Social Issues: Gun Control and the 2nd Ammendment

"A well regulated Militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the People to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed." These are the words that make up the second amendment, and guarantee us as Americans the right to be armed. Gun control has always been a serious issue in America. Most people are either totally against guns or find a complete necessity for them. The Constitution of The United States of America ensures us the right to bear arms, so there should be no debate about it, right? Unfortunately the issue is not so simple. We have to take into consideration age, criminal record, and knowledge of firearms safety. If everybody with a trigger finger owned a firearm, America as we know it would cease to exist. A common everyday dispute would be resolved by a quick shootout; the loser going home in a body bag. There is a necessity for the ownership of firearms to be regulated, and laws are needed to protect those who genuinely use firearms as a last resort for self-defense.

In 1987 Florida adopted the right-to-carry law. Basically it was a law that granted all applicants who met age, criminal background, and firearms safety criteria, a license to carry a handgun. According to the NRA between 1987 and 1996 the homicide rate in Florida dropped 36%, and the handgun homicide rate dropped 41%. This statistic seems to point to a decrease in violence since the law was passed. Most people would have guessed the opposite, since they see handguns as a stimulus for violence. According to Dr. Sarah Thompson M.D., people who say that people shouldn't own guns because they are afraid they will be killed by a neighbor who has a bad day, or over a parking dispute, are using a defense mechanism called projection. This is when a person unconsciously projects their own unacceptable feelings onto another person, so that they don't have to own them. (Thompson, pg. 12) In other words, the person saying they are afraid of their neighbors owning guns, is probably more likely to be the one committing a violent act if they had a firearm.

There is no denying that we live in a world where crime is very common. It is also safe to say that most criminals have or can easily acquire a firearm. So why would a rational person be against the legal ownership of firearms. The only reason I can think is denial. People often think that crime is too distant from their neighborhood to worry about, but if they would turn on the local news channel, they would see that crime is just around the corner, literally. These are often the same people who don't watch the local news because they feel it only reports violence. If knowledge is power, then denial has to be a weakness. How can someone think that they are totally safe from crime? Poor neighborhoods are full of it, and rich neighborhoods are where the criminals go to rob. Another common anti-gun justification is that the police are the ones who should do the protecting. It would be ignorant to think that the police can be everywhere 24/7 and can prevent all crime from happening. The police do an integral part in protecting us, but we cannot leave our total security and welfare up to them, or for that matter anyone else. According to "Sociology: A Down To earth Approach", 70% of those arrested for robbery were rearrested within three years. (Henslin, pg. 218) If a smart person wanted to take over a country, a good place to start would be disarming the public. People seem to have many reasons as to why they oppose legal gun ownership, but mostly because they are not informed of the facts. The process to legally own a firearm requires a background check, and a firearms safety course, aside from having to be of legal age. The common criminal isn't going to be granted a license, as a matter of fact they don't even want or care for one, they'll just buy a .22 from their local crack head for 20 bucks. The permits are for law-abiding citizens who are pro-active and choose to protect themselves against crime. Whether we as ordinary citizens choose to arm ourselves or not, the criminals will always have a full clip and no remorse.

My personal experience with firearms is extensive. I was in the military, so I have fired everything from a handgun to a 50 caliber anti-armor machine gun. I take firearms safety very seriously because I know what guns can do. Once again knowledge is the key to safety. The stories you hear on TV about kids shooting themselves with firearms their parents had in the house, are because those parents hid the guns and never took the time to explain that guns are not toys and how dangerous they can be. I have owned firearms for a very long time and never have had to use them on anyone. I can honestly say I sleep a lot better knowing that my 12-gauge pump action shotgun is a couple of steps away from my bed. A couple of years ago I was sleeping in my living room, when I heard the sliding glass door rattle, I quickly grabbed my shotgun which was lying under the futon I was laying on, and loaded a shell into the chamber. The rattling stopped and after a few tense moments I realized the intruder was gone. Until this day I am convinced the distinct sound of the shotgun getting cocked was the reason my house wasn't broken into that night. The very next day I heard my neighbors got robbed and slept through the whole thing. Had they awoken that night during the break-in, they might have met a grim end, since they are do not own a gun.

There will always be people on both sides of the fence on the issue of gun control, but the key to making the decision is being informed. The local news should be enough to convince most people to protect themselves, but a quick look at crime statistics, and the thoroughness of gun control laws could be the deciding factor.

References:

1. "1998 NRA Firearms Fact Card." The National Rifle Organization Website . January 1999. National Rifle Organization. 11Mar 2007 .

2. Thompson, Sarah. Raging Against Self Defense. Hartford, WI: Jews For The Preservation of Firearms Ownership, Inc. , 2000.

3. Henslin, James. Sociology: A Down To earth Approach. 8th. Pearson, 2007.