The Ineffectiveness of Gun Control Research Paper

The Ineffectiveness of Gun Control - Research Paper Example The longevity of guns, the prevalence of illegal caches of weapons and the lack of respect that criminals have for the law all contribute to gun control as a misguided and ineffective concept that has no effect on violent crime within the United States. Despite arguments to the contrary, gun control does not reduce the amount of violent crime in the United States. Throughout the United States, there are thousands of different gun control laws, which vary not only in the restrictions that they create, but also in how effectively they are enforced. Some laws act to restrict who can purchase guns, by creating purchasing permits, or requiring gun registration, others include safety training before purchase or background checks when a sale is occurring (Moorhouse and Wanner 104). Stories of the lack of logic in current gun control laws abound. A classic example of this is a man who keeps a gun in his house for his own protection, despite the fact that it is illegal. An intruder breaks into the man’s house, and makes a rush at the man, who then shoots the intruder. In many states in America, the man would face criminal charges, and this has happened many times (Wilson 1). This is one of the key arguments against gun control; it punishes the everyday citizens, while not effectively restricting criminals. After all, if a person is not afraid to break the law to rob a house, they are unlikely to be concerned about having an illegal gun. Thus, gun control does not result in less guns in the hands of criminals. The debate on gun control has spurred significant controversy about whether gun control laws are an effective method of reducing crime. Studies of gun control in the United States have mixed results.... Studies of gun control in the United States have mixed results. Most studies have concluded that gun control in the United States does not result in the reduction in violent crime (Moorhouse and Wanner 106). Despite the development of gun control laws, the amount of firearms owned privately has continued to steadily rise, but this has not been matched by the prevalence of violent crimes. Rates of violent crime in the United States have varied considerably (Jacobs 13). This suggests that ownership of guns has no effect on the rate of violent crime, implying that the logic behind gun control laws is fundamentally flawed. Perhaps the strongest piece of evidence against gun control is a report issued by the National Academy of Sciences. The report was 328 pages long, and contained information from close to 400 different sources as well as its own study. The study found that there was no evidence that gun control had any effect on reducing the amount of violent crime that occurs. Another study found that measures such as background checks for people purchasing guns are ineffective, as close to 80% percent of guns owned by criminals were purchased illegally (WND). There is no doubt that the United States has a serious problem with violent crime. Despite the comparatively low levels of crime in recent years, the United States still has more violent crime than other countries in the Western hemisphere, not only in terms of crimes committed with guns, but also for other types of violent crime. In fact, more than 90% of violent crimes that occur within the United States do not involve the use of any weapon (Jacobs 8-10). This suggests that gun control is an innately flawed concept because relies on the assumed relationship between the