For the past few years, the widely debated topic regarding gun control has been criticized and debated relentlessly. Every time a tragic incident involving a shooting or major crime takes place, the only thing one can watch on the news is the ongoing debate concerning gun control issues.  Reporters begin to share their various opinions on the matter of gun control and a plan America needs to take for safety precautions. This subject greatly interests me as I have grown up shooting guns and understand the responsibility of possessing a weapon and the power packed behind a bullet.  Currently, I am an undergraduate college student and a citizen of the United States, who would be greatly affected by increasing regulations on the use of firearms. I am fully aware of the past shootings on college campuses and incidents that occur on a daily basis involving firearms.  It is truly heartbreaking that people are willing to take away the lives of innocent citizens who are the future of America with no justified reason, but increasing restrictions on gun laws has the potential do put citizens in a less safe position than which we are in now. Ever since the British confiscated our guns during the Revolutionary War leaving us powerless, guns became a guaranteed right, listed in the Second Amendment, to every American to possess for self-defense to not let that occur again. With all of the people out there looking to harm others, the solution is not less guns, but more people with the knowledge and skills necessary to own them in order to defeat these harmful individuals.

Although some gun control legislation is mandatory to protect the public safety such as detailed background checks, there is a fine line to be drawn where government regulations violate the United States Second Amendment in the Constitution (the right to bear arms). Ever since the Revolutionary War when British soldiers confiscated American guns and weapons, no person will ever have the authority to do such actions again. That being said, not every person should be granted a firearm even though it is a freedom written in the Constitution. There are some people that are viewed unfit to have such a responsibility, and it is deemed better for public safety that they do not own a gun. A background check can verify and make sure an individual that has a criminal record will not be able to obtain a firearm, but once again, these perpetrators will find their hands on another weapon in a matter of time. Criminals are intelligent and know which tactics work; hence, they know their way around the system and have experienced many dangerous situations the average person may never face in his or her life. With all of the flaws currently in the background check system, the government should focus on improving this system first before even considering implanting new gun regulations and restrictions.

There have been many studies undergone researching whether or not guns have an increase on crime or if they cause a decrease in it. One study shocked the entire country and left many individuals in disbelief. After completing thorough research, two scientists from Harvard University concluded that banning all firearms within the United States would not reduce crime rates. "For example, when looking at intentional deaths (murder) on an international scope, the U.S. falls behind Russia, Estonia, and four other countries, ranking it seventh" (Kates and Mauser). Even though the United States has a very high gun ownership rate per person, homicide rates are still less than those countries with strict regulations prohibiting firearms all together or just certain firearms such as handguns. In fact, places where firearm concentration is most dense have lower crime rates than areas consisting of a low concentration of firearms (Kates and Mauser). Through extensive research including statistics about gun violence and crime, Don Kates and Gary Mauser proved that banning firearms in the United States would be ineffective in reducing homicide rates.

Cities such as Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York have some of the most stringent gun control laws in the entire country (The Ten States). These metropolises are heavily affected from gang violence and crimes from neighborhood to neighborhood. Looking specifically at Chicago, many criminals, whether involved in gangs or not, have unregistered weapons coming from across the border in Indiana (Bauer).  A majority of these being pistols have been linked to numerous homicides and other crimes inside the city (Bauer). These strict gun regulations have increased the price of registering and obtaining a gun permit leaving low-income families in impoverished areas with high crime rates without protection (Bauer). Police have tried to get this situation under control, but they are very limited with what they can do. With the average police respond time to an emergency call being approximately nine minutes, most crimes have already taken place and the perpetrator is on the move away from the scene of the incident (Average Police Response Time).  These tightly controlled regulations can be detrimental to the inhabitants of the city, as some lack necessary protection to resist violence directed at or surrounding these individuals.

Along with comparing various cities within the United States, one needs to look at the bigger picture and compare gun regulations around the world. When looking at a country such as England, where all handguns were banned after the Dunblane school massacre in 1996, loopholes do exist (Noyes).  Average citizens and criminals have found a way to abuse this tightly controlled system. Of course, an individual can easily access anything not regulated by the government via the black market such as handguns or drugs. 

 Similarly, the United States has prohibited all full-auto assault rifles and certain semi-automatic assault rifles after the Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act was signed into law in 1994 (Noyes). Individuals still have managed to bypass this law from purchasing weapons from corrupted Federal Firearms Licensees and straw purchase sales (illegal means of purchasing a weapon from another individual registered for the firearm). In relative comparison, Prohibition was another major time in history where people defied the law and still managed to consume and sell alcohol.  There were many bootleggers underground that would produce large amounts of alcohol and would discretely sell to all those interested forming a large network of business (American Spirits). No matter what new regulations the government legislates and tries to enforce, criminals always seem to obtain their weapons to state their dominance and power (Noyes).

 Recently, there has been a fair amount of criticism concerning President Obama's efforts restricting the right to own, sell, buy, and transfer firearms. According to "Obama's Rights to Control Guns?" written by Joe Wolverton, "59 percent believe that President Obama's gun control edicts "will not reduce the number of [mass] shootings." Finally, half of those polled by Rasmussen said they do not believe "the United States needs stricter gun control laws"(Wolverton). This reflects on how the government should be "by the people, for the people" meaning Obama should do what the general public agrees upon. As President of the United States, it is apparent he holds a ton of power and authority, but none so much that he can call upon himself and issue an executive order to approve legislation without the backing of Congress. In fact, Congress has rejected new legislation in the past few years put forth by citizens concerning the same issues.

