80.7% (Jones, 164-174). Also the fire arms should be correctly identified as well as ensuring the individual using and purchasing the fire arm is licensed in a bid to decrease the number of homicides. Gun control has the advantage of ensuring the media channels that give wrong information are banned because of how they may employ exaggeration while reporting an issue such as mass shootings. The high-end magazines in particular have the tendency of exaggerating figures to skyrocketing limits, as the individuals who hold position of leadership in such organizations or magazine companies may tend to influence the information as they belong to particular gangs and they may want to get away with specific things and hence manipulate figures. Gun control strategies ensure there are stringent measures that will most definitely reduce gun violence.

One of the implications of gun control will be that the guns will be kept out of the wrong hands. The legislations on the gun controls have frameworks and strategies that are put in place to ensure that guns will be kept out of the wrong hands. These frameworks and strategies would ensure that there are an expansion and thorough checks done on the guns before sale and change of ownership to ensure that the illegal guns are kept out thus reducing gun and gun-related violence. Gun control ensures that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) are empowered and ensures that all dealers in gun both the public and private sellers obtain registration papers, licenses, allow for mandatory background checks on their warehouses and stores and to validate where there will be the possibility of managing and tracking of the firearms once they have been sold. Their flow and change of hands (Miah, 2018).

The gun control laws also aim at dealing with guns and gun-related violence by having effective control when managing mental health treatment. One of the reasons for the increase of guns and gun-related violence in the united states was the lack of proper mental treatments where the mentally retarded individuals owned guns illegally. This program is facilitated and made possible by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) checks and follows up the background of offenders and validates them to ensure whether it is fair or not for them to own a gun. This information is relayed by the Bureau of Justice Statistics which shows that more two million guns have been prevented from possession by wrong hands through such measures.

Gun control will also lead to the formation of a gun safety technology that will need to be adopted by the states and the federal executive. This gun and safety technology is required to prevent any occurrence of gun violence in the future. The limitation or reduction of gun ammunitions that can be possessed by citizens is an effective idea that will help in minimizing the number of guns and gun-related violence. A decrease in the number say from 100 round ammunition to 10 round ammunition is effective in reducing the number of causalities in case of any gun or gun related attacks. This technology to be embraced by the states and the federal executive will ensure these measures are implemented further adding to the safety of the people.

Guns control will also have a significant impact on the way law enforcement is done. Guns control laws mandate that there be an effective and efficient background system for checkups and follow-ups. This is mandatory to ensure that guns are poses by genuine people and that the guns do not land on the hands of criminals who can take the opportunity to harm innocent lives. The implication, therefore, is an additional funding and an effective system that ensures that these laws are implemented. There is also the need for political goodwill to support the enforcement since the background routine checks require additional support to achieving the required results.

Gun control will be effective and have a significant role in helping reduce gun violence in the united states (Santhanam). However, for this to be effective there is a need for the national and federal authorities to strictly and effectively implement Gun control would lead to a significant reduction in the gun-related violence in the United States. This would require the federal and national authorities to strictly implement the existing gun control laws as well as a formulation of additional comprehensive legislation that would control guns in the United States and make the nation safe. Having tough law on the ownership of guns as the gun control stipulates will ensure that guns and gun-related violence are reduced in three main ways. The first steps involve the intensive background checks by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) will ensure that all guns are licensed and can be tracked to the owner and this reduces the number of guns that fall into the wrong hands such as criminals who can use it to carry out violence. The second way is that gun control facilitates the development of effective law enforcement by the local authorities who follow up on the gun sales and registration on the local levels in efforts to ensure that the guns do not land into unlawful hands and hence reducing gun-related violence. The third way involves the limitations of the number of ammunitions available to gun holders. This will, in turn, reduce the number of victims say in case of gun violence (Pros & Cons org).

Gun control laws protect women and the less privileged group of individuals from domestic violence. There are several underlying reasons that may lead to domestic violence to the extent of presenting the gun. It is the responsibility of the government to protect its citizen from such calamities by ensuring the gun control laws are adhered to. It is also important to view gun violence as critical but preventable public health concern. Women in the United States are 11.4 times more like to be victims of gun homicides as most of the shootings that occur revolve around domestic violence. CITATION DHe15 l 1033 (Richardson).

The Gun control policies are also made in the basis of the following terms. The terms have mostly been discussed in the paper above and they include: there is a minimum age for the purchase of firearms. Individuals that are 18 and above can purchase the shotguns and ammunition while the handgun is sold to individuals above the age of 21. Mentally unstable individuals are never permitted to purchase a firearm as they may use it to harm other individuals. It is also important to understand that the background check is required before one gets the firearms. Gun control has certainly played a critical by ensuring law and order is maintained, as people may use their guns within their jurisdiction and may not threaten the lives of other individuals or harm them in any particular way. Individuals that possess firearms are also given the mandate to take care of the arms and not harm other people in any way.

