The article discusses the relationship between mass shootings and gun control legislation in light of a December 2012 shooting at an Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. The author claims that violent crime has fallen in the U.S. while gun ownership has increased. Media portrayals of mass shootings are addressed in light of criticism from researcher Grant Duwe.…
Some of the shootings were suicides and others were unintentional. Sherfinski develops this thesis by stating that the Congress that has shown little interest in gun control after President Obama 's failed push last year for expanded background checks and bans on some semiautomatic rifles and high-capacity ammunition. This document was introduced in order to introduce the audience on the movement the Moms Demand Gun Sense in American are taking to make sure Congress takes action to ensure the gun control law is better fixed.…
Firearm injuries are one of the top ten causes of death in the United States (“Statistics”). Firearms are the second leading cause of traumatic death related to consumer product in the U.S. and are the second most frequent cause of death overall for Americans ages 15 to 25 (Violence Policy Center para.4). Every two years more Americans die from firearm injuries than the total number of American soldiers killed during the eight year Vietnam War (Violence Prevention Institute). In 2005, 11,346 people were killed by firearm violence and 477,040 were victims of a crime involving a firearm. In 2006, firearms were used in 68 percent of murders, 42 percent of robbery offenses and 22 percent of aggravated assaults nationwide (National Institute of Justice). “Homicides committed with firearms peaked in 1993 at 17,075, after which the figure steadily fell, leveling off in 1999 at 10, 11. Gun-related homicides have increased each year since 2002”(National Institute of Justice). The federal government needs to take action to prevent similar tragedies from happening in the future. In an effort to stabilize and decrease firearm related injuries and deaths in the U.S. a strong federal law to control guns is…
Gun violence in the United States is a problem that has plagued this country since I was a child. I know this because I have been the victim of gun crimes on more than one occasion. Gun laws in this country need to be changed in order to stop the ever increasing occurrences of violent crimes involving guns. Taking a stand against gun violence calls for more background checks (Brown, M. (09-06-2013). During a study completed between February 2010 and September 2011 689 victim were asked about gun ownership and how they obtained their firearms, surveys included their history of drug use and alcohol consumption, and gauged their attitudes on violence…
Although guns provide a good way to protect us, they also offer an effective method to kill others. Perhaps many people may argue that gun is just one of the numerous tools killers use, they believe that gun control can’t eliminate murder. However, “The biggest problem with firearms is they kill quickly and they kill efficiently. The problem there is the instant impulse leads to death” (Schoener). Even though the government set up several restrictions for owning guns, killers can easily get them. What is worse, with the gun culture, people are more likely to release their anger by shooting. These entire make the gun law the most dangerous law we’ve ever…
The purpose of this paper will give a historical background of the gun control debacles in the United States, and will focus on gun control and the Second Amendment, the historical context of the Second Amendment and the legitimacy of gun the control legislation, America’s most dominant gun control movements since 1980, as well as presenting the effects they have had on the American public by analyzing different approaches state-by-state across the U.S., to understand if there is a correlation between the number of firearms, and killings committed by guns.…
Americans have a unique relationship with their guns, one not found in most similar first-world countries. American culture idolizes guns through the popularity of hunting, sport shooting, and owning guns for home defense. In America, many celebrate this freedom, but this freedom has a cost. Although America was founded on principles of liberty, the amount of lives lost to gun violence raises an alarming problem which Americans undoubtedly cannot ignore. This problem is not distant or far off from this audience either. According to a publication from Princeton and the Brookings Institute, the annual total of death or injury due to gun violence of those under 20 is over 20,000. (Behrman, Culross, and Reich 1). However, outside of only those…
Crime is everywhere, but more recently gun violence has been plaguing our country. This paper will introduce you to the issue of gun violence in America. Little by little gun violence is dominating our country statistics from the National Institute of Justice state that gun violence has peaked in the past years"467,321 persons were victims of a crime committed with a firearm in 2011. In the same year, data collected by the FBI show that firearms were used in 68 percent of murders,…
