Gun Control: Why Safer Gun Laws Still Do Not Exist

Introduction

Gun control is the policies set to govern the sale, manufacture, possession, transfer, and use of guns by the civilians. Although guns are considered as emblem sacred which contributed significantly towards the attainment of independence of America from Britain, the violence caused by the firearms usage result in terror by causing harm and deaths of people? Gun control remains to be a controversial issue in the U.S owing to the high rate of gun violence and crimes as witnessed regularly. Over 31,500 people die annually in America as a result of wounds caused by gunshots, more than 330,000 non-fatal violent crimes are reported to have been reported every year, with about 73,000 people admitted to hospitals for further treatment as a result of non-fatal wounds of gunshots (Webster, 2012). A survey conducted revealed that there are over 200 million guns in the hands of private citizens, which make a significant contribution to US violence and crime since most of the citizens are ill-tempered and very clumsy to be trusted with such arsenic weapons (Phillip, 1996: Ludwig, 2000). This forms a thesis for this paper on why safer gun laws do not exist. The hypothesis of the thesis shall be tested by careful analysis of the reported crime rates that are violent, the existing laws on gun controls and their adherence, the safety provided by ownership and usage of the guns, the effects and harm caused by guns and the public opinion towards the safety of guns.

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Federal Gun Law

The federal law limits the specific kind of people who can be in possession of firearms. Such people include mentally ill people, felons, fugitives, domestic violence convicted people, users and addicts of drug abuse illegally, people who have renounced their citizenship, individuals expelled from the disciplined forces and illegal aliens. Extensively, the government has set a law on the minimum age of 21 years as the least age at which an individual can legitimately obtain or be in possession of a firearm. The prior felony convicted individuals have a higher probability than non-felons of future committing violence crimes. Distinct examinations have proved that important domestic violence proportions of abusers also attempt to offenses that are serious against non-family members and strangers. It is justifiable for the restriction of the drug abusers from being in possession of firearms. This is because of the close association of the increased domestic violence, violent crime incarceration alongside suicide with substance abuse. Offenders of homicide are more likely to be drug abusers than controls of non-offenders, whereas individuals with a mental sickness that is serious such as bipolar disorders, depression, and schizophrenia have a higher chance of violence committing directed to themselves and others. There are risks of victimizations and perpetration by serious violent crimes which becomes more at the adolescence period this necessitates the restriction of the age of accessing and possessing firearms.

Kwon made an empirical and statistical investigation on gun control laws', such as Brady Bill, effectiveness evaluating them after and before implementation (Kwon & Baack, 1997). In 1993, the Congress passed the Brady Bill that mandated background for federal checks on buying of guns in America and a five day period of waiting after buying was imposed. Despite debates about emotions and numerous laws and policies passage, there have been insignificant empirical examinations done to analyze laws on gun control effectiveness in America since 1997. They apply statistical methods of a multivariate model to initiate the state gun deaths related numbers and the determinant sets used comprising state policies and gun use relationships. The statistical regression model of multivariate studies suggests that gun control laws' existence deterred the effect of deaths resulting from firearms, although the ties are weaker than the reported one. Determination of a correlation between Canada and the U.S was done by Kwon that in case America had adopted a uniform gun law like that of Canadian law of 1977, the effect would have been more significant as seen here because most of the states have different laws on gun control (Kwon & Baack, 1997). The state-level data used in the study enabled Kwon to evaluate the main gun violence victims as well as the factors related to socioeconomic factors such as levels of poverty and consumption of alcohol. Kwon thus drew conclusion and implication on the policy that America should initiate resource direction to combat issues that come as a result of socio-economic areas that are low so as to combat firearm violence and the injuries will maybe not reduce whether there are gun control laws in the US or not.

Koper conquers with Kwon on regardless of the numerous laws and policies on firearm control, there has not been a significant change in the crime and violence associated with gun usage (Kwon & Baack, 1997). In his study, he determines whether the Assault weapons ban by federal in 1994 achieved reducing the large capacity magazines and assault weapons availability and whether this impacted the gun violence minimization in America. There was a ten years set a ban, where the Congress made a choice to forgo the ban renewing in 2004. Koper's investigation group studied certain trends indicators in the injuriousness and lethality of violence caused by guns from 1995 to 2002. It included national-level analyses of gun murders, the percentage of violent gun crimes resulting in death, the share of gunfire cases resulting in wounded victims, the percentage of gunshot victimizations resulting in death, and the average number of victims per gun homicide incident (Koper et al., 2013). In general, Kopel's investigation had no impacts on the injuriousness as well as lethality reduction of violence caused by the guns since 1995-2002 (Kopel, 2012). Thus Kopel's group of scholars had a challenge to national assault weapons prohibition credit to the complete reduction in violence linked to the gun in the 1990s (Kopel, 1995).