Throughout the article, there have been many components of the gun control discussed. It is evident that the article majorly focuses on gun control and everything that revolves around gun control. Gun control is mentioned to have created a safer environment for individuals living in that very state. Gun control prevent homicide and suicide from occurring and hence life is protected and individuals may comfortably live without being worried. Gun control has also backed up the security of the state as it helps firearm bears to act responsibly and to also protect themselves from so many dangers from individual who might want to harm them. When effectively implemented gun control measures, there will be a limited number of guns which are in illegal hands such as the criminals and extremists through proper monitoring, background checks help to ensure instances of a gun and gun-related violence such as mass shootings are minimized or reduced and the country is safe.

Works Cited

Connors, Kelly, et al. “State Gun Laws That Actually Reduce Gun Deaths.” Boston University, Boston University, 6 Aug. 2019, http://www.bu.edu/articles/2019/state-gun-laws-that-reduce-gun-deaths/. Accessed 23 October 2019

Jehan, Faisal, et al. “The burden of firearm violence in the United States: stricter laws result in safer states.” Journal of injury and violence research 10.1 (2018): 11.

Jones, Michael A., and George W. Stone. “The US gun-control paradox: Gun buyer response to congressional gun-control initiatives.” Journal of Business & Economics Research (JBER) 13.4 (2015): 167-174.

Lott, John R. More guns, less crime: Understanding crime and gun control laws. University of Chicago Press, 2013.

Luca, Michael, Deepak Malhotra, and Christopher Palanquin. The impact of mass shootings on gun policy. No. w26187. National Bureau of Economic Research, 2019.

Manier, Lauren. “Does Gun Control Really Work?” National Center for Health Research, 12 Apr. 2018, http://www.center4research.org/does-gun-control-really-work/.

Morrall, Andrew. “The science of gun policy: a critical synthesis of research evidence on the effects of gun policies in the United States.” Rand health quarterly 8.1 (2018).

“Pros & Cons ProCon.org.” Gun Control, https://gun-control.procon.org/.

Santhanam, Laura. “Most Americans Support These 4 Types of Gun Legislation, Poll Says.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, 10 Sept. 2019, https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/most-americans-support-stricter-gun-laws-new-poll-says.

Spitzer, Robert J. Politics of gun control. Routledge, 2015

GUN CONTROL

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Gun Control

The united states have laws that are both at the federal level while others are at the state level to control guns and their usage. These laws determine transfer, buying, selling, manufacture, record keeping, ammunition, destruction, transport, and the accessories of firearms. These laws are mainly pushed forward and maintained by the state government agencies and the federal bureau of tobacco, firearms & explosives, and alcohol. The second amendment enables individuals to buy and the general control of the gun markets and usage as well as production and the types of guns that can be available in the markets and which ones cannot be allowed in the market. However, even with these regulations, which have been in place for a long time, there are still witnessed shootings. The USA has been rated among the top countries which have mass shootings or individuals use guns in the wrong manner and therefore even the more effort for the individuals and the government to ensure protection. This paper discusses gun laws and gun control in the United States of America.

Firstly, some young people are always amazed by guns, which makes them wish to own guns. Therefore when they reach an age they can own guns, they get to buy their weapons and, in the spirit of adventure and goodwill of personal protection, train themselves to use the guns. With time they become outstanding, and they get to know what is needed to use a gun. However, having a firearm in youth is a problem because when they are agitated or made grossly angry by something, they tend to use their guns to fight back. This leads to more suffering and makes a person unable to own the gun for some time. However, with the correct use of firearms, there is a future of the country whereby the guns are only used whereby there is a critical need for the use of the gun needed (Boylan et al., 2013).

The national firearms act is the act that taxes the transfer and the manufacture of firearms. Federal firearms act of 1938 states that those who must purchase guns should also have the federal government’s approval. This act also protects the public from the wrong people in whose hands if a firearm lands, there can be chaos in the society because there is a likelihood of the guns being misused. An example of this kind of individuals includes convicted felons. This act, therefore, is a significant part of gun control because some people getting guns means that the community around them will significantly suffer. They will most probably think that it is their right to do whatever they wish to regain what they have lost during their conviction hand. Through this, they are likely to hurt the people around them.

The omnibus safety streets and state control act of 1968 increased the age at which a person can own guns up to 21 years and prevent inter-state trade in firearms. This meant that only the manufacturers who could take the guns to the states and not the state could supply guns to another. It also meant that even if a young person was 18 years they could not get a gun because they were probably to misuse it. This is an apparent judgment that a person at the age of 18 cannot use their weapon correctly, but at the age of 21, they are mature enough to do what is right and wrong and use their guns properly (Carter, 2006).

There are also other laws enacted by the federal government, whose discussion continues below. These were to make sure that the guns are safely handled because the selling of firearms can mean violence within America if there are no laws to govern their proper usage. Undetectable firearms act criminalizes the sale of weapons with more than 3.7 OZ of metal content. This means, therefore, only those arms which have fewer sizes could be sold, and it also meant that most people should not detect the firearms if a person carries them (Sparrentak et al., 2018). This was to protect the American society from the effects of people carrying guns around like everyone was a security officer. It also meant that some people and especially children, were frightened when they saw guns, and there was a need to protect them by allowing the public to own guns that were undetectable through sight and other means of being sold. It also meant that a person might have had their loved ones killed using guns, and for their respect and efforts to help prevent them from remembering such issues, this act was passed.

