“Many of us assume we
must either oppose or support gun control. Not so.” (LaFollette, 2007, p.
179).
Non-Gun Control Argument
Thomas Jefferson stated, "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." Therefore,
government does not have a right to regulate gun control. I believe the “fundamental”
right issues discussed in LaFollette (2007) are to be left up to each person’s interpretation.
After all, one person may view owning a gun as necessary and basic, another
person may see differently. As long as a citizen follows the law and is responsible
with their gun, they should not be denied their constitutional right to own
firearms.
According to
Lester Gray (1986), “Free men own guns - slaves do not” (p. A-23). In
other words, if our right to bear arms were taken way, we are no longer free
but slaves to the government. The right to bear arms was given to us by our
forefathers because they knew that tyranny can occur by any government and owning a gun we
would then have a way to protect ourselves (Gary, 1983). In a way, the amendment
can be seen as a checks and balance in place to remind the government to know their
place.
Hellman’s (1999) article contends that guns should be
illegal because “if murder is a crime, the instrument to commit it should be
illegal” (p. 12A). This is a ridiculous argument because there are many objects
that have the capability of committing murder. For example, if I decide to
whack someone over the head with a frying pan, the frying pan is now an instrument
to commit a crime. Therefore, according to Hellman’s (1999) argument, frying
pans should be illegal.
Gun Control Argument
“Gun control supporters offer empirical
evidence of a positive correlation between murder rates and the availability of
guns (especially handguns)” (LaFollette, 2007, p. 188). Guns are too easy of a way
to kill others. When a person who owns a hand gun becomes angery or depressed the
chance of them killing someone is greater (LaFollette, 2007). One angry Canadian
citizen believes guns should be illegal because parents are neglecting their responsibility
in keeping their kids safe (O’Brien, A-21). Similar, LaFollette (2007) argued on
these lines by stating that there is a higher chance of deadly accidents when
children have access to guns.
References
Gray, Lester. (1986, Nov). Bearing Arms Bearing Arms. Providence Journal, Providence, RI, A-
23.
Retrieved from
Hellman, Lillian. (1999, Aug
17). Why aren’t guns illegal? Sun Sentinel, 12-A.
Retrieved from
origsite=summon
LaFollette, Hugh. (2007) The
Practices of Ethics. Malden, MA: Wiley, Blackwell
O'Brien, Ken.
(2003, Jan 09). Gun ownership should be illegal. Toronto Star, Toronto, Ont,
A21.
Retrieved from
