Justino Gonzalez ELA 11 Unit 1 Argumentative Essay The Right to Bear Arms The right to keep and bear arms, often referred to as the right to bear arms, is the people's right to possess armaments or arms for their own defense, as described in the philosophical and political writings of Aristotle, Cicero, John Locke, Machiavelli, the English Whigs and others. This right is protected by the second amendment of the United States’ constitution, which was written on December 15th, 1791 as part of the first ten amendments contained in the Bill of Rights. The Second Amendment was based partially on the right to keep and bear arms in English common law and was influenced by the English Bill of Rights of 1689. Sir William Blackstone described this right …show more content…
Furthermore, there can be incidents such as maybe a child getting a hold of the gun and accidentally shooting a family member, or even worse taking the gun to school and causing a tragedy such as the shooting that took place in Columbine High School, Colorado on April 20th, 1999, leaving behind fifteen dead bodies and fifteen mourning families. According to Eliot Spitzer from OXNEWS, “Yes, people pull the trigger - but guns are the instrument of death. Gun control is necessary, and delay means more death and horror.” Just like everything else, being able to own arms comes with its pros and cons. There is definitely a chance of crime, but are we willing to risk it in order to be able to protect ourselves from not only other citizens, but the government as well? In conclusion, the right to keep and bear arms is necessary in order for citizens to feel protected and to be able to defend themselves in any situation. There have been incidents due to everyone having the ability to own a firearm, but there is always a price to be paid for everything, and if criminals do not have access to guns, they will still use knives and other harmful objects in order to commit crimes. Thus, being able to own a firearm can definitely be beneficial to citizens who just want to feel safe within their