Questions On Gun Control

Where Does the Answer Lie with Gun Control?
Death, violence, individual rights, crime, and cause are many words that arise when researching the controversial topic of gun control. This issue revolves around the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution that states: “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. Amend. II, Sec. 1.). Is there a black and white answer to solving the controversy or is there a need to find a middle ground? Depending on if you are a hunter in the midwest, a victim of a crime involving a gun, a grieving parent of a child lost to suicide by gunshot, or just relate more to one of these
On June 9, 2016 the US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 7-4 that "the right of the general public to carry a concealed firearm in public is not, and never has been, protected by the Second Amendment," thus upholding a law requiring a permitting process and "good cause" for concealed carry licenses in California (Nagourney). Many states do a better job than others requiring in depth background checks for purchasing a gun, penalties, and prison sentences for misuse. A further balance is found when barriers are created to ownership / access of a firearm and suicide rates. For instance, a study published in Health Policy (Dec 2009), found "general barrier to firearm access created through state regulation can have a significant deterrent effect on male suicide rates in the United States. Permit requirements and bans on sales to minors were the most effective of the regulations analyzed." (Hempstead) Furthermore, a suicidal person tends to use a gun when it is available rather than choosing poison or a knife. (Hempstead) According to a current Lancet study done in March, 2016, “implementing federal universal background checks could reduce firearm deaths by a projected 56.9%; background checks for ammunition purchases could reduce deaths by a projected 80.7%; and gun identification requirements could reduce deaths by a projected 82.5%”(Gun Control). A constitutional right should be national, where all states require the same process. The answer is balance. Allow for freedom to bear arms with the safety structure of background checks. According to a Pew Research survey in Mar. 2013, 83% of all adults surveyed (and 79% of gun-owners; 86% of people living with a gun-owner; and 74% of NRA households) approve of background checks for private and gun show