Final Paper

Gun Slavery

Guns have been given a bad reputation over the past several decades, and the image is becoming worse. There are really only two sides to this topic; you are either for guns or against them. When most people hear the word gun, they cringe at the thought of some large hulking man coming into a store and killing everyone on sight. Where did this image come from? Possibly from an Arnold Schwarzenegger movie, were he is wielding a large overly exaggerated gun that can saw people in half. Yet any person, who has been around guns, knows that such a weapon does not exist, nor will it ever. I am not saying that guns are not dangerous and that people do not come into stores to rob at gun point, but it has been overly exaggerated. I believe that the problem that should be addressed has to deal with the lack of the knowledge of guns. This is an increasing problem with the media portraying guns as weapons of mass destruction that will destroy the population of the United States. Guns should be given a second chance just like everything else. What people fail to realize is, is that guns are not the ones going around and killing people. Guns cannot willingly commit a crime. Guns are misunderstood, because the media and ignorant people have turned them into things that they are not.

Some of the effects that this causes are that people become afraid of guns, because of the spin that the media and other such things put on guns. Which can include a long list of events, but the main one is that it puts into play gun control laws. Gun control laws have been the way to sooth the people who are so afraid of guns. But it is our right as the Supreme Court puts it, to be able to own a weapon. The Courts have looked at the second amendment and shown that it does in fact mean that we do have the right to bear arms. All of the court’s rulings were shown in a journal article written by Don Kates. Don Kates is a well known law professor at U. C. L. A.

Yet I do not think that they realize that gun crimes have not dropped any considerable amount since these laws were enacted. The police chief Craig Grayden, of the Kennesaw police department, states that there has been a drastic decrease in crime since the city of Kennesaw enacted an ordinance that every person has the right to have a gun in the home. High security inmates from the Jackson prison system, were interviewed, and the consensus gather from the in mates plainly stated, “None of us would dare go into a house around Kennesaw, knowing that there was the possibility of a gun in the house." Then again guns have not been the leading weapons used in crimes. In fact more crimes happen with knives than with guns. Why would crimes be more likely to happen with a knife than with a gun? Well you do not have to register the purchase of a knife, they are cheap and effective weapons, and they can be easily thrown away with no trace at all. So why are there not any knife control laws? It is not that any weapon is ever more dangerous than another; it is just about what weapon looks the most dangerous.

Something like this should be solved, because there are too many false accusations about guns. Why should we try to clear the records of other things that were thought to be bad, like high fructose corn syrup, and not clear the names of guns? One of the main ones is that somehow guns have the inert ability to go around and kill people. Once again this is not true! If anything needs to be regulated, it should be the mental status of people who own guns. No one in their right mind decides to go out in a blaze of glory and take everyone with them. They are not right in the head! They are the ones that are dangerous. Just like with what the Son of Sam killer did. He killed all of his victims with a gun. He was found to be mentally unstable. It just so happens that the gun gets looped in with these people who commit these insane acts. It is like the old saying “Don’t shoot the messenger!” How can we willingly crucify the gun when it has done nothing but bring the bad news? It is still not justified that we blame all crimes on the gun.

By ignoring this problem, I believe that we open ourselves to a lot more problems. Like the possibility of invasion form outside countries. I believe that the only reason that this has not happened is because of the possibility that each household owns a gun. Yes it could also be that we have an amazing military, but what if they knew that they could get through the military? The military may not like to think of it this way, but they do have back up if anything were to happen. Our nationalism for this country is a very powerful weapon in its own right, but add in a weapon, and we would be unstoppable if a foreign nation were to come through.

I propose that a way to fix these problems is actually very simple. In order to fix the problem of the media stretching out what guns are really like, we would need to have some sort of educational program. This program could be a nonprofit organization that went around to all the different communities of the United States, teaching everyone that guns really are not the terrible things that they are assumed to be. If anyone were to protest against guns, I think that they should have to attend one of these educational, so that any fears about guns can be addressed. People are deathly afraid of snakes, but there are educational programs that inform us of these creatures, so that we do not go around killing them. Why can’t we do the same things with guns, to at least give them a chance to also get their names cleared?

Regulations have been placed on the purchase of guns as a way to protect people. Such as not giving people with mental health issues weapons. This regulation speaks for itself, but what about people who are diagnosed with mental health issues after they have purchased a gun? I think that once a person has been diagnosed with a mental disorder, that their belongings should be searched for any sort of firearms. This should be done so that they are not harmful to themselves or anyone else. It should be made a law that will be adhered to strictly. With no means of negotiation even open for interpretation.

I believe that this is justified, because it helps to keep our country in order and safe from its own citizens. This may seem as if it was some sort of violation, but I believe that it is a violation that would be well worth making. It is the duty of our government to keep the people under the government protected, and I believe this to be a start in the process of new regulatory laws. You may argue that with gun control, our government is already keeping us safe. Yet I disagree, I feel much safer knowing that I can take my own safety into my own hands. And no matter how many more regulations we place on guns, such as the ones already in effect, we are still in danger of problems. Law abiding citizens will adhere to the law, but these are not the individuals with guns we need to worry about. As addressed by Robert Spitzer, in his book on politics and guns, and how these laws affect what will happen in our country.

This is still a very heated debate in politics today and will continue to be until a happy medium is reached among all people. This will be a long and treacherous road that will take a very long time before any medium is reached. But unless we do something that help clear the bad reputation that guns have received, then there will be no progress in this debate. Guns are something I am very passionate about, and gun collecting is a hobby that I and my dad have. Many other young men and their fathers have this same passion. That is why gun control laws do not go over smoothly with these people. It is because of these regulations that their hobby has been hindered, or at least that is how it is viewed, and they will not take it sitting down. This debate will still be going on long after I am gone unless the reputation of the gun is given a new slate.