The conclusion of Kopers study was that there are mixed reactions in gun-related crime reduction as a result of certain loopholes and exemptions in the ban of federal assault weapons. He discovered that the ban was ineffective against crime caused by guns during the period it was applied, although some significant suggestion that if it was reiterated in 2004, it may have adequately minimized further unplanned gunshots. Additionally, discussion on the prior ban suggestions and the mode of American government address on future gun control by Koper that if there are prior bans on legislation mimics in future, there will be insignificant effect on the most crimes caused by guns, although may hinder certain shootings , especially the ones comprised of a huge number of victims and shots. His discussion makes it plausible that in the legislation parts of future stopping firearm restriction he makes assertions that limits centered on the potential of magazines will have more opportunity of accessing adequate political and public passage support otherwise of assault weapons restrictions that are new. The current polling suggests however that the dual measures are more supported by the non-gun owners than gun owners. Both Koper and Kwon's studies had a similar conclusion in their various research concerned on the gun control laws effectiveness like federal assault weapons ban and as the Brady Bill (Steidley & Kosla, 2017).

In his investigation, Singh initiates discussion of the debate on gun control from a factual setting (Singh, 2008). He says that demand from the public for the limitation of guns in America was developed by dual conditions: the first is the huge additions of the violent crimes levels, as in since the 1990s and during prohibition. What followed in second were the attempt and successful presidents assassinations in 1936, 1963 and 1981 as well as the political assassinations of famous people such as those of 1968 where Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. Although several movements for advancing and advocating for tighter regulation of guns have not been adequately significant to secure policies advances at the federal level or the state level that are meaningful (Singh, 2008).

An examination is done by Koper et al on public opinion in regards to control of guns in the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut aftermath tragedy, alongside recommendations of policy to minimize gun rampage that was debated in an active manner at the state, local and national level. Public opinions polls among Americans showed a shift of views in regards to strengthening gun control laws within weeks of the Newtown mass shooting. Information collected from the Pew Center and the Gallup for the individuals and press was used by Webster in discovering that America's 58% were in support of more strict firearms laws in December 2012, in contrast to October 2011 polls which was at 43%. He mentioned technological era present has been more appealing to use panels of web-based over surveys of national telephone, although there are drawbacks of the techniques. His team of researchers applied a knowledge panel known as GFK, which made use of recruitment tools that are probability-based consistent with standards established where they made an analysis of information by detailed comparison of socio-demographic features with standards from the national to verify how their US population is represented. Webster's study acknowledges that some analyzed polls laid emphasis on the general attitudes on the policy of gun control during the Newtown mourning period, not for certain proposals to minimize violence caused by guns. This public opinion poll is a bit faulty that makes some scholars to not concentrate, when investigating the means of framing questions and the questions to be addressed that alters tremendous results (Kleck & Gertz, 1997). Thus, it is critical objectively public opinion data interpretation to the used language in the description of a certain policy. They focus on the findings as they should be assessed within the specific methodology context.

Vizzard conducted a qualitative research study other than a quantitative study in his analysis for gun control legislation in America history, the opinion of the public and support group interested and plausible policy options of the future on a historical basis (Vizzard. 2015). He made arguments that there was a reduced public gun control support resulting from different factors. He uttered that 2nd amendment existence and efforts of persistence by gun control opponents have molded the arguments to rights of an individual. Vizzard made the argument that the gun rights organizations associated with delegates are not outlined by other scholars in their gun restriction investigations. He makes a statement that the advocacy on gun licenses base surpasses by far the gun control support meager and that they are advantaged in multiple different ways. The enthusiasts of gun rights have more chances of planning particular organizations as well as activities including gun shows, gun stores, shooting ranges alongside shooting exercises, where these organizations facilitate networking of supporters. In addition to this, there are advocates of gun control that lack certain advantages of the organization and most do not stand as a primitive issue of gun control. Vizzard had a view that the differences amid advocates of gun control and gun control opponents, and may furthermore have different opinions based on ideologies and the representative institution both having an influence on public opinion that is prominent.

Vizzard also identified his study future...