Why gun control laws are not the answer

Lately in the news, everyone has heard about how Barrack Obama is signing an international firearms control pact to limit and potentially ban firearms from being sold in the United States.  Underneath this already terrible pact, this also causes problems by causing severe damage to our second amendment of the Constitution of the United States, and the second right in the Bill of Rights: The right to KEEP and BEAR arms.

Let me start off that guns are not WEAPONS as everyone likes to frequently call them. The correct term is FIREARMS.  Not guns, not bang sticks, not weapons, not instant death bringers.  Firearms.

As it currently stands, 44 states recognize the need for citizens to use firearms for self-defense.  However, many liberal politicians in congress, including Barrack Obama, are looking to change that, in the wake of many shootings that have happened in the past decade.

What is the first thing that comes to mind when you think why we should have firearms control laws?  Do you think about crime, and how things would be so much easier if gangs couldn't have access to guns?  Do you think about Columbine? Virginia Tech?  The recent massacre in Aurora, Colorado during the premier of The Dark Knight Rises?  Do you think that is why we should be stripped of our second amendment?  I have made this argument before, and it is the most commonly used one.  It is not the firearm that decides whether or not it goes off on its own to injure or potentially kill.  Firearms do not have a mind of their own, they cannot pull their own trigger and fire a bullet on its own.  The person behind the gun(or firearm) makes that call.  Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold(Columbine Massacre) Sueng-Hui Cho(Virginia Tech Massacre), James Holmes(Aurora Theater Massacre) all made the decision to use firearms to kill people for their own selfish motives.  Their "weapons" as many of you like to call them, didn't decide to slaughter 57 combined people and injure many others.  It was their selfish pride and greed and choice to commit Evil.  It was their own free will that said "we see wrong, we will use guns take revenge on those who did us wrong, or we will shoot as many as I can to get my point across."  It is not the firearm that makes the choice, the one behind the gun decides to pull the trigger and put a bullet into a human being.

When our Founding Fathers formed the United States of America, they instituted the Constitution to be the one piece of paper to govern our country.  The first ten amendments became the Bill of Rights.  The second amendment, or right, is as follows:

"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."

Now, the state militia of course is the National Guard, but second half clearly states that people are entitled to keep and bear arms.  If gun control laws went into effect, like this treaty that Obama and the United Nations are about to sign, yes it would limit what kinds of firearms are brought into the United States.  On the other hand, it makes it near impossible to acquire a firearm unless you go to a black market or underground firearms dealer.  Talk about impossible huh?

In a study done by the United States Department of Justice, consisting of 2000 convicted felons, 34% of those criminals had admitted to being "scared off, shot at, injured, or captured by a victim that had been armed" and another 40% said that they didn't think about committing said crime over the fear they thought the target was armed.  In 1987, Florida enacted a law that allowed concealed firearms.  Many experts, anti-gun groups, politicians, and many news outlets at the time believed the plan would completely backfire, claiming that Florida would become a "Wild West" and a capital of "Vigilante Justice" at every corner.  Since enacting this law, the crime rate in Florida has dropped 32% and the homicide rate has dropped an incredible 58%.  Florida isn't the only state that enjoyed the benefit. Texas reported that the crime rate dropped 20%, and the homicide rate dropped 31%.  On a national level, since 2003, violent crime rates have been at their lowest since the mid 1970s.  Is anybody seeing a pattern here?  Having a concealed-firearms permit does not mean you are a homicidal maniac, it gives you the tool to help defend yourself if you are in trouble. Eminem once quoted in his song "sing for the moment" that people who lived in his lifestyle didn't carry firearms to be cool, and that kids think its cool.  He went on to say that those kids didn't really know that they were carrying firearms to protect themselves.  

Thomas Jefferson once said "No man should be debarred the right to bear arms", and he is right.  Those in Congress do NOT possess the right to tell us we cant keep firearms in our house to protect our families, or to go out and shoot targets as we please, or to use them for hunting.  To help out with teaching proper firearm usage, many states have a hunter education class, teaching you the very basics of how to properly use firearms when hunting or target shooting.  Many concealed-firearms permits require that you take a class before they just hand you the permit, so you know that just because you have a permit to carry a firearm, it does NOT give you a free pass to shoot whoever you want.  The purpose of a concealed-firearms permit is for the purpose of protecting yourself.  Liberals do not see it that way.  They think that if you take away firearms from citizens, the crime will go away.  But lets look at it, if they wanted to get rid of crime ENTIRELY, they would have to take away tire irons, hammers, pipes, ropes, bows and arrows, let's put it this way, they would have to take a lot of things away from us, including our bare hands.

It is fairly easy to get a firearm, usually you just go through a background check(see prohibited persons) to get one, and occasionally have a waiting period, should the store you are buying from have one.  Now, when performing that background check if you are any of these, you cannot legally purchase one. If you are one of the following:

• Those convicted of felonies and certain misdemeanors except where state law reinstates rights, or removes disability.
• Fugitives from justice
• Unlawful users of certain depressant, narcotic, or stimulant drugs
• Those adjudicated as mental defectives or incompetents or those committed to any mental institution and currently containing a dangerous mental illness.
• Non-US citizens, unless permanently immigrating into the U.S. or in possession of a hunting license legally issued in the U.S.
• Illegal Aliens
• Those who have renounced U.S. citizenship
• Minors defined as under the age of eighteen for long guns and the age of twenty-one for handguns, with the exception of Vermont, eligible at age sixteen.
• Persons convicted in any court of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence (an addition)
• Persons under indictment for a crime punishable by imprisonment for more than one year are ineligible to receive, transport, or ship any firearm or ammunition

then you cannot purchase a firearm legally.


Our society is a violent society.  Violent video games, violent movies, music involving violent imagery all contribute.  However, we CANNOT take away the tools that can potentially save many lives away from the innocent.  Let's give those people a chance.  Protect our second amendment.