Of all things, people have said Obama has been a driving force to the increase in firearm sales recently due to his constant threats of gun-buying restrictions. The President has made these various efforts trying to approve new laws when purchasing a firearm following tragedies such as Sandy Hook and San Bernardino. "President Obama has actually been the best salesman for firearms," Brian W. Ruttenbur, an analyst with BB&T Capital Markets, a financial services firm, said last month. Gun sales have doubled in the last decade from seven million in 2002 to fifteen million in 2013 from fear of the government prohibiting or confiscating firearms (Aisch and Keller). A great example was the dramatic spike in gun sales in New Jersey when Governor Chris Christie proposed measures expanding background checks and outlawing certain assault rifles. This event took place in 2013 and increased national gun sales by approximately .5% (Aisch and Keller). The recent efforts pushing for extensive gun-buying laws and limiting the people's selection of firearms has swayed individuals to take the initiative and buy guns immediately. These new gun control measures help explain why the United States has the most firearms in the world and how the government is trying to take away a freedom that enables law-abiding citizens to defend themselves when in troubled scenarios.

There has been a great deal of criticism that violence is linked with the large amount of firearms present in the United States. Jacob Davidson, a writer for Time Magazine, wrote in his article "A Criminologist's Case Against Gun Control" that "We need to remember that we have had a remarkable decrease in violent crime and gun crime in the U.S. since the early 1990s, even though the number of firearms has increased by about 10 million every year"(Davidson). Following this up, this quote reiterates how it's not the weapons killing other civilians; it's people killing other fellow human beings. Even though the United States leads the world in guns per capita, no one has the authority to tell a law-abiding citizen they can't possess a firearm if they legally obtained the weapon due to the Second Amendment. If a country took away all firearms available to its citizens, this would leave all the people unprotected and without a powerful method for self-defense.

For those unaware, a concealed carry permit enables one to posses a firearm hidden from others in a public setting. In order to acquire a permit, the individual must go through extensive training and learn about how to handle their weapons in certain situations. All of this is provided by the state they reside in as each states varies when trying to obtain a concealed carry permit. "In 2001 study by the National Opinion Research Center, 59% of people who carry a gun outside the home do so because it makes them feel safer" (Should Adults). By having this extra means of protection, people are more willing to go to events in more urbanized areas where crime is highly prevalent. There are still numerous rules and regulations issuing where one can carry a concealed firearm from state to state. Laws forbid the use of concealed carry on school campuses since most schools are gun-free zones. Still, every few months people are in shock when they hear about another school shooting harming or killing students. This problem could be eliminated if the intruder came into contact with a faculty member carrying a concealed handgun and using it effectively to make the perpetrator stand down. 

Similarly, there are twenty-nine states that allow US law-abiding citizens to openly carry guns on the personnel (Pierce). Openly carrying a firearm means the weapon is in clear sight for the whole public to see; usually, one has a pistol locked into a holster. Criminals go to a great deal to hide their weapons to keep the element of surprise when they ambush and attack an individual. Even though a criminal might take great caution and try to get the first shot off seeing one openly carrying, they are fully warned that they are not going down without a fight.  Once again, this criminal would hesitate if he or she saw that the person they are trying to attack has a handgun that can be easily accessed for self-defense. Not long ago, Texas had just approved a law making it legal for open carry in certain locations within the state border (Pierce). As for openly carrying on school or university campuses, that is up for the school to decide whether or not to allow individuals that meet requirements to carry. Critics have said incidents such as the shootings at Virginia Tech and the University of Texas could have been deterred if a person had a handgun to stop the perpetrators (Pierce).

With the proper training and education of how to handle a weapon in certain scenarios, teachers or other faculty members could stop a shooting spree from occurring if they possessed a firearm or carried it on them. Apparently in both Utah and Texas, school employees are allowed to carry firearms on them anywhere within the school buildings. These teachers are extensively trained on how to use their weapon and can be highly beneficial by making any perpetrators trying to target innocent kids think twice before doing so (Hanford). Personally, I don't necessarily think all teachers need to carry a gun, but there should definitely be one weapon on each level either in a safe or in proper storage away from the students. Without proper protection, nothing will stop some mentally unstable or irate person from walking into a school and possibly taking innocent human lives.

The NRA (National Rifle Association) was an organization created to stand up for the rights of the people and hold power in the Second Amendment. Members of this organization work to provide education and training with firearms as well as furthering the tradition behind shooting sports such as hunting, skeet shooting, and target practice (About The NRA). Furthermore, the NRA has backed candidates that promote the importance of gun rights and help fundraise and contribute to each candidate's campaign. In a monumental debate between political party front-runners, CEO Wayne LaPierre said, "The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun" (Lichtblau). Ever since this moment, those words have influenced a large number of people and helps reiterate the point that if the government were to confiscate all guns, villains would get away with any wrong act due to lack of self-defense.

At the end of the day, there will always be students in class that chew gum despite the teacher has told them time after time that behavior is unacceptable and against the classroom rules. In the same manner, criminals will always manage to get their hands on guns without ever running through a background check. If the government were to remove all of the firearms American citizens owned, this would be an injustice, as it would leave millions of individuals insecure and at risk for harm.  Those whom are responsible gun owners and law-abiding citizens would turn in their properly registered weapons as asked to do. The population of irresponsible gun owners would keep their stolen and unregistered guns, leaving part of America defenseless. The United States of America was built "by the people, for the people" with the Constitution as the backbone that supports this country. The Second Amendment ensures all citizens the right to purchase bear arms and that this freedom will never be infringed. Actions that would confiscate all firearms of these individuals would be deemed unconstitutional no matter what way you slice it. Guns don't pull their own triggers; it's the people pulling the triggers that are responsible for their own doings. Through proper training and education about firearms, individuals can make society around them a safer place by deterring crime and violence with the ownership of a gun.

