Stricter Laws on “Gun Control” free essay sample

In the state of Texas, a shooting took place on September 6, 2013. A 46 year-old man, who was identified as Brian Cloninger, shot an 8 year-old African-American, Donald Maiden Jr. , in the face. Prior to the shooting, Cloninger was seen waving his gun at people (Edwards). This incident and other similar incidents enraged our nation and have bought to citizens’ attention about how laws covering the sale of firearms should be made stricter. Too many people with mental illnesses are being allowed to buy firearms, and this problem only seems to be getting worse. Gun control is one of the biggest social issues at this moment, and yet guns are still getting in the wrong hands because laws for background checks are not as strict as they should be. Gun laws on background checks should be stricter, because guns are still getting unto the hands of mentally unbalanced people. Background checks will prevent the mentally unstable to be able to buy guns easily. We will write a custom essay sample on Stricter Laws on â€Å"Gun Control† or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page When 46 year-old Brian Cloninger shot 8 year-old Donald Maiden Jr. , he had no motive for shooting the poor kid in the face. When asked if he shot 8 year-old Donald in the face by a witness; Cloninger said â€Å"Yes I shot that kid in the face† with no remorse in his attitude. Brian Cloninger could have a mental illness because no one, but absolutely on one, would shoot an 8 year-old boy in the face ever. A person would have to be mentally ill to commit such a crime against an innocent 8 year-old boy, but there will always be individuals like Cloninger that are unstable to think normally. A similar case that happened in Washington, D. C was due to an emotionally defanged person owning a gun. A former navy reservist killed 12 people in a mass shooting at a secure military facility. After the gunman was killed by authorities, the gunman was identified as Aaron Alexis, 34, who was working for a military subcontractor (Miller). Aaron Alexis thought he was being bombarded by low-frequency microwaves and also reported hearing voices (Miller). It is clear that Alexis was showing symptoms of untreated or undertreated paranoia. If these similar incidents keep on happening innocent people are going to keep dying because mentally ill people cannot be  responsible for a gun. Of course, making the laws stricter won’t stop all the gun violence that is happening, but if stricter laws on background checks mean that it is going to be harder for mentally unstable people to have access to guns, it will affect the amount of gun related crimes. This incident and other similar incidents have happened frequently and are still happening. Almost every week I hear about a shooting incident on the news that occurred at schools, colleges, or streets. I would say most of the shooting incidents occurred in schools where innocent little kids are shot. For this reason, firearms need to be restricted from people that cannot be responsible for possessing a gun. Easy availability of guns encourages gun use. Individuals with criminal backgrounds and mental health issues should not have easy access to guns. Children, especially, should not have access to guns. Individuals who own guns should be required to secure them with trigger locks or other devices. People who own guns should also be required to have training in the safe use of firearms as a condition of ownership. Having better gun control laws could help reduce incidents like this. Some people might not agree that having stricter gun control laws will decrease the amount of gun crimes going on in the world. People against stricter gun control laws might say that, for criminals that commit gun crimes and break laws, will always find a way to get their hands on a gun. They will get the guns illegally even if gun control becomes stricter. Strict gun control laws will only take away guns from those who need them to protect themselves. Background check laws will not prevent people from buying guns. People that do not have a mental illness or criminal records will be fine with purchasing a gun and therefore can protect themselves and their family. Someone against these stricter laws might also say the vast majority of violent crime in the United States (and the rest of the world) only occurs in areas that have excessive gun control laws; thereby denying law-abiding citizens the ability to protect themselves. Of course, stricter laws for gun control won’t reduce all the gun crimes going on, but it will be harder for mentally unstable people to have access to a gun. The advocates against gun control seem to be closed minded in their opinions. It is bit misleading in suggesting gun control won’t reduce to some extent gun violence. People break laws, but fewer people will shoot up a place, if they did not have access to a gun in the first place. Crime will decreases as the penalties and oversight of gun increases. If you go to jail for twenty years for illegally buying an assault rifle, then that is an obvious disincentive to doing the action. There are, however, gun supporters that feel that there are enough restrictions on gun control. The NRA, National Rifle Association, is against background checks and remains the main obstacle in changing gun laws. â€Å"What gun control proponent are trying to do is close the so-called gun show loophole,† which allows many private purchases, many of which occur at gun shows, not to have undergo federal background checks. Any purchase by a federally licensed dealer-whether at a store or at show- must undergo such a cheek† (Bohn). Bohn states that The Law Center of Prevent Gun Violence estimates 40% of gun purchases in the U. S. each year are through private sales, the ones that do not undergo background checks. These are a few reasons why guns are still getting into the wrong hands. One reason is because private purchasers do not go through a background check. To push against stricter laws background checks the NRA even handed out flyers saying â€Å"NO to ‘Universal’ Background Checks†. By doing so the NRA is gaining members who are going against stricter laws on background checks. Stricter background checks will decrease the gun crimes that are committed by dangerous people like mentally ill people and criminals. The deadliest weapons should be regulated. America has proven time and time again that they can no longer uphold to the amendment, and all the foolish murders, all because there was a gun available at hand.