The gun-free schools’ zones act of 1990 emphasizes that a person cannot own a gun within a school environment. This means that the students studying have to be protected to the maximum from such products and items which could make their life very difficult. This act tries to be to the individuals within a school environment a natural setting for learners to grow, interact with one another, and create peace through other means apart from using guns since where a firearm is used most probably there is no understanding there is no peace.

Law enforcement officers’ safety act of 2004 allows law enforcers to carry undetectable guns across states regardless of the state laws, however, with a few restrictions. This law also applies to formerly law enforcement officers since their protection is critical against the public gun owners who can mess with their guns. The closest law enforcement individuals are supposed to arrive at the scene as fast as possible and clear the confusion caused by the wrongful use of firearms. For this operation to be successful, therefore these individuals need to have guns for their protection and training.

Protection of lawful commerce in the arms act of 2005 makes sure that even if a person uses their guns correctly, the blame does not fall under the firearm manufacturer but under the person misusing the firearms. Therefore a person who misuses their weapon is liable for their crimes and not be blamed on the manufacturers. This protects the manufacturers and makes them be able to have peace when operating and continue to produce firearms most of the time. They are the companies that provide the state and the federal government with weapons for security officers and other officers who use guns very frequently. This means that if the manufacturers were sued or many complain about their guns, their production capacity would be interfered with and unable to produce firearms, especially when they are most needed by the states and the federal government (Lester, 1988).

Along with these acts, there also came up with what is known as those allowed to own guns and those who cannot own guns. For example, if a person is a fugitive cannot own guns. Fugitives are those convicted with a sentence of more than one year, whether in the past or present. It also means those individuals who were involuntarily taken to a mental hospital due to mental health issues. The two groups of individuals are termed as very high risks if they are provided with guns. For those taken to mental hospitals, there is a likelihood of a person using the gun to hurt themselves, while the same applies to those sentenced for over one year. However, those convicted have a higher percentage and likelihood of hurting others. In contrast, those taken to mental hospitals have a higher possibility of hurting themselves, and therefore both risks are not desired (Carter, 2006).

Forty-four states have a provision in their constitutions aligned with the second amendment on the ownership of guns. However, states like California, Minnesota, new york, new jersey, Iowa, and Maryland have exceptions (Jacobs, 2002). However, in a new york state, there is a statutory civil rights act that is almost similar to the second amendment.

The history of gun control is also essential to look at and from this, therefore, be able to fully understand what it means to own a gun and where it all began. The first discussion about gun ownership in the united states happened in 1791 when the second amendment was brought into place. However, there has been massive misuse of guns over the past whereby for example, in 1934, there was the valentine’s day massacre. It led to even stricter laws and amendments to be put into place to protect American society and the protection of the manufactures and the government. During this period under president Roosevelt, the national firearms act was brought into the home. It imposed a $200 tax on the manufacture of title II guns. The amount by 2009 was around $4000. The registration of short-barrelled firearms, machine guns, heavy weapons, explosive ordnance, shotguns, improvised firearms, and suppressors was also a must under this act (Sparrentak et al., 2018).

In the 1960s, there were also more amendments due to the assassination of Martin Luther King junior and john f. Kennedy. President Lyndon was the one who pushed Congress for the gun control act of 1968. This act broadened the definition of a machine gun, replaced the EFA, and regulated self-destructive devices like bombs, mines, and grenades. In 2008 McDonald v. Chicago, the court ruled that the second amendment applies against the states. In Caetano v. Massachusetts, the supreme court interpreted the second amendment more clearly. It stated that it applies even to those instruments which are considered arms and which were not in existence during the time of the second amendment (Jacobs, 2002).

Those allowed to own guns include; green card holders, citizens of the united states, lawful permanent residents of the USA, nationals but non-citizens of the united states of America, among other individuals. However, the use of guns comes along with restrictions. Therefore it is complicated to own a gun and use it in the manner a person wishes to serve personal needs without thinking first of the American society (Boylan et al., 2013).

In conclusion, firearms and gun control laws are essential in the allowance of public ownership of guns. This means that, without the above-discussed laws and amendments towards the use of firearms, society is not at peace with one another. People can do anything as long as it serves personal benefits or the benefits of a particular group of individuals in a lawless society. This is made impossible by the laws. Therefore personal protection and defense come as the only and priority in issuing guns to the public. Consequently, it is an integral part of American society, and society needs to hold on to the rules for the safety of each member of the community.

References

Boylan, M., Kates, D. B., Lindsey, R. W., & Gugala, Z. (2013). Debate: Gun Control in the United States. Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research®, 471(12), 3934-3936.

Carter, G. L. (2006). Gun control in the United States: a reference handbook. ABC-CLIO.

Jacobs, J. B. (2002). Can gun control work?. Oxford University Press.

Van Sparrentak, M., Chang, T., Miller, A. L., Nichols, L. P., & Sonneville, K. R. (2018). Youth opinions about guns and gun control in the United States. JAMA pediatrics, 172(9), 884-886.