Right To Bear Arms Essay
In the United States, the second amendment states that it is the right of the people to keep and bear arms. Laws are rules that regulates and maintains order in a society when enforced. Gun control laws are put in place to restrict when buyers are allowed to take lethal action. With recent incidents causing catastrophe and sorrow, vicious acts and carnages caused by guns, it raises the issue of gun control law enforcement. These blood baths causes citizens to question the leniency of the laws. There are great responsibilities that comes with bearing arms and it should be a privilege, not a right. On December 14, 2012, in Newtown, Connecticut, 20-year-old Adam Lanza entered the Sandy Hook Elementary school by force with a Bushmaster rifle, Glock handgun, and a SIG Sauer handgun. In the space of less than five minutes with 156 shots fired, Lanza killed
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20 children and 6 members of staff. After the massacre, Lanza shoots himself in the lower rear portion of his head. (“Sandy Hook Elementary Shooting: What Happened?" CNN.) It is shameful that a country that is deemed free, lives in fear of their own citizens carrying firearms. This is just a price society pays for freedoms such as the “right to bear arms.” It should not require the death of innocent children for a change to be made.
As of 2013, carrying a concealed handgun in public is permitted in all 50 states, when Illinois became the latter state to accept the concealed carry legislation.
State regulations on concealed carry falls into four classification. The class which does not allow citizens to carry a concealed handgun is referred to as "no-issue". The second class is "may-issue," which allows concealed carry permits at the decision of local authorities. The third class, the "shall-issue," requires police to issue concealed carry permits on condition that the applicant meets minimum requirements such as a minimum age, no prior felony convictions, and no recent commitments to a mental institution. The fourth category is "unrestricted carry," where no permit is required to carry a concealed handgun. Some states require gun owners to obtain permits while others have "unrestricted carry" and did not require permits. (“Concealed Guns ProCon.org."). A weapon that can be used to cause fatalities should not be as easily accessible. Other advanced countries however, manage to evade an elevated gun murder rate and recurrent public mass
shootings.
Canada, the U.S.'s neighbor to the north, has exceptionally low gun casualty statistics. In 2009, 173 people deaths were caused by gun homicide. Though ownership is comparatively high, there is no legal right to possess arms in Canada. License for gun owners are mandatory and it takes sixty days to purchase a gun. Gun owners must take a safety training course and pass a background check that focuses on mental, criminal and addiction histories. Pursuing a license also requires the applicant to have third-party references. Prior to granting a license, licensing agents are required to advise the applicant's spouse or relative. Licenses are denied to applicants with any history of domestic violence. Everyone is subject to these laws in Canada. Buyers in private sales of arms are also required to meet official background check standards. Canadian civilians are prohibited from possessing automatic weapons, handguns with a barrel shorter than 10.5 cm or any modified handgun, rifle or shotgun. Most semi-automatic assault weapons are also prohibited ("How Australia and Other Developed Nations Have Put a Stop to Gun Violence").These are laws that are put in place to control the use of guns which subsequently lowered the number of gun violence and mass shootings in the country.
Proponents of concealed carry would think that criminals are less likely to attack an individual that they believe to be armed. They argue that most adults who legally carry a concealed weapon are law-abiding and do not misuse their firearms. Dr. John Lott, published More Guns, Less Crime which concluded that the "shall-issue" laws linked with a decrease in gun homicides in 1988. Lott argued that if states that did not permit concealed handguns in 1992 had permitted them in 1977, 1,570 murders would have been prevented. It is almost outrageous to think that more guns will cure gun violence, when the perpetrators are gun owners themselves. Adversaries of concealed carry may argue that increased gun possession leads to more gun crime and unintentional gun injuries. They may propose that concealed handguns heighten the chances of arguments becoming fatal, and that society would be safer with less guns on the street, not more. Presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton reportedly disapproved laws similar to Georgia’s new Safe Carry Protection Act, which increases concealed carry into churches, government buildings, schools, and unsecured portions of airports. She believes expanding the places where law-abiding citizens can carry guns will only cause “more deadly violence that could otherwise be avoided.” (Hillary Clinton: Gun Laws Are Too Lenient, Must Be 'Reined In). In some states, a ban has been placed on semi-automatic rifles but for the majority this is not the case. Semi-automatic guns were designed for military and law enforcement officers to use. Semi-automatic firearms are the chief weapons being used in the recent massacres. Gun control laws of each state highlights the use of firearms for the purpose of defending “oneself” and “property”. It is unethical that these lethal weapons are classified as legal, as they are created to cause massive loss of lives. James Holmes’ shooting at the movie theater in Aurora in 2012 lasted for approximately a minute and a half. Within two minutes, twenty-five police officers had responded to the scene. Holmes killed twelve viewers and injured fifty-eight others within six minutes. This action can be seen as domestic terrorism and this should be an issue that citizens stand up against to encourage change to the existing gun control laws.
