Gun Rights

Cody Fitelson Jose Collado Geoffrey Kiarie Gabriella Sampaio

 

The debate on gun control is a very complex issue. Everyone has their own opinions and many of these people are extremely passionate on this issue. Right now in the United States there are an estimated 310 million guns circulating this country (GunPolicy.org). That is a crazy number when you think of it. There is a little more than 300 million people in America, which means that there are more guns in this country than there are citizens. As disturbing as a fact that may be, it’s nothing compared to this next fact. Every year, over 30,000 people die from gun related deaths (GunPolicy.org). This incorporates suicides, accidental deaths, and murder with any type of gun.

It is the opinion of our group that guns should be legal, but regulated. It is clear that the right to bear arms is in the 2^nd amendment of our constitution and that the government should not infringe upon this. In a perfect world, we would have no guns, but that will never happen. Although guns are legal, there should only be certain guns and bullets that the public can purchase. The guns we would allow the public to buy are handguns, shotguns, and certain types of rifles (like bolt action rifles which are primarily used in hunting and shooting for sport). When the constitution was made, there was only a single loading musket that took about 40 seconds to reload. Weapons have changed and assault rifles are used for one purpose, killing. Guns like the AR-15 should only be used by police officers and military personnel. In addition to banning certain types of guns to the general public, there should be magazine limits as well as restrictions on armor piercing bullets. A typical handgun holds anywhere from 9 to 12 bullets. There is no need to have a clip size of 24 bullets in a handgun, nor should it be legal. The shooter in Tucson had extended magazines which enabled him to continue shooting without reloading for a longer period of time.  Armor piercing bullets as well as extended magazines should both be illegal.

We believe that if the government regulates gun sales, enforces gun laws, and strictly punishes those who disobey the law, then gun-violence will decrease significantly. After thorough discussion and re-visiting certain disputes, we agreed that gun violence is a major issue, and while it is a right to own a gun, it should be heavily regulated in order to prevent catastrophes that are not only becoming more frequent, but also more severe.

Lastly, gun regulation has become a necessity, simply because technology is advancing at such a rapid rate that guns are becoming more lethal with each passing decade. At the time that the constitution was drawn up, the deadliest weapon available was a musket which fired one bullet and took 40 seconds to reload. In modern society, people have access to weapons that can let off hundreds upon hundreds of rounds in the time it takes to shoot and reload that old musket. Gun regulation was not a debate in the 18th century because people couldn't do much damage with the weapons they had, even if they wanted to. Today, all it takes is a kid who is having a bad day and has access to his dads AR-15 to yield a mass killing.

We are not saying, “Eliminate the second amendment.” We are not saying, “Americans do not deserve the right to own guns.” And we certainly aren't saying, “If you own a gun, you will become a mass killer.” But what we are saying, is that if government doesn't take affirmative action, and they continue to allow any 18 year old to walk into a near-by Cabela's and by hunting rifle's at his own whim, these tragedies will continue to get more severe and we will lose our sense of safety in a country where too much freedom has clearly become poisonous to its' citizens.