Running Head: LETS TALK ABOUT GUNS 1

Lets Talk About Guns

Critical Thinking and Reflective Writing

Joshua Fryer

Criminal Justice 1010, 503

Professor Julia Ellis

10/11/2017
LETS TALK ABOUT GUNS 2

Contents
Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 3

The Purpose of Guns ....................................................................................................................... 3

History............................................................................................................................................. 4

Current Regulations ........................................................................................................................ 5

Guns Kill ......................................................................................................................................... 6

Guns Save ....................................................................................................................................... 6

Media Propaganda .......................................................................................................................... 7

Conclusion ...................................................................................................................................... 8

References ....................................................................................................................................... 9
LETS TALK ABOUT GUNS 3

Introduction

Firearms seem like they are woven more and more each day into todays society.

Especially in the United States of America. Well the truth is, they are. Guns are so prevalent

throughout the states that over half of the population owns at least one. With the alleged rise in

gun-related crimes (Susan Scutti, 2017), this issue brings to the table wide-scale debate on gun

control that calls for immediate attention. The attention has definitely arisen, and the arguments

are on the table, so lets talk about guns.

In order to understand what laws or actions should be implemented, we need to

understand exactly why citizens were allowed to own guns in the first place, what our congress

has done about guns so far, and if we need enforce more regulations. However, the most pressing

question up for debate is, are we as a nation of free citizens safer with or without civilian

restrictions on firearms.

The Purpose of Guns

To some, the answer to this question can get very complex. Even though there are many

different opinions about why we have guns and their purposes, the answer is quite simple. Guns

are meant to aid in the enforcement an idea. Im not just talking about a police officer enforcing

laws, but also criminals and their actions, or even hunters shooting game. Guns are here to make

things easier. Whether your idea is defending yourself against someone wielding a knife, or

forcefully taking money from a cashier, or even hunting to put food on the table, a gun can make

it easier and in many cases safer for the gun carrier.

LETS TALK ABOUT GUNS 4

History

The founding fathers of the United States of America were none other than visionary men

with extraordinary leadership and sense of direction. Coming from a background ruled by

tyranny and oppression, they were set on making sure that the past does not relive itself as they

help construct a new sovereign country. With that in mind, they developed a series of general

privileges, or rights, that are given to anyone who partakes in the freedoms that this new found

country has to offer. This list of privileges is called the Bill of Rights found in the Constitution of

the United States of America. One of these rights is located in the second amendment of the Bill

of Rights. It states:

A well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free

State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be

infringed. (U.S. Const. amend. II)

I hear time and time again that the second amendment was put into place because at the time, the

people needed firearms in order to survive by hunting game. Former President Barak Obama

once said at an attempt to enforce more gun control, we recognize the traditions of gun

ownership that passed on from generation to generation, that hunting and shooting are part of a

cherished national heritage (Barak Obama, 2012). To say that the second amendment was for

hunting is ridiculous in and of itself. If we were to apply that logic in todays standards, we

would need an amendment specifying our right to buy milk. There would be no reason to specify

an obvious necessity.

The second amendment was ratified in order to preserve a free nation from tyrannical

control. If the government becomes corrupt, one of the first courses of actions would be to take
LETS TALK ABOUT GUNS 5

away the rights to firearms from the citizens. Take a look at Ze-Dong Maos Great Leap

Forward that killed forty-five million people in the course of only four years. He infamously

said, all political power comes from the barrel of a gun. The communist party must command

all the guns, that way, no guns can ever be used to command the party (Ze-Dong Mao, 1938).

Current Regulations

So you might think that maybe there should be some restrictions on the types of firearms

and other features that are allowed to be bought. California thought about the same thing.

Theyve implemented a series of small laws that restrict certain features one could have with a

firearm. I.e. magazine limit restrictions, fixed mags only, no concealed carry, etc. (Anon, 2017).

The only problem with these limits and restrictions is that these are very easy to bypass, and

criminals dont obey laws. Last I checked, murder is illegal and yet, it is committed every day.

After the tragic event in Connecticut that lead twenty children and six to be shot to death, Marco

Rubios spokesman said:

The challenge with gun laws is that by definition criminals do not

follow the law. For example, Connecticuts gun laws, some of the

strictest in the nation, were not able to prevent this atrocity.

(Alex Conant, 2012).

Demented minds will disregard any rule set in place that is contrary to their plan to kill as many

lives as possible. This isnt a gun issue; this is a societal issue. Any gun statistical chart showing

the amount of gun violence will show that most gun-related incidents are found in gun-

controlled states (Gunviolencearchive.org, 2017).

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Guns Kill

It is obvious that guns are used to kill, and some are designed to do so. However, I have

never seen guns kill in my lifetime. I work at the University of Utah. Three of my co-workers

conceal carry a firearm for their personal protection. I myself conceal carry as well. I dont recall

my gun ever killing another human being. If guns kill, then why hasnt my gun been used in a

killing as of yet? The answer is simple. People kill. Put the gun in the hands of the killer, then

there will be killing. Those killers are the within the demographic group in which our

government should be focusing. Take guns out of the hands of criminals and allow law-biding

citizens with the choice to keep hold of their guns in order to defend themselves.

