Gun Control Vs Mass Shootings

With all the recent mass shootings happening in the country, people have made the call for stricter gun control. Is this really the answer that would solve all the problems? Is stricter gun control really the answer or is it a grand illusion to fool the masses? In these two opposing essays there are very hard hitting points and facts supporting both sides. Stricter gun control is majorly demanded in democratic states where most mass shootings occur. Republican states having open carry laws and CCW are less likely to have mass shootings. Having the right to carry is a basic constitutional right, it's a deterrent, and many times it has saved more lives than taking.

In the short article “Disarming Realities: Gun Sales Soar, Gun Crimes Plummet”
in Forbes Magazine discuss valid points and shocking statistics. They offer a view that is seldom seen by the media and often up for debate with no real counter. This article is loaded with facts from The Department of Justice and The Pew Research center. They show that gun related crime has dropped 39%in the past 18 years, which is not the common belief. John Lott the author of “More Guns, Less Crimes” offers up a fact that with more CCW toting citizens deters criminals. With criminals having to decide whether their target is armed or not is certainly a deterrent to most.
With the toughest gun laws in the nation, Chicago saw homicides jump to 513 in 2012, a 15% hike in a single year.
The city’s murder rate is 15.65 per 100,000 people, compared with 4.5 for the Midwest, and 5.6 for Illinois. “Disarming Realities: Gun sales soar, gun crimes plummet”
This statistic is shocking in itself due to the sheer amount people that could have been saved. Showing statistics like this shows that in states with stricter gun controls aren't always better. The more facts that are presented from this well structured articles the more their argument is validated.
Yet in the general population, and although the agenda-driven media hasn’t noticed, we can be grateful that gun violence has been trending downward since 1993 when it hit its last peak. Don’t want to credit a rise in gun ownership and concealed carry by law-abiding citizens for this good news? Fine. But then, don’t imagine that gun legislation is the reason or answer either. Leave that illusion to gun-control cheerleaders in the media. “Disarming Realities: Gun Sales Soar, Gun Crimes Plummet” in Forbes Magazine
With a closing statement like this they really drive home and validate their point that they are trying to make. Law abiding gun carrying citizens are helping this country destroy gun toting criminals by being a shear
deterrent.
In the short article “Open Carry is an Invitation to Chaos” in US News they discuss how open carry law in Oklahoma is a recipe for disaster. The article stands against open carry stating there are too many factors that put innocent bystanders at risk of a gun toting amateur at risk of being disarmed. While this is a very good point they don't offer very many facts that hold value. The article goes on to state the statistics in Oklahoma of spousal abuse and retaliation against race.
Guns kill the innocent and the guilty equally. When the smoke settles, the dead have no voice.
Oklahoma is no longer and should never again become a venue for old-style, wild, wild West activities. We have enough rodeos in which to seek to recapture that era.
The solution to concerns about violence is better and more effectively achieved through policy initiatives that address the sources of our wounds—poverty, obesity, smoking, addiction, mental illness, and health disparity, to name a few. When we focus on and get these areas right, we will have achieved great strides toward reducing the conditions that perpetuate violence in society. “Open Carry is an Invitation to Chaos” in US News
Statements like these are made throughout the entire article trying to suede people's opinions. The final closing of the article is the idea of more guns being the problem. The article refers to the right to carry being very cowboy and Wild Wild West. They view the mass shootings as something that may have happened like the OK Corral shootout. The article uses the idea that legislation, rules, and policies are more powerful than an armed law abiding citizens. They almost offer to sweep the gun problem under the rug and replace it with other problems. This article offers a lot of angered insight to a very controversial subject.

The two articles are of opposing viewpoints and offer very little in common. The only common factors both share is the passion of the subject about which they write. They are very creatively written and use words to capture and lure minds of voters nationwide. Registered voters, CCW holders, and pro/con second amendment people are clearly the intended audiences for both of these articles. After all, every voter determines the future of whether a law is passed or not. Besides the eloquent writing by both authors each article stands apart from the other. Each article is about gun control and why or why not people should be allowed to open carry. With gun control being the center of discussion, it is hard to decide which side is the better choice. The two articles are completely separate entities and cannot be held on the same platform.
Some of the differences between the two articles consist of the structures in which they were written. “Disarming Realities: Gun Sales Soar, Gun Crimes Plummet” in Forbes Magazine was written point by point whereas “Open Carry is an Invitation to Chaos” in US News was written as an opinion based argument. “Disarming Realities: Gun Sales Soar, Gun Crimes Plummet” in Forbes Magazine was determined to prove it’s point to it’s readers by providing an arsenal of facts and statistics. This article was quite informative and focused on the issues at hand on a national level. Giving you a sense of comfort it was as if the author was sitting down with an old friend. “Open Carry is an Invitation to Chaos” in US News focused more on convincing its readers with negative opinions and a few discomforting facts. This article was intended to outrage and dissuade its readers from the importance of the actual subject at hand it. The article only focused on the issues at a state level rather than a national level. The feeling of this essay was very rash and abrupt leaving a bad taste in the
mouth.

At the end of the day the real question is, which article was more convincing and more effective in getting it’s point across? After reading these articles the answer is quite simple. “Open Carry is an Invitation to Chaos” in US News lacked strong supporting facts leaving the reader with lots of unanswered questions. Opinions tend to not hold any weight without strong supporting facts. To boot it had a short, weak conclusion that can send a message to the readers that it lacked conviction deeming it ineffective. “Disarming Realities: Gun Sales Soar, Gun Crimes Plummet” in Forbes Magazine on the other hand was extremely effective in captivating it’s readers with a barrage of hard hitting facts. This article gave its readers an abundance of positive information, giving it’s readers hope for our future society. It also fully supports the second amendment making it clearly the better more effective article. The article didn't leave many questions unanswered and was able to supply enough information for the reader to feel thoroughly informed. This article did an excellent job of keeping up the tempo and pace of a well constructed argument. Having the right to carry is a basic constitutional right, it's a deterrent, and many times it has saved more lives than taking.