Gun Control Should Not Be Legalized

Gun control has always been a highly contested issue, some people believe that the government has no right to regulate the guns that they can obtain/the guns that they are allowed to own. However, others believe, for safety issues, that there should be a more thorough process to obtain guns and/or restrictions on the types of firearms that citizens can possess. The recent Oregon shooting has rekindled the debate of gun control, many advocates of both sides of the issue have recently started making statements. Some suggest that gun control should not be expanded because it encroaches on the rights of the people, and also that gun control will not fix the violent crimes that occur, while what should really happen is there should be a more
Sam Frizell, an author for Time Magazine, outlines the plan that Clinton has put together, which is centered around more rigorous background checks and holding gun manufacturers accountable if they release a weapons permit to someone unfit to carry (Frizell). This matters and is a step in the right direction because it makes society safer, especially in places like schools, movie theaters, etc. where a normal gunman would target if he was able to obtain a weapon. However, this is the opposite of what gun control rival Ben Carson believes. According to Loren Gutentag, writer for Newsmax Magazine, Carson suggests arming kindergarten teachers. He says, “[g]unmen tend to pick places that are gun-free zones” (Gutentag), and proceeds to say that he would be more content sending his child to school if he knew that the teacher was trained with a weapon (Gutentag). Although the Carson takes the wrong approach in his idea to arm more people, he is truthful when saying that gunmen tend to pick places they are less likely to get shot. His solution for the issue is wrong, however, because it is shown even in recent events (such as the Oregon shooting) that guns being around the problem don’t stop malicious acts from happening. The
Ed Krayewski, an author for Reason blog, quotes Sanders’s facebook post, which highlights that we need to keep guns out of the hands of those who shouldn’t have them, and expand our capabilities with mental health treatment (Krayewski). This is important because Sanders makes an excellent point in the fact that mental health is a huge issue in the gun control debate. Who wants someone with a background of mental illness running down Michigan Avenue armed with a firearm? Nobody, because mental illness is a factor that promotes violence and will illicite a bad outcome because this person cannot realize the immoral and catastrophic effects of their actions. Similarly, the viewpoint held by Sanders and others in the gun control side is also mirrored by that of opposers such as Carson. Carson is quoted by Gutentag, stating that we should “expand efforts to identify and treat the mentally ill before they have a chance to commit acts of violence” (Gutentag). Agreeing on the standpoint of mental health issues in society, the parties disagree on the right to bear arms. According to Ben Carson, these mentally ill people should still be allowed to carry guns while they are suffering. The proposed plan to expand efforts into checking into mental health background is important because there should be no