The topic of firearms is a controversial subject for society today. Whether you are for or against gun control laws, it is important to remember that the gun was created for a purpose: to shoot and kill. The gun itself is neither good nor evil; the person behind the weapon will decide the gun’s purpose.
Guns have been around since the 13th century, and weapons have been used since the beginning of modern society. While the argument is made that gun laws need to be stricter due to the frequency of crimes committed with firearms, it is often forgotten that guns can be used for protecting and defending oneself just as much as carrying out a crime.
Even in “no issue” states, where no citizen is allowed to carry a firearm, there are crimes committed with guns. For example, Illinois is classified as a no issue state, yet the city of Chicago has some of the highest rates of murders and crimes committed by people with guns. Usconcealedcarry.net said “while Illinois is a state where no law-abiding citizens are allowed to carry a concealed firearm, the headlines in the media show that criminals clearly do.”
This brings the point that it does not matter what laws are passed to prevent people from carrying—it will only stop the people who follow the law. Criminals are just that because they do not abide by the law. So why would criminals be concerned with stricter carry laws?
Gunlaws.com shows that on average, states with Right-to-Carry laws have lower violent crime rates compared to the rest of the country.
It is also important to remember that while crimes are committed with guns, crimes are also prevented with guns. On the Women against Gun Control website, wagc.com, there are numerous articles about women who were able to defend and protect themselves from intruders or criminals because they are gun owners.
Statistics from factcheck.org show that in 2010, 11,078 murders were committed with guns in the United States. While that seems like a large number, it is in fact only 3.59 out of every 100,000 people killed by guns, which is the lowest rate since 1981.
On smartgunlaws.org it states that more people are killed by poison and killed in motor vehicle accidents each year than are killed by guns. Also, the numbers of deaths by guns are often skewed when it comes to fire arm death statistics due to the inclusion of accidental deaths or suicides. Smartgunlaws.org states that “firearms were used in 19,392 suicides in the U.S. in 2010, constituting almost 62% of all gun deaths.”
Statistics compiled by the FBI show that more people are killed with hammers and clubs each year than with rifles. Yet, you do not have to get a background check to walk into any hardware store and buy a hammer.
Guns are merely tools made because someone saw a need for something that could kill from a distance. The gun itself is not bad; it is just a tool. The person wielding the gun determines its purpose. Not allowing people to carry guns would not stop crime, nor would it change a person’s motive to commit a crime, it would only change the way they carried out the crime.
