Tafalla 1 Joanne Tafalla Ms.

Ingram English III-Block D 10 April 2013 Gun Control is Important As the technology of guns advances throughout the years, more than 30 people are shot and murdered each day and more than 30,000 people are killed by firearms each year in the United States (Journal of Trauma). There is a long history of horrible tragedies that have occurred which involve gun violence and is still a problem today. The death tolls are high due to the low restriction on guns. Stricter gun control should be enforced to prevent innocent people from being harmed. The Bill of Rights states in the introductory clause that an ordinary citizen cannot own a gun. Only a well-trained militant has the right to own one. The Bill of Rights and the Second Amendment provides guidance in gun control, but each have a different perspective. The U.S. Supreme Court has clarified that the Second Amendment states that any individual has the right to own a gun. The Supreme Court believes gun ownership is necessary in order to protect oneself. There is no real test in order to own a gun, and there is just a short process in order to obtain a gun license. Applicants for firearms licenses must show they can be entrusted with the weapon, that they have a good reason for having it, and that they will not use it to endanger the public. And every application must be supported by two referees. Police interview each individual applicant and give advice about the security measures they need to take to store the gun safely. There is no

Tafalla 2 legal requirement to pass any test or undertake any training before owning a firearm (Eyesenick 1,2). The applicant must also provide information of places [] firearms may be discharged or carried. Individuals who are seventeen or younger cannot own a gun unless they are under the supervision of a twenty-one year old. Guns are banned from felons, illegal drug users, people convicted of misdemeanors involving domestic violence, and anyone committed to a mental institution or adjucated as a mental defective (Sullum 1). Gun violence can be reduced if there was stricter gun control. Many innocent lives have been affected throughout the years. Restrictions on guns should be highly enforced especially on age limit. Children as young as ten have been given licenses by police to carry shotguns on Tyneside (Eysenick 1). Children are not mature enough to have the responsibility to own a gun. For example, there are many situations where young kids get involved with gang related activities. Their gun usage does not serve a good purpose. Fights should be settled through communication, it should not result to gun violence. There are many bystanders that might be exposed to the gun violence and get shot unintentionally. For example, Andrew Ewels accidentally shot a boy named Christopher, from a garden nearby, attempting to shoot someone else (Eyesenick 1). Andrew was charged with the Public Order Act. There should be no guns allowed on school grounds. There is a long history of shootings that have occurred in multiple schools around the world. For example, March 5, 2001, a shooting took place in Santana High School in Santee, California. A fifteen year old student, Charles Andrew Williams, killed two of his classmates and wounded thirteen others. He was arrested for murder and attempted murder. Another recent shooting happened in January 31, 2013 at Atlanta,

Tafalla 3 Georgia, at Price Middle School. The gunman was a young, male student who was seen arguing with his classmate whom he later shot multiple times. The gunman also shot a teacher who was only injured from this murder attempt. To prevent this factor, guns should not be permitted on school grounds for the protection of the students. Another reason guns should be highly restricted is because there are many individuals who purchase a gun to commit suicide. People who choose to use a gun to kill themselves give doctors a lower chance for doctors to try and save lives because victims often choose fragile areas of the body, where they can be instantly killed. If gun control is strictly enforced, this policy would help decrease the suicide rate. When purchasing a gun, there should be a background check evaluating the applicants behavior to distinguish whether he or she is capable of owning a gun. Congress should update the background check that would evaluate the person who is applying for a gun license. Guns should also not be permitted at any workplace. The 2005 Survey of Major Employees state that 60% employees who have resorted to using a gun were jealous employees threatened to assault or kill senior managers within the past year (Cadrain). 84% of the time, the survey states that workplace murders are committed by strangers. Owning a gun violates the Occupational Safety and Health Act by not providing a safe workplace. Any workplace should ban guns from the workplace for the safety of the workers. Some lawmakers agree that guns should be banned from the workplace because it is a crime (Cadrain 1). Enforcing the policy of gun control in the workplace can prevent incidents like an employee who shot four state employees because he was upset about wages lowered for child support. There is a list of guns that are not allowed to be purchased or used, but some criminals have found loop holes in order to purchase the guns anyway. One tactic criminals use to get a

