Tell me, how many people died in gun-related incidents in America last year? Now tell me, how many people died in gun-related incidents in Australia last year? Studies have shown that each year in America approximately 34,000 people die from gun related incidents alone compared to Australia which has 226 gun related deaths each year. These statistics in America are so high due to the Second Amendment in The US Constitution where it states “the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” This single sentence has killed thousands of innocent people. Since 1996 Australia’s number of gun related deaths has decreased from 634 people a year to 226, which is a drop of 63%. This huge drop in gun related deaths is due to new legislation which was put in place due to the Port Arthur massacre where Martin Bryant cruelly killed 35 people and injured 23. This new legislation involved a gun buy-back scheme where people who owned now illegal guns were paid compensation and their firearms were taken and destroyed. Over a period of 7 years, the government bought and destroyed 660,959 fire-arms. This legislation has proved to be highly successful as for the past two decades gun-related deaths in Australia have dropped by 63%. However America is not …show more content…
Overall America has an estimated 360 million firearms, that's approximately 40 million more than the current population of America. Australia has an estimated 5.2 million firearms which equates to approximately 1 in 5 people owning a firearm in Australia. Finally, Honduras has an estimated 510,000 firearms which equates to 31% of the population of Honduras owning a firearm. To sum up Honduras the country with the highest concentration of gun deaths has the second lowest number of guns out of the three and America has a higher number of guns than people by a staggering 40 million whereas Australia has a minuscule 5.2 million
Since Martin Bryant’s massacre on Port Arthur, the legal system in Australia is amended and reformed gun laws to create a more effective legislation. Gun-related deaths have since been drawn to more efficient attention in Australian psyche, whilst the issue of gun-laws on a global level still remains as a conspiracy in many countries. The massacre left the Australian nation in shock, with a heavily involved attitude on behalf of local and national police, and thousands devastated at the aftermath. The legislation of gun-laws and amendments continues to be controversial, with punishments including Bryant’s being one of popular debate, and the general ownership and use of guns causing conflict within the interrelationship of the legal system and society.
According to the Journal of Economics there are more firearms in the United States than people. Furthermore, the majority of homicides are committed with a firearm (Levitt, 2004). This may indicate that the availability of firearms contributes to gun violence. Individuals acquire guns in a variety of ways, from inheritance, purchasing, or theft. Regardless of the means of attainment, the possession of firearms is widespread in the United States. Those who possess guns do so for many reasons such as for sport, protection, or illegal activities (Bilchik, 1999). Gun buyback programs receive weapons from all types of individuals, regardless of how they originally acquired their firearms or why.
Guns are not the trouble, people are. The United States is #1 in world gun ownership, and yet is only 28th in the world in gun murders per 100,000 people. The number of unintentional fatalities due to firearms declined by 58 percent between 1991 and 2011 Based on these facts, one can see the guns not the causes of gun violence. moreover, civilians who get permits take gun safety courses and have criminal background...
Left, right, Liberal, Conservative, Democratic, Republican. There are a lot of synonyms for the sides of our nation divided. Divided on many things: religion, political views, morals, etc.. For a nation that prides ourselves on extraordinary security and unity, it is quite ironic that so many issues can cause such distress and uproar within communities. One such issue is gun control. As a white male in a middle-lower class family that has never owned a gun, I may be somewhat biased. Objectively as I can, I am going to report the facts and more importantly, try to find the core issues at play.
An estimated 30,000 people are killed each year by guns in the United States alone according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Gun Control, Funk & Wagnall’s). Though there have been some restrictions and laws placed, both the conservative and liberal sides are not pleased with either the lack of action or the fact that there has been too much action that has taken place. “About 38% of U.S. households and 26% of individuals owned at least one gun, with about half of the individuals having 4 or more guns, according to a 2004 survey by the Harvard School of Public Health (Gun Control, Funk & Wagnall’s).” Both sides turn to the one document centered on the argument for evidence to support their side: the Second Amendment.
Due to gun laws being put in place in countries such as England and Australia, we find that gun killings do not occur as often, as America. From the statistics of gun murders in Australia compared to the US, I can acknowledge that gun laws do completely make a difference. Australia in 2011, encountered 187 firearm murders. This seems a lot, but compared to the US, who had 8,583 firearm murders, Australia’s seems minimal. This is due to a gun law being put in place, to try to stop firearm murders.
Since 2003, which incidentally was about the time the British government flooded the country with 20,000 more cops, the homicide rate has fallen to 11.1 in 2010. In other words, the 15-year experiment in a handgun ban has achieved absolutely nothing”. The United Kingdom tried a 15 year ban on guns and all it did was increase the rate of crimes. From 1990 until the ban was put into effect, the homicide rate went from 10.9 to 13 per million. After the ban was there for a while, the homicides reached 18.0 in 2003.
