Gun control is a widely discussed topic in the United States because there are a number of people that believe that a world without guns would be a better place. These advocates for gun control are people who wish to implement stricter laws to prevent people from purchasing firearms as well as restricting things like ammunition capacity and magazine loads. They believe that gun control is good because they think keeping guns away from people will reduce the amount of deaths caused by guns each year and reduce crime Then there are the people with common sense who disagree with gun control laws and believe there should be more lenient gun control laws to help people defend themselves during unsafe situations, for recreational use, and most importantly because it our right to own guns. Gun control laws should be more lenient so that law abiding citizens are unaffected by the acts of criminals and individuals that mishandled and misuse guns.

Gun control, for those that do not know is the regulation of sales and ownership of firearms. Many gun control laws have been passed in the last decade and while many have been passed, many have also been voted unconstitutional due to the fact that they affect citizens' Second Amendment rights. Currently gun control is mainly governed by state law with many states having differing laws. There are several supporters of gun control who fight to create more gun-restricting laws in an effort to decrease gun violence because they believe that with fewer or no guns there will be less crime. At the same time, there are many people who are as equally opposed to more gun-restricting laws, believing that by applying more laws, it only makes it more difficult for citizens that obey the law to acquire firearms, leaving them defenseless against criminals and essentially stripped of their second amendment right. Many Americans have this mindset that guns are a given right and that guns are not the issue that we need to be dealing with.

Guns are tools created by man and without them we wouldn't be where we are today because they played such an important role in the founding of the US. Recall Shays' Rebellion of 1786 through 1787, in which a militia had to be called out in Massachusetts in order to suppress an uprising against the government's policies before order was fully restored. What would have happened if it was never stopped? There would have been more deaths and violence. The purpose of the Second Amendment was to control violent dissent, not enhance it. At the time, the thirteen colonies hardly had an army to speak of, thus the best way to ensure the security of the state and federal governments against being taken over and to defend against the British, was "a well-regulated militia." This law comes from the Constitution and states "To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions." (US News) 

In American history, gun control laws were used as a means to keep blacks from owning guns. This changed in North after the Civil war and all of the Northern soldiers who served in the Civil War were allowed to keep and take their firearms home with them. The south however adopted the Black Codes which were "laws restricting the rights of blacks stating that they could not possess firearms." (Winkler) The fact that blacks in the south were not allowed to have firearms did not stop them from having them or stop them from rioting. After continuous rioting and the assassination of both Martin Luther King during his "I have a dream" speech and Robert F. Kennedy congress passed the Gun Control act of 1968. This law stated that "anyone convicted of a felony, drug users, mentally ill, and minors were not allowed to possess a gun." (Winkler) The problem with this is that these people still find ways to acquire guns and use them inappropriately and dangerously. There are a few laws like the Second Amendment such as the Firearm Owners Protection Act that actually protects the rights of gun owners but they are slowly diminishing. In 1994 a new gun control act was passed that expanded law enforcement in hopes of deterring crime. Most recently the Federal Assault Weapons Ban was passed, prohibiting the importation, manufacture, sale, and possession of "assault weapons" in the United States. (FAS) The problem with this ban though is that not one single person can agree on good terms of what is actually considered an assault weapon. The 1994 law classified 19 weapons as assault weapons and recently, President Obama classified a few more to that list. Even though we have these laws I would like to take the time to remind anyone reading this that a criminal is someone who intentionally breaks the law regardless of the consequences. These people do not care if there is a law in place because they aren't law-abiding citizens. Many believe that with gun control familiar environments will become safe but this could not be farther from the truth. As Hunter states in his article on why we shouldn't ban guns, "Gun control deters violent crime about as well as the death penalty. Worse, stricter gun control is the surest way to insure that virtually every would-be shooter is successful." As stated it would be an awful idea to have stricter gun control laws because these safe havens where guns are not allowed become a would-be shooters paradise.

In addition to the federal gun laws, each state also has their own laws in which citizens must follow. Today, there is still conflict between some of these laws, and the individual rights of citizens. This conflict comes from the way the United States Constitution is interpreted and trying to decide if what is written in the constitution is appropriate for today's world. People question the time the United States Constitution was written and believe that the constitution is not updated and able to be interpreted for the weapons that we have today.

What are the statistics of deaths due to gun crimes and gun violence? "1.3 Million People have died in the U.S. due to gun violence." (Huffington Post) That exceeds the deaths America has suffered through all the wars in the nation's history. After the tragedy in Sandy Hook, "the U.S. exceeded the Iraq war deaths with a shocking number of 4449 versus 4409." (NBC) The United States experiences epidemic levels of gun violence, claiming over 30,000 lives every year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For every person who dies from a gunshot wound, two others are wounded. Every year, approximately 100,000 Americans are victims of gun violence. In addition to those who are killed or injured, there are countless others whose lives are forever changed by the deaths of and injuries to their loved ones (CDC 2012). Unfortunately is much harder to look at the number of lives saved by gun usage because it isn't recorded like gun deaths are. What if we taught gun safety in schools and the dangers that come with them if used inappropriately? What if we had armed teachers that could protect children if they ever were in a situation like that?

