I am interested in the topic of whether assault rifles should be banned from being purchased or sold. I feel that guns are a vital part of our lives as citizens of the United States of America, and we should have the right guaranteed to us in the second amendment of the United States to bear arms, purchase, and sell guns including assault rifles. Personally, I feel that through my research I have learned that assault rifles are completely misunderstood in society. Assault rifles don't cause the deaths of the innocent, but instead the shooter behind the assault rifle. Also, even if assault rifles are banned, people will still be able to attain them through the black market. Personally, I believe that assault rifles shouldn't be banned, but instead limitations should be passed such as background checks on who is purchasing them. Being an owner of an assault rifle myself, gives me personal experience when talking about this topic. 

My first article is called "A Criminologist's Case Against Gun Control". The summary of this article is that having more guns actually decreases crime in a country, and that most gun related deaths are suicides. Assault rifles are misunderstood by the majority of people and this article touches on that. People believe assault rifles are fully automatic, however in truth they fire semi automatically much like a pistol. Another point brought up in the article is that background checks wouldn't work because criminals could obtain assault rifles through the black market. I feel that background checks would still be needed in order to make sure people with mental illnesses cannot obtain guns. The author of the article is Jacob Davidson. He is a credible author because he writes for Time Magazine which shows he isn't a random person writing a blog from their garage. This article is argumentative and does include biased opinions on the topic. However, the article still includes points that I can use to refute arguments brought up by the opposing side. 

My second article is called "An Armed Community: The Origins and Meaning of the Right to Bear Arms".  The summary of this book is that our country has been through multiple rebellions and wars, and without the right to bear arms we would have been put down as a nation. Also, it states that in order to have free people in our country, the people themselves must be free. If they don't have the right to bear arms, then they cannot be free. The author of the book is Lawrence Delbert Cress. He is wrote his own book called Citizens in Arms about the Army and Militia during the War of 1812, which shows he already has background information on guns and proves his credibility. The book is not biased, and represents both arguments equally.

My third article is called "Ten Reasons Why States Should Reject 'Assault Weapon' and 'Large' Magazine Bans". The basis of this article is providing ten reasonable arguments as to why assault rifles are misunderstood by states in the US. One misconception is that assault rifles are powerful weapons. Actually, assault rifles are less powerful than most hunting rifles. The article also speaks about the crime rate dropping. The crime rates have actually dropped substantially with the purchase and sale of assault rifles. If assault rifles were banned, crime rates could rise again endangering the lives of many. This is just one of the points made against banning assault rifles. The NRA-ILA works with the National Rifle Association to present credible articles fighting against banning the second amendment right to bear arms. The NRA-ILA backs up their evidence with sources from other credible people which brings more credibility to their articles. This source is biased towards the side against banning assault rifles because they use words such as "we feel" which suggests that their opinion is correct. 

This research question is arguable because both sides can establish arguments on their behalf, and either side has enough evidence to refute the other sides' arguments. All of my sources agree that banning assault rifles would be a bad idea. They included similar arguments about how assault rifles are understood as well as why they shouldn't be banned. Some of these points included the fact that assault rifles are actually semi-automatic and not fully automatic, as well as crime rates are lowered with the increase purchase of guns including assault rifles. The different perspectives on my topic have not changed my views. Lastly, I do not feel that I need to revise my research question.
