Kyle Hysong

English 111
15 April 2017

There are 270,000,000 guns in the United States, that number is about 88% of the

US population. Although the gun ownership number is approximately 88% of the

population, less than 20% of the population actually own guns. In fact, a study by

Harvard and Northeastern Universities concluded that half of the guns were in the hands

of 3% of the American population of adults. The reason the majority of people say they
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own guns is to remain safe in society. On the flip side, the reason many people choose

not to own guns is to remain safe in society. People have differing views on guns and

gun control but the common ground for all of society is to live a safe life.

Some people believe strongly that we need many more gun control laws to ensure

safety in our environment. They feel the second amendment of the constitution was

written specifically with the military in mind not the general public. These individuals

believe there is a place for guns in the world but gun control laws are necessary to make

sure guns are used safely and effectively. Based on this theory, they believe that more

gun control laws would reduce gun violence. The thought behind this theory is that more

gun control laws would take guns away from people who are dangerous or not equipped

to use them. These laws would also help people who are involved with domestic abuse

and violence.

Those in favor of gun control laws believe that certain guns and accessories

should be controlled. High capacity magazines appear to be more deadly proven by the

fact that when they are involved in confrontations, these guns kill and hurt many more
people than a basic gun with no accessories. This theory is noted in the Seattle Times

article, Its time to ban assault-style weapons, high capacity magazines. 2

People in support of more gun control laws believe legally owned guns in excess

create additional problems because they are often stolen and used by criminals. The

thought here is that the more people own guns the more burglaries and thefts as criminals

try to get a gun. A study, in 2003, found that counties with higher levels of household

gun ownership have higher rates of household burglary, not lower. Burglars like to steal

not only cash and jewelry but also guns. A homeowner with a collection of firearms may

not want to advertise that fact. 3

The people that would like to see more gun control laws believe that too much

money is used by having so many guns out with the general public. The amount to pay

police, medical personnel, insurance and legal fees and sometimes child services is a

huge amount of money annually for our country. If there was more control on the laws,

there would be less accidents and less expense. American taxpayers pay roughly $12.8

million every day to cover the costs of gun-related deaths and injuries and that is a

conservative estimate, according to a new report released by Mother Jones on the cost of

gun violence in America. 4

There is some belief that fewer guns mean fewer suicides. There are some studies

that have been completed which claim as the gun laws get more strict and gun ownership

gets more controlled fewer suicides take place. Based on a survey of American

households conducted in 2002, Research Associate Deborah Azrael, and colleagues

at the Schools Injury Control Research Center (ICRC), found that in states
where guns were prevalentas in Wyoming, where 63 percent of households

reported owning gunsrates of suicide were higher. The inverse was also true: where

gun ownership was less common, suicide rates were also lower. Also, there is belief
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that newer guns with more safety features result in fewer accidental gun deaths. It is also

believed that education needs to improve so people understand the scope and handling of

their weapon. These pro gun control people believe the actual presence of guns makes

confrontations more violent and potentially deadly.

On the other side of this discussion, there are people who believe the second

amendment of the Constitution gave all of society the right to own guns without

restrictions. These people feel that as you implement more gun laws you are limiting and

taking away the freedom to bear arms as stated in the Constitution.

These people feel that gun control laws will not change the amount of crime

committed in society but if you own a gun, you are making a stance for less crime. By

owning a gun, you are less likely to experience crime and if you do, you are prepared for

defense. A Harvard study from 2007 recently resurfaced. Published by the Harvard

Journal of Law and Public Policy, the studys conclusion is contradictory to conventional

wisdom about gun violence and understandably received little media attention. Citing

data from the Centers of Disease Control, the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and the

UN International Study on Firearms Regulation, the study concluded, The more guns a

nation has, the less criminal activity. 6

 Some people use guns for hunting and sportsmanship, these people feel that they

should be able to use any gun and accessory as they see fit. They believe gun laws would

limit their ability to use guns in the way they might want to use them.

In general, studies have been done on murders in the US and most murders take

place with guns that were legally obtained. Therefore, restricting guns will not keep guns

away from the people who want to use one for violence.

People against gun control laws believe they were granted freedom by the

government to have a gun. By implementing laws, the government is trying to gain more

control and will some day start dictating the way guns can be purchased, used and sold.

Some believe conducting background checks for a gun already is an invasion of

personal privacy.

Opponents of strict gun legislation point to evidence by a study completed by

Harvard that demonstrates that suicide rates do not go down when gun ownership goes

down. Some of the countries with the lease amount of guns have the highest amount of

suicides. Looking at Japan, which has the worlds most restrictive gun-control laws.

While the country does have low homicide rates, it has one of the highest suicide rates in

the world, nearly twice the U.S. rate! The same is true in South Korea, where handguns

are practically nonexistent, but the country has the highest suicide rate in the developed

world. 7
 Work Cited

Jervis, Rick. "3% of Americans Own Half the Country's 265 Million Guns." USA Today. Gannett Satellite Information Network, 22 Sept. 2016.
Web. 17 Apr. 2017.

Board, Seattle Times Editorial. "It's Time to Ban Assault-style Weapons, High-capacity Magazines." The Seattle Times. The Seattle Times Company, 17
Dec. 2015. Web. 17 Apr. 2017.

Hemenway, David. "Does Owning a Gun Make You Safer?" Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2017.

Bertrand, Natasha. "A Breakdown of the $229 Billion Gun Violence Tab That American Taxpayers Are Paying Every Year." Business Insider. Business
Insider, 24 Apr. 2015. Web. 17 Apr. 2017.

Kiewra, Karen. "Guns and Suicide: A Fatal Link." News. N.p., 23 Apr. 2014. Web. 17 Apr. 2017.

Joondeph, Brian. "Remember The 2007 Harvard Study Showing More Guns Led To Less Crime?" The Daily Caller. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2017.

McAllister, D.C. "No, Goldie Taylor, Gun Control Won't Reduce Suicide." The Federalist. N.p., 14 Jan. 2016. Web. 17 Apr. 2017.