Gun Control vs. Gun Rights

There is a famous quote, which states: "Guns don't kill people, people kill people." This quote is technically true. But if there are no guns, it will be a whole lot more difficult for people to kill people. Sure people could use different weapons such as knives and golf clubs to kill people. But the victim will have a significant better chance of defending him or herself from a weapon other than firearms. I was born in Tokyo, Japan and moved to the United States when I was six. I still go visit my relatives and friends in Japan every other year. "Japan - described as having the strictest controls in the world - bans private possession of firearms except by people who need them for official duties or by licensed hunters, shooters, athletes, dealers or collectors." (Stencel pg. 164). Walking in a large downtown area of Tokyo in the middle of the night feels very different from walking in downtown Atlanta at nighttime. There are many people walking around town even past midnight in Japan because the crime rate is lower than it is here in the U.S. People don't worry as much as they do here in the U.S. about being robbed, kidnapped, etc. Unfortunately, Japan's crime rate in general is higher than it was before. I would here about murders in Japan happening with knives and such, but very rarely do I here about murders or other such crimes happening with firearms. But the crime rate is still much lower than compared to the U.S.' crime rate. Even though murders and other crimes can never be brought down to zero unless everyone's on Prozak 24 hours a day, I believe that the serious crimes would go down significantly if firearms are kept away from the public.

From reading the Stencel book, I have learned for the first time that the Second Amendment was not just the right to bear arms. The Stencel book tells us that the Second Amendment really states: "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to