The United States sees gun violence every day and we have had many mass shootings within the nation's history. Some of the most recalled ones are: 

"April 20, 1999. In the deadliest high school shooting in US history, teenagers Eric Harris and Dylan Kiebold shot up Columbine High School in Littleton, CO. They killed 13 people and wounded 21 others. They killed themselves after the massacre. April 16, 2007. Virginia Tech became the site of the deadliest school shooting in US history when a student, Seung-Hui Choi, gunned down 56 people. Thirty-two people died in the massacre. July 20, 2012. During the midnight premiere of The Dark Knight Rises in Aurora, CO, 24-year-old James Holmes killed 12 people and wounded 58. Holmes was arrested outside the theater. December 11, 2012. Adam Lanza, 20, killed his mother, Nancy Lanza. He grabbed three guns from the house. A semi-automatic AR-15 assault rifle made by Bushmaster and pistols made by Glock and Sig Sauer. Adam Lanza entered Sandy Hook Elementary. He took out a handgun and shot himself in a classroom as law enforcement officers approached, officials said. Twenty students, ages 6 and 7, and six adults were killed at the school." (Think Progress)

 Upon all these shootings, many shootings have occurred in big universities making them some of the deadliest shootings in United States History. 

It is no question, that many are victims of gun violence in the United States. But in reality, do gun control laws actually work, or should Congress ease down furthermore making it easier for the citizens to defend themselves from those armed with weapons? According to President Obama, "Too many of our children are being taken from us." (Huffington Post) But keep in mind that children deaths in the United States are mainly related to swimming pools. (CDC) Is it that congress is concentrating too much on the little facts rather than seeing the real picture? Or do we as citizens have to make a push in order to keep our country safe? Gun Control: The Reference Handbook examines all this. In reading a couple of chapters, the United States citizens can make a better and well educated decision on what side they should pick. Gun violence is taking a toll on the United States and little by little the numbers gradually increase. In order to make a good decision one should think about the correlation between strict laws against murder and other crimes with what would most likely happen if stricter gun laws were enacted. Basically murder and other crimes are illegal, yet murder and other crimes occurs every day in the US. Even if guns are taken people can still find other ways to hurt either themselves or others or people are going to illegally have guns. Thus, because of the high rate of crime and deaths we should look at the people that are committing these crimes instead of immediately blaming guns. 

How does gun control affect the citizens' second amendment? The second amendment to the United States constitution reads: "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" (U.S. Constitution). People have come up with different interpretations of the Second Amendment in the Bill of Rights. For the most part, people who support gun control believe that the Second Amendment does not refer to each individual citizen, but to members of law enforcement, military, or a trained militia. Supporters of the gun control movement question whether in fact people should own firearms. Several gun control supporters believe that the authors of the Second Amendment intended "only to grant states the right to maintain militias and to allow citizens to own guns for use in those militias." (Bender) 

In order to clarify, if a citizen is not part of a militia, then the constitution does not guarantee the right for that individual to own a firearm. Many gun control supporters argue that when the second amendment was written, the United States did not have an organized, national military system to defend the country, but now that we do, there is no need for individual citizens to possess firearms. 

However, according to Wilbur Edel "The long-standing suspicion regarding a standing army as a potential threat to individual liberty did not change with the conclusion of the Revolution." (25) What Edel is trying to state is that just because one revolution is over, that does not mean that our country is safe, and there will not be another threat. People who oppose gun control state that their right to purchase and own firearms is clearly protected by the Second Amendment in the United States Constitution. 

Savannah Gunthrie from the Today show sits down with President Obama to speak on the gun control issue. President Obama states that ninety percent of people believe in making it harder for criminals and people with mental illnesses to obtain a gun would indeed lower the gun violence rate. President Obama states that, "if congress takes into consideration what the Americans believe in, then a stricter gun control law would pass. Overwhelmingly this would be the right thing to do." (TODAY Interview)

On the contrary, in an interview with John Lott author of More Guns Less Crime, Lott exemplifies and backs up his statistics and research by stating that gun crimes and gun violence would actually decrease if it would be easier for citizens to obtain guns. Furthermore making it easier for the American Citizens to defend themselves during these situations. 

In the scholarly article Gun Control: The Reference Handbook shows how in 2008, the United States Supreme Court ruled that the Second Amendment does in fact protect an individual's right to possess a firearm for lawful purposes. (District of Columbia v. Heller) The District of Columbia has been known for having some of the strictest gun control laws in the nation. Before the case, it was illegal for most people to own a firearm without a special registration certificate. When Dick Heller, a DC police officer, was refused a certificate to keep a handgun he wished to keep at home, he filed the lawsuit. The Supreme Court ruled that the Second Amendment protects an individual right to possess a firearm unconnected with service in a militia, and to use that arm for traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-defense within the home. (District of Columbia v. Heller) 

What measures may reduce gun violence? For the most part, gun control advocates believe that more gun laws will quite in fact reduce violent crime. On the other hand, people who oppose gun control believe that violent crime will increase with more laws restricting the ownership and possession of firearms. What makes gun control such a controversial issue is whether which measure would actually reduce gun violence. . Everyone needs to realize that violence is going to occur and appropriate measures should be taken. That means if you have children and own guns, keep the guns locked up and secured. There are so many options for making guns inoperable when not in use. People just need to take responsibility for their actions, their guns and practice gun safety. Those three things would most likely deter quite a few mass shootings on their own and they are the easiest things that can be done. 

All in all, new gun control laws shouldn't be enacted because criminals don't abide by the law so they will be able to have guns anyways, many gun control laws can't stop mass shootings which is the main reason why gun control gets so much attention, confiscating hundreds of millions of guns would be a daunting and impossible task, and because there is the possibility that by taking away smaller rights the government will eventually be able to take away all rights.