Arguments exist on both sides of the stories of tragedies. It may seem ideal to some that having guns will make an individual safer or cure gun violence, however, certain tragedies could have been avoided had the laws been different. Other advanced countries are successful with the gun control laws they have implicated and the United States of America has the power to instill similar laws to allow the nation to be as successful and safe as those countries. In a country where it is considered the land of the free, the citizens should not be living in fear. It is remotely impossible to get rid of all the guns in the United State however, the laws placed upon them are not strict enough.
20 children and 6 members of staff. After the massacre, Lanza shoots himself in the lower rear portion of his head. (“Sandy Hook Elementary Shooting: What Happened?" CNN.) It is shameful that a country that is deemed free, lives in fear of their own citizens carrying firearms. This is just a price society pays for freedoms such as the “right to bear arms.” It should not require the death of innocent children for a change to be made.
As of 2013, carrying a concealed handgun in public is permitted in all 50 states, when Illinois became the latter state to accept the concealed carry legislation.
State regulations on concealed carry falls into four classification. The class which does not allow citizens to carry a concealed handgun is referred to as "no-issue". The second class is "may-issue," which allows concealed carry permits at the decision of local authorities. The third class, the "shall-issue," requires police to issue concealed carry permits on condition that the applicant meets minimum requirements such as a minimum age, no prior felony convictions, and no recent commitments to a mental institution. The fourth category is "unrestricted carry," where no permit is required to carry a concealed handgun. Some states require gun owners to obtain permits while others have "unrestricted carry" and did not require permits. (“Concealed Guns ProCon.org."). A weapon that can be used to cause fatalities should not be as easily accessible. Other advanced countries however, manage to evade an elevated gun murder rate and recurrent public mass
shootings.
Canada, the U.S.'s neighbor to the north, has exceptionally low gun casualty statistics. In 2009, 173 people deaths were caused by gun homicide. Though ownership is comparatively high, there is no legal right to possess arms in Canada. License for gun owners are mandatory and it takes sixty days to purchase a gun. Gun owners must take a safety training course and pass a background check that focuses on mental, criminal and addiction histories. Pursuing a license also requires the applicant to have third-party references. Prior to granting a license, licensing agents are required to advise the applicant's spouse or relative. Licenses are denied to applicants with any history of domestic violence. Everyone is subject to these laws in Canada. Buyers in private sales of arms are also required to meet official background check standards. Canadian civilians are prohibited from possessing automatic weapons, handguns with a barrel shorter than 10.5 cm or any modified handgun, rifle or shotgun. Most semi-automatic assault weapons are also prohibited ("How Australia and Other Developed Nations Have Put a Stop to Gun Violence").These are laws that are put in place to control the use of guns which subsequently lowered the number of gun violence and mass shootings in the country.
Proponents of concealed carry would think that criminals are less likely to attack an individual that they believe to be armed. They argue that most adults who legally carry a concealed weapon are law-abiding and do not misuse their firearms. Dr. John Lott, published More Guns, Less Crime which concluded that the "shall-issue" laws linked with a decrease in gun homicides in 1988. Lott argued that if states that did not permit concealed handguns in 1992 had permitted them in 1977, 1,570 murders would have been prevented. It is almost outrageous to think that more guns will cure gun violence, when the perpetrators are gun owners themselves. Adversaries of concealed carry may argue that increased gun possession leads to more gun crime and unintentional gun injuries. They may propose that concealed handguns heighten the chances of arguments becoming fatal, and that society would be safer with less guns on the street, not more. Presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton reportedly disapproved laws similar to Georgia’s new Safe Carry Protection Act, which increases concealed carry into churches, government buildings, schools, and unsecured portions of airports. She believes expanding the places where law-abiding citizens can carry guns will only cause “more deadly violence that could otherwise be avoided.” (Hillary Clinton: Gun Laws Are Too Lenient, Must Be 'Reined In). In some states, a ban has been placed on semi-automatic rifles but for the majority this is not the case. Semi-automatic guns were designed for military and law enforcement officers to use. Semi-automatic firearms are the chief weapons being used in the recent massacres. Gun control laws of each state highlights the use of firearms for the purpose of defending “oneself” and “property”. It is unethical that these lethal weapons are classified as legal, as they are created to cause massive loss of lives. James Holmes’ shooting at the movie theater in Aurora in 2012 lasted for approximately a minute and a half. Within two minutes, twenty-five police officers had responded to the scene. Holmes killed twelve viewers and injured fifty-eight others within six minutes. This action can be seen as domestic terrorism and this should be an issue that citizens stand up against to encourage change to the existing gun control laws.
Arguments exist on both sides of the stories of tragedies. It may seem ideal to some that having guns will make an individual safer or cure gun violence, however, certain tragedies could have been avoided had the laws been different. Other advanced countries are successful with the gun control laws they have implicated and the United States of America has the power to instill similar laws to allow the nation to be as successful and safe as those countries. In a country where it is considered the land of the free, the citizens should not be living in fear. It is remotely impossible to get rid of all the guns in the United State however, the laws placed upon them are not strict enough.