Gun violence in the United States has exponentially grown into a highly pressing issue in political and social discourse in today’s society. More and more cases of teenagers, young adults, and psychopathic criminals engaging in gun violence have arisen in recent years. Years ago, gun violence was typically associated with the inner city, but recently the plague has reached college campuses, malls, movie theaters, high schools, and even grade schools. The government, schools, peace organizations, and common people are banding together to find ways to deal with the matter adequately. Unfortunately, the solution is not obvious. There are varying viewpoints on the issue across the political and social spectrum, which creates controversy and dispute on what should be done. One thing is known, however; something needs to change.…
Since 1982, at least sixty-two mass shootings have occurred, thirty-two of them since 2006. (Aronsen). Jared Loughner was sentenced to life in prison after shooting nineteen people in January of 2011. Last July, fifty-eight people were shot and twelve killed while watching the new Batman movie in a theater in Colorado. In December, twenty-six people were murdered, including twenty first-graders, in a Connecticut elementary school (Follman). The issue of gun violence only becomes relevant after a horrific event such as these, then fades from public concern after about two weeks. The number of injuries and murders using guns in the United States is a large number, which can hopefully be lowered by implementing statewide, or even nationwide gun buyback programs, stricter carrying permit laws, and making it harder for the mentally unstable and convicted felons to legally obtain guns.…
“People can have the right to held their weapons to protect their freedom”, which is Americans belief and right given by the constitution. With this belief, The United States might be the only developed country which widely allowed its citizens holding guns. The custom of holding a guns caused the cowboy culture, which leaded americans have expanded and developed their country to be the most powerful country in the world today. However, today’s American is not the country of cowboys anymore. As a consequence of the 2nd Amendment in today’s America, the gun shooting has been a big threat to the public security. It’s the time to reexamine the gun culture’s affection, whether the guns still provided protection it was expected. Especially to Iowa people, they may need to really think about this question although they have the most optimistic environment of holding guns, because the risk never appears today might be realized tomorrow.…
Gun violence is one main thing that tears families apart. Crazy, non-educated people roam the streets with dangerous weapons killing people and causing tragedies. Society would have done better if only police had the access to weapons and guns instead of civilians and criminals, although they could be confiscated. Gun violence incidents have been happening for a very long time, most of the time without a reason. Shootings, robberies, etc. all include the use of a weapon like a gun. These things happen every day. For example, if someone is trying/planning on killing someone, they won’t be able to do that without a weapon. Guns are meant for self-defense, people like gangsters don’t use them the way they’re supposed to be used, but why? Using them not the right way will get them in trouble and do nothing but get them thrown in jail, just use guns in the proper form, for self-defense, not homicidal kills. It is important to always stay cautious of your…
Today, we are living in a world where one moment you are laughing, and in a blink of an eye you wind up either dead or in the hospital due to random gun violence. US leads amongst all the developed nations in mass murder due to gun violence and gun abuse. Between 1976 and 2012, most high-income countries did not experience a single shooting. The U.S. witnessed 16 shootings involving 7 or more fatalities, resulting in 241 deaths, more than all the other developed countries combined.…
Carter, Gregg Lee and Mildred Vasan, Eds. Gun Control in the United States: A Reference Handbook. Danbury: ABC-CLIO, Incorporated, 2006.…
The first mass shooting was in Austin, Texas in 1966 by Charles Whitman at the University of Texas. He snipped fourteen people and wounded thirty-two others in less than ninety minutes. Students used their weapons from their vehicles and helped police take him down. Democratic parties are scared to bring up the topic of gun control because they fear that they will lose votes to the people that do not want gun control. Gun laws are intended to limit the amount of guns in an area and lower crime rates, but people with mental problems do not follow those rules. They set their minds on killing people and that is what they do. If gun control became stricter, then there would still be gun violence because criminals would be armed making unarmed citizens easy targets. No one can stop them because they are set on killing no matter what. They do not have to suffer the consequences of killing the people they do because most of them kill themselves when they are about to get caught or after they finish what they planned to do.…
