Gun Control Kill

With the rise of school shootings, one would be quick to assume that restricting ownership of firearms would solve the problem. However, the issue stems further than just guns. The tragedy at Virginia Tech may reveal to us something about how a young man could be compelled to commit shocking actions, but it does not advise us very much about gun control. Recently, not many distinguished Americans have tried to use the college massacres as an argument for gun control. A logic for this is that we are in a middle of a presidential race in which popular Republican candidates are mindful that advocating gun control can earn them votes. Conservative gun advocate, Robert Levy, discusses that stricter gun control laws is not the solution for a safer

No gun control law has halted Robert L. Dear Jr. from supposedly murdering three people in Colorado.There is only one method to prevent murderers from murdering: Place them where they cannot earn access to a gun, knife, explosives, car or any alternative lethal weapon. Put them in prison or a secure mental institution. How do we recognize whom to lock up, when and for how long? That is a question deserving of deliberation and due process. Assuredly, lawbreakers who carry out violent offenses should not relish “revolving door” justice. Jack Hunter, author of How Gun Control Kills, lists various examples of “undoubtedly and dangerously psychotic individuals, such as Newtown killer Adam Lanza and Aurora shooter James Holmes, who should have been institutionalized” (Hunter 2012) proving that it is not the gun’s fault for injuring an individual but the person’s mentality. But there will constantly be people who fall through the cracks. There will consistently be corrupt men among us. Truth be told, they vision gun control laws with the same disregard that they outlook laws against murder. The argument that more or better gun control will hinder some killers avoids the fact that these standards make it difficult for law-abiding Americans to practice their original, domestic and constitutionally protected right to keep and bear arms.

By limiting the freedom to own guns with measures like the Undetectable Firearms Act or the unsuccessful Assault Weapons Ban of 2013, our 2nd Amendment rights become increasingly at risk from being taken away. The solution is not in restrictions on gun ownership, but the education that comes with gun ownership. The government should consider the prospect of providing gun safety training to congress as an alternative to gun control. The National Rifle Association did a study on gun violence. They conclude that “gun safety has proven to be effective against gun homicide” (NRA 2013). By educating the public, gun responsibility and safety will increase and lower gun crime without compromising gun ownership. Implementing mandatory gun safety courses for first time buyers and a safety test for current owners, Americans can buy guns and also be educated in the responsibility that comes with gun ownership. This measure could potentially save local governments money as well since law enforcement would not need to spend time prosecuting gun violators due to negligence. In addition, gun education would also reform the way people think of guns, from the stereotypical gun toting violent individual to the educated, informed gun owner. The answer is not to limit our freedom, but to educate the responsibilities