Gun Ownership in America
GUN OWNERSHIP IN AMERICA
Gun Ownership in America and our Second Amendment Rights
Emil Lemay
Strayer University
Abstract
It is estimated that there are roughly 200 million privately owned firearms in America. This equals approximately one firearm to each person living here. This country is split concerning the right to own guns, with one side advocating gun bans and belief in the notion that the Second Amendment is obsolete in modern times. The other side backs the inalienable right to own and use firearms for self defense. Like other individual civil liberties, the Second Amendment is a natural right of citizens. This paper will look at the gun control issue in an attempt to list reasons for and against private ownership of firearms.
Gun Ownership in America and our Second Amendment Rights
“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.” This is the Second Amendment of the Constitution of the United States. This nation has battled with this concept since its inception. The right to own guns has been argued in court from local jurisdictions across the country to the U.S. Supreme Court for the past two centuries (CSM, 2008).
The pro-gun control horde argues that fewer firearms on the streets of America would equate to less violence and fewer crimes being committed. However, a study of New York City where hand gun ownership is actually illegal demonstrated that the crime rate involving firearms is actually greater than anywhere else in the country. New York has one of the most restrictive gun laws in the nation and 20 % of the armed robberies. Even more troublesome is the fact that the places where gun control laws are toughest tend to be the places where the most crime is committed with illegal weapons (NCPA, 2008) Another study demographically underlines the aforementioned fact that the most firearm related crimes are committed in highly populated
Gun Ownership in America and our Second Amendment Rights
Emil Lemay
Strayer University
Abstract
It is estimated that there are roughly 200 million privately owned firearms in America. This equals approximately one firearm to each person living here. This country is split concerning the right to own guns, with one side advocating gun bans and belief in the notion that the Second Amendment is obsolete in modern times. The other side backs the inalienable right to own and use firearms for self defense. Like other individual civil liberties, the Second Amendment is a natural right of citizens. This paper will look at the gun control issue in an attempt to list reasons for and against private ownership of firearms.
Gun Ownership in America and our Second Amendment Rights
“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.” This is the Second Amendment of the Constitution of the United States. This nation has battled with this concept since its inception. The right to own guns has been argued in court from local jurisdictions across the country to the U.S. Supreme Court for the past two centuries (CSM, 2008).
The pro-gun control horde argues that fewer firearms on the streets of America would equate to less violence and fewer crimes being committed. However, a study of New York City where hand gun ownership is actually illegal demonstrated that the crime rate involving firearms is actually greater than anywhere else in the country. New York has one of the most restrictive gun laws in the nation and 20 % of the armed robberies. Even more troublesome is the fact that the places where gun control laws are toughest tend to be the places where the most crime is committed with illegal weapons (NCPA, 2008) Another study demographically underlines the aforementioned fact that the most firearm related crimes are committed in highly populated
References: Centers for Disease Control/National Center for Health Statistics. (2008, March). Injury in the United States: 2007 Chartbook. DHHS Publication. Christian Science Monitor. Trigger happy on gun rights. Retrieved 24 May 2008 from http://www.csmonitor.com Maguire, S. & Wren, B. (1994) Torn by the issues: An unbiased review of the watershed issues in American life, Santa Barbara, CA: Filthian Press. National Center for Policy Analysis. (2008) Myths about gun control. Find the rest of this reference. National Rifle Association of America (2008). Institute for legislative action. Retrieved 24May 2008 from http://www.nraila.org