Explain whether or not gun control is actually possible. Support your argument. Please respond as of you are talking directly to Lacey. Her post is not bold. A few sentences and a question backed by facts!

Please keep the discussion civil!

Arguments should be based in factual research.

Gun control is a substantial issue in our culture today, and I will be discussing my argument that we currently have certain laws and regulations that are considered gun control; however, due to the Second Amendment and the given right for individuals to own firearms for legal purposes such as self-defense with one's own home (Findlaw, 2018). There is a considerable focus on loopholes and state to state regulations that attempt to reduce the impact that firearms have had in our nation, but we are leaving out a significant issue that gun control is only possible if somehow our society learns to control human behavior, something that we have not yet been successful at accomplishing. Following significant and deadly attacks it is common for our government to take some initiative and enact new laws like the Violent Crime Controls and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, which attempted to ensure that a federal ban on manufacturing semi-automatic weapons was imposed for a time frame of ten years(Cooper, 2012). Jones and Johnstone (2011), discuss how following the horrific tragedy of 9/11, our government built a new federal agency, Homeland Security, which changed the way in which federal and state policing agencies trained and prepared for situations. I feel it is important to recognize that this agency has not been able to eliminate mass shootings, but rather attempts to be better equipped to handle potential threats and the aftermath of these catastrophes. How can we control gun usage and the devastation that it can cause if our concern is the material itself?

I recently viewed an episode of the Ellen Degeneres talk show where a white adoptive mother had received threats towards her three adoptive African American children. This was something that she was not going to take lightly, and subsequently followed up with social media and a call to the state police in which the individual who threatened them was living, only for police to show up as a twenty-something year old male was pulling out of his apartment complex armed in a Kevlar vest with 200 rounds of ammunition, several firearms, and specific written out plans on which schools he was going to shoot up (Degeneres, 2018). I believe our biggest issue is not guns themselves, but rather the issues surrounding the psychological issues of those who chose to use them for their unintended purposes.

Recently Florida banned the use of bump stock which allows semi-automatic guns to fire faster, but they require for those who have them to turn them in, and if caught with them following this ban could result in a felony charge for the individual who acquires or has kept their already owned bump stock (Marino, 2018). We are living in a country with inconsistent laws, penalties, and regulations when it comes to gun control. It is my argument that the focus should be consistent regulations on weapons that are unnecessary for the average citizen to own, strong federal oversight on the manufacturing and delivery of military grade firearms, uniform regulations on the purchase of firearms for recreational use, such as hunting, or purchase for self-defense provided to us by the Second Amendment. Our Criminal Justice system has shown some success with community policing so the idea of increasing an awareness of individuals who may say or do something that could potentially lead to the suffering of others it should be addressed. Homeland Security was built with the attempt to be proactive, but with a bigger unit such as our communities, together we may have a better chance of decreasing unnecessary suffering.

References:

Cooper, T. (2012). History of gun control legislation. Retrieved from:https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/history-of…

Degeneres, E. (2018) [Ellentube]. Ellen meets inspiring mom Koeberle Bull, Who derailed a potential mass shooting. Retrieved from:

FindLaw (2018). Second Amendment: US Constitution-bearing arms. Retrieved from: https://constitution.findlaw.com/amendment2.html

Jones, M. & Johnstone, P. (2011). History of Criminal Justice, (5th ed.) New York, NY. Routledge.