Guns Save

Firearms prevent anywhere from eight-hundred-thousand, to two-million violent crimes per

year (Bill Whittle, 2013). It is very easy to focus on all of the negativity when it comes to

firearms or anything in that matter. Guns in the hands of law-biding citizens to far more good

than harm. Unfortunately, we live in a world where everything can be exploited and taken

advantage of.

I can name countless lives that have been saved thanks to a firearm. Im sure any police

officer would say the same. One of my friends who is a police officer encourages law-biding

citizens to own a firearm for self-defense. He says, I would rather show up to a shooting scene

where the bad guy is on the floor than an innocent civilian. The reason guns are so perceived as

evil can be blamed on one thing and one thing alone. The media.
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Media Propaganda

In all honesty, I believe that the media is the root to many of our problems related to crimes.

Everything is glorified and dramatized to an extend where it doesnt make any sense. The fact

that an incredibly asinine argument like the prohibition of firearms is still on the table is mind-

boggling to me. Statistics show that gun-related crimes are actually lowering. Here are a few

facts about gun violence in the United States of America (IJR - Independent Journal Review,

2017):

Gun ownership is increasing while gun related homicides are declining. Including mass

homicides.

The United States has a 10.64 out of 100,000 firearm-related deaths while a country

where it is 100% illegal to own a firearm has 64.80 per 100,000.

There are five other countries with higher Rampage/Mass shooting fatalities than the

United States yet civilian owned firearms far outweigh any of them. Namely,

Switzerland, Israel, Slovakia, Finland, and Norway.

The murder per capita in the Murder Capitals of America. Please note that many of the

cities posted below have some of the strictest gun regulations in the United States.

o Detroit (45)

o New Orleans (41)

o Newark, NJ (40)

o St. Louise (38)

o Baltimore (37)

o Birmingham, AL (30)

o Cincinnati (24)
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o Oakland, CA (22)

Although crimes have been declining, they seem as though they are far much worse than ever

before. Thats because scary news sells. We as humans are hard-wired to look for the negative

and dangerous things in life. It is part of our survival instincts (Anon, 2017). So thats why the

news media jumps on any negative or traumatic event because it spreads fear and makes us

watch it more which in turn makes them a lot more money.

Conclusion

This is sad to say, but I honestly feel that there isnt much we can do as far as legislation

is concerned to prevent mass shootings. I feel that the only thing our government can do is give

the right to choose how law-biding civilians should defend themselves while trying to get them

out of the hands of the mentally unstable and criminals. At least that way, more people will be

armed and ready to defend themselves and others around them before the authorities arrive.

This is a very big topic and requires a lot of thought. The sources I feel are pretty

accurate. Most of the information was pulled from the FBI. As I mentioned earlier I think gun

control is stupid. At least more than what we have now. I couldnt purchase a gun for two

months because there was a discrepancy in my home address. And we think that more gun

control is possible? How much more can we get other than 100% prohibition? This is an issue

with society and the media glorifying mass killing events. Although traumatic events occur, the

world is actually a lot better than it was yesterday. Statistically speaking, it has never been as

safe as it is now to be a human.

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References

Susan Scutti, C. (2017). Violent deaths increased 143% in 2016. [online] CNN. Available at:
http://www.cnn.com/2017/09/14/health/global-gun-deaths-rise-study/index.html
[Accessed 10 Oct. 2017].
Usconstitution.net. (2017). U.S. Constitution - Amendment 2 - The U.S. Constitution Online -
USConstitution.net. [online] Available at: https://usconstitution.net/xconst_Am2.html
[Accessed 10 Oct. 2017].
Freedom Outpost. (2017). Gun Control Dictator Style - Tyrants Who Banned Firearms Before
Slaughtering The People - Freedom Outpost. [online] Available at:
https://freedomoutpost.com/gun-control-dictator-style-tyrants-who-banned-firearms-
before-slaughtering-the-people/ [Accessed 10 Oct. 2017].
Anon, (2017). [online] Available at:
https://oag.ca.gov/sites/all/files/agweb/pdfs/firearms/pdf/cfl2016.pdf [Accessed 10 Oct.
2017].
DeFilippis, E. and DeFilippis, E. (2017). Rebutting the Criminals dont follow laws and Gun
Control only hurts law-abiding citizens argument against gun control. [online] Armed
With Reason. Available at: https://www.armedwithreason.com/rebutting-the-criminals-
dont-follow-laws-and-gun-control-only-hurts-law-abiding-citizens-argument-against-
gun-control/ [Accessed 10 Oct. 2017].
Bill Whittle. (2017). Guns (virtual State Of The Union - 2013). [online] Available at:
https://www.billwhittle.com/mr-virtual-president/guns-virtual-state-union-2013
[Accessed 10 Oct. 2017].
Gunviolencearchive.org. (2017). Charts and Maps | Gun Violence Archive. [online] Available at:
http://www.gunviolencearchive.org/charts-and-maps [Accessed 10 Oct. 2017].
IJR - Independent Journal Review. (2017). 13 Charts Put America's Gun Violence in
Perspective. [online] Available at: http://ijr.com/2016/01/510415-10-charts-that-put-
obamas-gun-violence-town-hall-in-perspective/ [Accessed 11 Oct. 2017].
Anon, (2017). [online] Available at: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/wired-
success/201406/are-we-hardwired-be-positive-or-negative [Accessed 11 Oct. 2017].