Guns

As American’s we possess more freedoms and civil rights than anyone else in the world. Most famous perhaps is freedom of speech or freedom of press, but more controversial possibly is the second Amendment “the right to bear arms”, which claims “the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.” Instances such as Columbine or more recently the Virginia Tech shootings have people on an outcry for not only stricter gun laws, but an absolute ban on guns completely. Laws have been implemented to make it harder for murders, thugs, and rapists to acquire guns, which are reasonable, but some of these laws and propositions have ordinary law abiding U.S. citizens unable to obtain or carry guns. Without question there has to be regulations on whom and how you can buy a gun, but in the same approach it must be done in a way to protect not only the rights of law abiding U.S. citizens but the United States Constitution as well.

First and foremost the biggest argument for gun control is that it can and does reduce crime and violence. A situation such as the Columbine shooting and even Virginia Tech had people and parents saying if there were stronger gun laws and or ban than these kids would have been unable to obtain guns and these circumstances could have been prevented. A reasonable point but a study done by the Justice Department who interviewed teenagers and prison imamates worldwide showed that eighty percent of them bought or received there guns from friends, family members, and or on the street through illegal purchases, less than nine percent were bought at retail outlets and only seven-tenths of one percent came from gun shows (Weapons). Which raises the question, if there were a ban on guns, how could you prevent these people from getting them? In short the obvious answer is you couldn’t. Criminals will still find away to obtain guns.

Although there is much argument when it comes to the Constitution, most people in the end would very likely agree that there should be some regulation when it comes to owning and purchasing a firearm. Gun regulations differ from every state however, there are federal laws that all states must follow by. Most significant of the law is who is forbidden from purchasing firearms. Included are convicted felons, fugitives from justice, unlawful users of certain drugs, persons committed to mental institutions, illegal aliens, persons less than eighteen years old, and persons convicted of any domestic violence (NRA--ILA Homepage). There are two other bills passed, known as the Omnibus Crime Bill, which bans “assault weapons” and then the Brady Bill, which creates a five day waiting time for selling handguns. These two bills do not prevent law-abiding citizens from obtaining or carrying guns, but it does however put a restriction