Gun Control in the Us

Joe Karbowski

11/4/06

5th Hour

Gun Control in the US

If a person is to turn on the news in an average US household today, it is highly probable that there will be at least one story reported with gun violence in it. From school shootings, to street violence, the applications for firearms in US crime are countless. One must ask themselves if the US would be better off without so many guns. But when reducing guns comes into play it becomes one gigantic mess: How many guns is too many? Which types of guns should be allowed? Who should be allowed to carry them? The Second Amendment simply declares: "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" (US Constitution, Amend II). With wording so vague and open to interpretation, it is no wonder that the right to bear arms in the US is a highly controversial topic. Not only does US gun control have a long history, but a long future yet to come.

The US is a country with a very fascinating past. After all of the countless wars and violent histories, it is no wonder that the US has a high rate of violent crime. Among violent crimes, the most commonly used weapons are firearms(Jacobs 10). The FBI Estimates that 66 percent of the 15,517 murders in 2001 were committed with firearms(BBC Article 29). One good reason for firearms being such a popular choice is the high availability of firearms in the US. The US has more firearms in private hands than any other country in the world with 200 million guns in the hands of 60 million private owners(BBC, Article 29). Although it seems logical to assume that more guns in private hands means more violent crime, this is most definitely not the case. Israel, for example, has a large number of guns in private hands while maintaining a low number of violent crime s committed(Jacobs, 11). Mexico on the other hand, has a very small number of guns in private hands but a very high kidnapping and violent crime rate(11). Factors which seem to outweigh gun availability in relation to violent crime include poverty, media violence, and drug abuse. The US had 9100 firearm homicides in 1997 while Great Britain, having approximately half of the US's population, had less than 50. Another increasingly disturbing problem in the US is the number of school shootings. In 1999, 2 teenage gunmen killed 13 students at Columbine High School in Little Rock, Colorado(BBC, Teenage Gunmen). This was one of the deadliest high school shootings in US history. These shootings brought with them a lot of bad press, which made it seem like school shootings have been happening in almost every neighborhood. Contrary to the way the press presented the situation, school shootings have actually steadily declined by 40-50% since 1992(Jacobs 7). The US crime problem obviously needs to have something done about it, and the most common thing is gun control.

Gun control has been around in the US for a very long time. The first gun control law ever passed within the US was put into effect in 1934(Infoplease Milestones). During the 1930's the great depression was in full swing. Prohibition was in effect and gangsters were thriving in big cities across the US. The National Firearms Act was put into effect to weaken the firepower of these gangs. Franklin D. Roosevelt's motivation for putting this law into effect was his hope that it would "eliminate automatic-fire weapons like machine guns from America's streets."(Milestones) Aside from machine guns the National Firearms Act buckled down on "sawed off" shotguns and rifles, silencers, and other easily concealable weapons. The National Firearms Act not only made it so owners must fill out paperwork to own these weapons, but also put a one-time $200 tax on the guns for every time the gun switched owners(Milestones) The $200 tax was no slap on the wrist to the citizens during the time of the great depression either. With modern inflation included, this $200 dollar fine in 1934 roughly equates to $2525 now.

The next milestone in Gun control came just 4 years later with the 1938 Federal Firearms Act. This act targeted those who were selling guns from state to state. The law required them to obtain a FFL (Federal Firearms License) to sell the guns between states(Infoplease, milestones). The license was obtained from the Secretary of Commerce, and held a $1 annual fee (milestones).

Gun control seemed to work for the next 30 years, until the assassinations of John F. Kennedy. Kennedy was actually killed with a gun that Lee Harvey Oswalt obtained via mail order (Infoplease, Milestones). Because of this, the federal government decided to further tighten their policy on mail-order guns. The 1968 Gun Control Act outlawed all mail-order purchases of rifles and shotguns(Milestones). Aside from banning mail order purchases, the Gun Control Act also restricted who was allowed to purchase firearms. The 1968 Gun Control Act restricted convicted felons, drug users, and the mentally incompetent from being able to legally purchase firearms from dealers(milestones). Last, the 1968 Gun Control Act expanded the list of registered dealers and put even more requirements on them(milestones). "The subsequent assassinations of Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. fueled its quick passage."(milestones) The quick passage of the Gun Control Act of 1968 showed how current events can greatly affect which laws our congress will pass.

The next target of US gun control was the large number armor-piercing bullets available in the US. These bullets were of special danger to police officers because they could pierce their bulletproof vests. Since there is no real recreational use for armor-piercing bullets, there was little reasonable argument to the passage of this law. The law not only stopped the production of armor-piercing bullets within the US, but all imports of them also.

Also passed in 1986 was the Firearm Owners Protection Act. This act took a more unique approach at gun control. While most previous laws focused on which guns that any citizen could purchase, this act focused on those citizens who broke the law with firearms. The Firearm Owners Protection Act gave harsher penalties to those who committed certain crimes, and those who illegally traffic weapons (milestones). While this law cracked down on gun criminals, legal gun owners and dealers had many restrictions eased by this act.

The next target of gun control advocates was the school system. In 1990, the Crime Control Act of 1990 was passed (infoplease, milestones). This was a very large act which primarily targeted terrorists. In terms of gun control, this act prohibited people