Despite the overwhelming impact of the Port Arthur killings, some States – particularly Queensland, Western Australia and Tasmania – remained hesitant about a crackdown on gun laws. However after the poll rates showed that 85% of Australians were in favour of gun laws, Prime Minister John Howard made the move to set in stone the new nationwide gun reform. Proposals included: a ban on semi-automatic rifles and pump-action shotguns including the importation, ownership, sale, possession, manufacture or use, comprehensive firearm registration and gun owner licensee, a requirement that all gun licence applicants prove a “genuine reason” for owning a firearm (Self-defence did not count, secure firearm storage and the insurance of the following of the uniform national gun laws. A firearm “buyback” scheme was initiated, which allowed people to surrender the newly banned weapons, without any legal consequences and through this people would receive payment funded by a Medicare levy as compensation. The buyback purchased and destroyed nearly 1 million firearms, most of them alike the guns used in the massacre,
Gun control is a highly controversial topic in today’s world where the fight is between the liberal and the conservatives. Many people believe that guns should be banned due to many recent massacres that have happened whereas others are wanting people to have background checks done before owning a gun. I am against gun control because banning handguns in the United States should not be allowed because handguns fail to protect the people and it is ineffective.
All of this talk about gun control is really getting on my nerves. Why does it really matter who owns a gun and who doesn’t? Why is it that you have to register the gun you bought in your name? That’s not really any one's business. Why is it that everyone must pass a background check to be able to purchase a gun? Who cares if the buyer is a prison escapee? That’s a little too personal if you ask me.This is America for goodness sake, land of the free! Everyone should be able to purchase their own gun and do as they please with it. It will make life a lot easier and a lot safer.
Gun violence in America is a public health crisis, which needs to be recognized and changed by legislatures, and the voting American. As conscious Americans, we need to vote for changes to gun laws that would improve background checks nation-wide, make firearm registration mandatory, restrict the sale of assault weapons and weapon modifications that give the shooter military-grade fire power, and invest in gun-safe technology and safe firearms storage designs. This type of technology will help prevent criminally oriented people from accessing guns, and will help prevent the accidental deaths of many children by guns. This essay will explain the reforms needed to help ensure Americans can still exercise their 2nd amendment right of owning firearms, and preventing the unnecessary deaths of many Americans at the same time.
The debate over gun control in America has constantly brought up over the years due to gunmen killing large amounts of civilizations in shootings. From Columbine to Sandy Hook or the shootings of the two reporters in West Virginia, these public shootings are occurring everywhere. Lawmakers and civilians alike are pushing for increased gun control in hopes of preventing the same tragedies. Anybody that has been affected by the shootings have been pushing Congress and state governments to force new sanctions on government. With the past three years, Congress has shot down all the laws despite the large amounts of public support. Adding more gun control isn’t going to stop the mass shootings from happening.
43 of 50 states do not require permits in order for individuals to purchase guns. However, statistics show that these states have higher rates of firearm assaults (Pappas). In addition, proper background checks are not conducted on those making the purchase (Teen Vogue). This is significant because perpetrators look for the easiest way to let out their aggression, and complete the task efficiently. With a majority of states providing such easy access to this weapon, the main method of attack can easily be established. If the American Government improves this single factor, it is guaranteed that there will be improvement. In fact, this adjustment has been proved successful in Australia. In the 18 years before the Port Arthur tragedy of 1996, there were 13 gun massacres that occurred (Datz). The Government recognized that there was a fault in the system, and so, a mandatory buyback of all semi-automatic long guns was ordered. Alongside, laws regarding purchase of firearms were modified to be more effective (Datz). In the 20 years since then, there have been zero mass shootings. However, this is an action the American Government is unable to perform, resulting in more frequent reoccurrences. In conclusion, mass murders are rising, and will continue to rise, because of insufficient implementation of gun safety
Thirty-five per cent more likely to be shot to death than Canadians are to die of a fall” (Paperny, 2015). Gun control is a huge problem in the United States and I believe that only United States Marine Corps, Armed Forces, and Navy should have access to guns. I understand that Americans want to own a gun for their own individual protection reasons; furthermore we have police officers and military support for that sole reason of protection. Some people may say that if there were stricter gun regulations, less people would have guns, less guns would be shot and shooting rates would decrease. Additionally school shootings would not be such a prevalent problem. Furthermore, this idea is proven many times to be
Listverse,. '10 Arguments For Gun Control - Listverse '. N.p., 2014. Web. 30 Oct. 2014.