The Best Arguments for Gun Control

More Guns Means More Homicides

It is generally considered that arming people with guns will reduce the overall homicide levels in the state or even the country. However, research has shown over and over again, that the increase in the number of guns owned by citizens of a country has gone hand in hand with the increase in homicide levels.

The Brady Bill suggested that the license to own guns must be passed only after doing a complete check on the person. But it has been seen that easy access to the guns, means that when in rage, the person owning a gun will more likely use it.

More Guns Also Means More Suicides

One of the major arguments for gun control is suicide. Considering the kind of lifestyle that we lead, a lot of people are getting depressed and are many of those contemplate committing suicide. Having guns or having easy access to the guns will simply push them over the edge. Instead of getting some help, they will feel that it is easier to simply end life and commit suicide.

Although this may seem a little vague, studies have shown that the states which have a higher number of guns owned by its citizens, also has a suicide rate.

But then again when you really think about it, how can we say that they will not commit suicide if they have no guns.

The Public Too Is Asking for Some Gun Control

A very large percentage of Americans want strict gun laws implemented in the country. Hence, it is no wonder that the Brady Bill was passed after the attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan and Jim Brady. Unfortunately Jim Brady was left partially paralyzed.

Ever since then, many people have rallied to make sure that there are laws in place for controlling gun possession. What they are really asking for is that there should be background checks done before placing these guns in the hands of people.

Take UK as an Example

Let us consider UK as an example, to understand these arguments for gun control. After the Dunblane Massacre in UK, people in UK were no longer allowed to possess modern guns. This was done to reduce massacres and murder rates. However, that largely backfired since, with every passing year, the murder rates in UK have increased. Although the homicide rate has lowered considerably after the application of the law, the number of murders has gone up. This is what the gun violence statistics have shown.

You can ban guns, but murderers always find a way to kill their victims. So, if we have learnt anything from UK, it is that banning guns doesn’t really help.

Does A Civilian Need Assault Rifles?

The second amendment was put down in order to allow every citizen to protect himself against burglars, and maybe a military invasion by another country. While the latter seems planning a little too far, the former is something that can be considered. People do need guns to protect themselves, but do they really need assault rifles? A lot of people seem to think, that it may not be required. This is one of the strongest arguments for gun control.

Does Banning Guns Save Lives?

People have always said how banning guns can help in saving lives. Well, this worked in Australia. In the year 1996, thirty five people were killed in a massacre in Port Arthur in Australia. It was one of the most gruesome and depressing gun violence incidents in the country.

The then Prime Minister of Australia, John Howard immediately clamped down on the ownership of guns and several weapons were destroyed. Ever since, the homicides and killings have reduced drastically in Australia, to the point where the number of massacres per decade has reduced to zero. We may have something to learn from here, possibly one of the best arguments for gun control.

Shooters Look For Soft Targets

Killers who go on a rampage, have just one thing in mind, they want to kill as many people as possible. A lot of them end up killing themselves at the end. Gun violence statistics have shown that these killers look for soft targets, where they know that people will not be armed, and hence, they can kill many people. These places can include schools, churches, malls or any such place. If the killers knew that every person in the church was armed, or that there were guards in school who possessed automatic weapons, then they would think twice before entering its premises.

Protection

Another major arguments for gun control placed by the people, is the fact that they would like to protect themselves with the arms that they own. In these days and times, a lot of us do not feel safe in our own homes or offices. There is a constant threat for our lives looming all over us. One may never know when a massacre may break out and he/she may be attacked.

In such situations, owning a gun will give the person a fighting chance for survival. Not only will the person possessing a gun save their own life, but also save everyone else’s. Everyone has a right to protect themselves, and hence, a lot of people argue that possessing a gun must be allowed.

Don’t We Have Enough Guns Already?

One of the most common arguments for gun control is reading the number of guns that are already available in the country. As mention in the very beginning, the number of guns present in United States alone, is higher than those present in a number of countries combined. When we look at the number of people possessing guns, in a country, then US is at the top of list. This list does not consider just the developed countries of the world, but the entire world.

Those countries which have terrorists in them or are overrun by the drug cartels too possess lesser number of arms as compared to the US. The country as a whole may have failed when a person sees a need to arm himself/herself. Considering that all the massacres and murders have lowered a life expectancy of a person by less than 50 years, we should think about slowing down. Is this one of the best arguments for gun control?

Arming Everyone with Guns Will Not Help

We can always think that if every single person is armed to their teeth, then a mass shooter will not stand a chance. Besides, we have the right to bear arms. However, on the contrary, there are very few instances where an armed civilian has managed to help subdue a killer. Although the citizens owning a gun may be great down at the range, they may not always fare so well in a real life situation. This may be because they have received absolutely no experience regarding handling these kinds of situations. So, even if they do possess guns, chances are that they may be absolutely useless in out of control situations.