Eng 1021 - American Gun Control: Which Way Do We Go?

Geoff Bragg

Professor Spitzman

English 1021

November 15, 2015

American Gun Control: Which Way Do We Go?

There are many in the world who believe America has a gun violence issue and they can rationalize this belief very well. Despite the conflicting analysis on the subject they all agree; among comparable developed countries America has the highest rate of death by firearm. It is important to bear in mind that this statement includes all death by firearms – homicide, suicide and accidental. In 2013, almost as many people died from firearms as died from car accidents. A recent McClatchy-Marist poll found Americans are more concerned about domestic gun violence than terrorism. This is telling as America’s relationship with its guns is a long-standing, deep-rooted one. Although the country’s conscience can agree on the existence of a problem, how to address it is a divisive discussion. The conversation can get so heated that progress seems elusive at best and impossible at worst. One would be justified in asking, “Is there a solution at all?”

At first glance it would appear there are only two sides to the argument. One can either ban guns or one can ensure every American has access to guns. So by and large, the argument usually focuses on gun control.

Proponents of gun control law argue that, with fewer guns there would be less deaths by firearm. There are many statistics that back this claim. People who have ready access to a firearm are almost twice as likely to be killed and three times more likely to commit suicide than those without a gun available in the home. Most unintentional shooting victims are boys and are shot by a friend or brother. 40% of those shootings happen in the same room the gun was stored in. Gun control proponents universal background checks should apply to all sales of guns including those at gun shows and between private individuals. They also support the institution of a gun control registry. By limiting access to types and number of guns, vetting all potential gun owners and enforcing gun safety in the home gun control proponents hope to reduce the number of deaths by firearms in the United States.

Opponents to gun control start with the Second Amendment. Their argument that the right of a private citizen to own a gun is guaranteed by the Constitution.  Law-abiding Americans are entitled to own a gun for sport, personal protection and in the support of a free state. One study, often quoted by the NRA, suggests private firearms are used 2.5 million times per year to avoid and deter theft, crime and injury. Since 1994 violent crime has steadily decreased while gun ownership has increased. They argue that further restrictions on guns would be ineffective and only penalize the responsible gun owner. A person already breaking the law will pay little heed to more laws restricting the purchase or carrying of firearms. Consider also the fact that nearly 60% of deaths by firearm are suicide and one could further rationalize that those individuals would have fund some way to kill themselves regardless of the presence of a gun. With around 30% of firearm deaths being attributed to homicides the remaining 10% of deaths are accidental and are the fault of irresponsible gun ownership and cannot be blamed on the gun itself. More background checks won’t work because criminals will find a way around them in order to purchase a gun and gun registration is an invasion of privacy. Those measures would also do little to reduce gun deaths. Mexico has some of the toughest gun regulations in the world and their murder rate is three times higher than the United States.