Tafalla 4 hold of an illegal gun is by changing the brand name of the gun to decrease suspicion. There are people called straw purchasers, which is someone who feeds guns to those who cannot legally buy one (Boykin 1). The gun background of an applicant should be evaluated more thoroughly in order to prevent a gun from falling into the wrong hands. Authorities should check the persons purpose of owning a gun. There are a large number of people who do not approve of gun control. People claim they need gun rights in order to protect oneself and the people they care about. People want to own guns so that they can also protect their territory from burglaries. A gun supporter named Gull said that gun rights was the original policy during the 19th century and that gun control would take away a part of gun owners human rights. Gull said it was normal to walk in a gun shop without license or identification back then. People back in the old days in Britain were expected to have a gun. We were encouraged to take primary responsibility for our own protection, states Gull (Gabb 1). There are safer ways to protect oneself from danger instead of using a gun. Lawmakers have supported the idea of using a tazer which would shock the person, who is approaching in a threatening way, with strong, electric bolts. Another device that can be used to protect oneself is by using pepper spray, a portable spray container that would impair the predators eye sight for just enough time to escape the predator or call for help. Placing an alarm system in the household can also help prevent burglars from invading a home. When a burglar attempts to break into a house, the alarm system would turn on and scare off the burglar and also notify the police about the commotion. It is best that only well-trained officials, such as police and the army, own guns for they know how to handle a gun safely. Militants like the police and the army can protect society from

Tafalla 5 danger. Ordinary people who purchase guns are at risk of harming themselves because they do not have the experience to handle a situation where they would use a gun. The owner of a gun might unintentionally shoot an innocent person or even accidentally shoot themselves. Gun control should be more strictly enforced to prevent accidents and innocent lives from being harmed.

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Works Cited
Cadrain, Diane. "HR Caught Up in Work Safety vs. Gun Rights." HRMagazine Jan. 2007: 28+. Questia

School. Web. 10 May 2013.

"The Debacle of the Gun Control Debate." Daily Herald (Arlington Heights, IL) 17 Jan. 2013: 10. Questia School. Web. 10 May 2013. "The Gun Control Debate; Data Show Fewer Weapons but More Crime." The Washington Times

(Washington, DC) 13 May 2003: A19. Questia School. Web. 10 May 2013.
"Gun Licences Handed out to Under-16s; VICTIMS OF CRIME OUTRAGED AS FIGURES ARE REVEALED." Evening Chronicle (Newcastle, England) 17 Dec. 2007: 5. Questia School. Web. 10 May 2013. "House Bill Seeks to Let Pilots Carry Guns on Flights; White House Opposes Measure; Sponsors 'Think It Will Happen'.(NATION)." The Washington Times (Washington, DC) 1 May 2002: A03. Questia

School. Web. 10 May 2013.

"PERSPECTIVE: Why All True Citizens Need Their Own Guns; Shootings Continue Daily and Knife Crime Has Reached Epidemic Proportion. Here Dr Sean Gabb from the Libertarian Alliance Explains Why He Believes We Need More Guns to Make Us Safer the Current Debate on Armed Crime Is Depressingly Predictable. Everyone Agrees Something Must Be Done." The Birmingham Post (England) 7 June 2006: 9. Questia School. Web. 10 May 2013. Smith, Tom W. "Public Opinion about Gun Policies. (Public Perspectives)." The Future of Children 12.2 (2002): 155+. Questia School. Web. 10 May 2013. Southwick, Lawrence, Jr. "Do Guns Cause Crime? Does Crime Cause Guns? A Granger Test." Atlantic

Economic Journal 25.3 (1997): 256+. Questia School. Web. 10 May 2013.
Sullum, Jacob. "An Ideological Test for Gun Ownership: The Next Step in the Effort to Keep Dangerous People from Buying Firearms." Reason Nov. 2012: 10. Questia School. Web. 10 May 2013. Wilson, A. N. "Give Us Guns to Protect Us from Burglars." The Evening Standard (London,

England) 6 Jan. 2003: 13. Questia School. Web. 10 May 2013.