Gun Control Laws
Gun Control Regulation
The year 2012 was a horrific year for mass shootings in the United States. Americans were shocked by an April spree at a religious school in Oakland that killed seven, the brutal theater shooting in Aurora, Colorado, in July that killed 12, the Sikh Temple massacre in Wisconsin in August that claimed six lives, the September Minneapolis sign-plant slaughter of five, and most recently, the tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut that took the lives of 26 students and teachers. Cases like these have prompted the Obama Administration as well as the entire nation to reconsider what laws and restrictions need to be placed with regard to gun access and control without interfering with the constitutional rights of citizens. It is a known fact that America was produced into a nation based on the ideologies of freedom and democracy; with the constitution as the heart of its central government. The basic rights of citizens stated in the amendments are not only unambiguous but also eminently conserved by the Judicial System and Supreme Courts, which makes it a crucial challenge to modify, despite having national catastrophes that leave the government questioning their responsibilities with regard to public safety. Guns are a huge presence on the American landscape, no doubt. With an estimated 300 million firearms privately owned in the U.S., we practically have a weapon for every citizen. In 1994, President Clinton signed a ten year assault weapons ban into law but industries continued to manufacture civilian versions of military rifles. According to author Paul Berrett, “The prohibition actually helped transform what had been a marginal product for most manufacturers into a gun-rights poster child, celebrated by the National Rifle Association and sought after by a much bigger share of the gun-buying public.” Since the ban’s expiration in 2004, no other administration sought to enforce any regulation on assault
The year 2012 was a horrific year for mass shootings in the United States. Americans were shocked by an April spree at a religious school in Oakland that killed seven, the brutal theater shooting in Aurora, Colorado, in July that killed 12, the Sikh Temple massacre in Wisconsin in August that claimed six lives, the September Minneapolis sign-plant slaughter of five, and most recently, the tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut that took the lives of 26 students and teachers. Cases like these have prompted the Obama Administration as well as the entire nation to reconsider what laws and restrictions need to be placed with regard to gun access and control without interfering with the constitutional rights of citizens. It is a known fact that America was produced into a nation based on the ideologies of freedom and democracy; with the constitution as the heart of its central government. The basic rights of citizens stated in the amendments are not only unambiguous but also eminently conserved by the Judicial System and Supreme Courts, which makes it a crucial challenge to modify, despite having national catastrophes that leave the government questioning their responsibilities with regard to public safety. Guns are a huge presence on the American landscape, no doubt. With an estimated 300 million firearms privately owned in the U.S., we practically have a weapon for every citizen. In 1994, President Clinton signed a ten year assault weapons ban into law but industries continued to manufacture civilian versions of military rifles. According to author Paul Berrett, “The prohibition actually helped transform what had been a marginal product for most manufacturers into a gun-rights poster child, celebrated by the National Rifle Association and sought after by a much bigger share of the gun-buying public.” Since the ban’s expiration in 2004, no other administration sought to enforce any regulation on assault
References: Viewpoints In Context. Web. 13 Jan. 2013. Barrett, P. M. (2012). What We Can Do About Guns. Bloomberg Businessweek, (4310), 39-42. Garrett, M. (2012). Three Simple Steps Obama Can Take on Gun Control. National Journal. Retrieved from Shear, M. D. (2013, January 11). Gun control group urges expanded background checks [Newsgroup post]. Retrieved from New York Times website: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/12/us/politics/gun-control-group-urges-expanded-background-checks.html