Proposal
This paper seeks to analyze the arguments for and against the enactment and enforcement of strict gun control laws in the United States. It will consider all the theories and arguments for and against these laws, especially about the possibility or inability of such laws to reduce the rate of gun-related violence in the country.
The aim of developing this analysis is to provide a detailed presentation of the data on gun-related violence, the need for gun control programs, and to create awareness on the issue. Also, the analysis will aim at triggering a meaningful scholarly debate that will allow students of law and sociology provide their ideas and points of view on how to curb the vice. Finally, the analysis seeks to present some personal ideas and points of view as provided by two interviewees.
The analysis will be based on a review of past literature, drawing information from books, journal article es, newspapers, and websites published within the last two years.
Research questions
- Does data published in the last two years indicate gun violence as a major concern in the US?
- How do gun control programs fair in reducing the rate of gun violence in the US?
- How does the public think of gun violence control?
- Is there a need for strict laws for controlling gun handling and thus gun violence in the US?
Expected problems
When carrying out the analysis on the topic, it is expected that several problems will be encountered. First, the topic “gun violence” is a crucial issue that involves state security, and thus, obtaining information will need permission from the involved state organs and institutions.
Secondly, obtaining the most accurate data on the rates of gun violence, victims of gun violence, the rates of crime as well as the trend of these rates in the last two years will require intensive research. Finally, interviewing two persons only and generalizing the data collected from the interviewees to the whole population is not very good for empirical research.
Annotated bibliography
Webster, Daniel, John Vernick, Katherine Vittes, Emma McGinty and Shannon Frattaroli. Case of gun policy reforms in America. John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 2012. Print.
Summary: The authors are affiliated to the John Hopkins School of public health and are leading researchers in public health. In this book, they tend to argue that there is a need for gun control policies, which must include strict laws on gun ownership to prohibit gun handling by drug and substance abusers, persons under 21 years, persons with a history of violence, mentally ill persons and unregistered or illegal immigrants.
Evaluation: The authors have also taken into account the current opinions of the public on gun control, including the opinion of the conservative gun holders, the opponents of private gun ownership as well as some political aspects of the topic.
The information contained in the book is not only important to this research, but also critical to the public health sector because the authors have reviewed the most relevant information, including data fro the relevant authorities and institutions such as the police, national health institute and legislation of guns. The authors had an aim of presenting the most relevant information to the public and creating awareness on the need for strict gun control policies in the US, which means that the book is important for the current study.
Reflection
The source fits in the current research since it is a scholarly analysis of the need to have gun control policies and the importance of such policies in controlling the rate of gun violence. The information presented in this book help in understanding how loopholes in the current gun control policies and laws cause massive deaths and injuries to thousands of people every year.
Since the authors had an aim of presenting the most relevant information to the public and creating awareness on the need for strict gun control policies in the US, the book’s topic is almost similar to the current study. The authors are successfully influencing the public to develop a strong attitude towards the need for the implementation of strict gun control policies in the country.
I find this source relevant to my research, especially because it emphasizes on gun violence as a public health issue that needs immediate attention. To obtain information from the book, keywords such as violence, death, injuries, control, laws, homicide, suicide and rates were used as a strategy to locate the most critical information from the text.
Stray, Jonathan. “Gun Violence in America: The 13 Key Questions With 13 Concise Answers”. The Atlantic Feb 3, 2013. Web
Summary: The author attempts to answer some critical questions on the state of Gun violence in the US. He uses several sources to compile the answers to these questions. Among the most important question in the article include: what is the rate of gun violence in the US? What are the current gun control laws? What policy has worked to reduce the rate of gun violence and crime? And how do the rates in the US compare with other countries?
The article indicates a slight reduction in the rate of gun-related crime and violence between 1990 and 2010, but a slight increase in rates of gun violence such as homicide and mass attacks between 2010 and 2012. Also, the author notes that handguns contribute to more than 72% of the total cases of gun violence in the United States.
He also notes that more than 50% of the victims are young people, more than 8500 cases of homicides were gun-related in 2011 and that American has a rate of 4.7 murders per 100,000 people in a year, more than Âľ of which involve guns.
Evaluation: the source acts as a quick guideline in examining the most relevant data for the current study. It helps in understanding the most critical questions surrounding the controversy. The author has also attempted to reduce bias by drawing data and facts from various sources
Refection: since the article presents data and facts in a simplified manner, it is relevant to the current study. It fits as a guideline for reviewing the most recent data on the controversy.
Trial: I find the resource well presented and less biased since it presents data rather than arguments.
Rosenthal, Lawrence, and Joyce Lee M. “McDonald v. Chicago: Which Standard of Scrutiny Should Apply to Gun Control Laws.” Nw. U. L. Rev. 105. 437, (2011): 336-345.
The two authors argue that there was no need for the US Supreme court to apply restrictions on the second amendment in ruling on the McDonald V. City of Chicago case. They note the need for strict gun-control laws in the US, but suggest a lower standard of scrutiny as a necessary way of dealing with the case and thus, the situation in America.
Since it is based on the necessity of applying the law in dealing with gun violence, the article fits in the current study as a source of additional information on the controversy. However, it is biased since it only shows the author’s point of view, with great emphasis on scholarly work but applying a few facts on the situation in the country. Nevertheless, the source is a critical source of the legal argument for the current study.
Kellermann, Arthur, and Frederick P. Rivara. “Silencing the Science on Gun Research.” JAMA, 309.6 (2013): 549-550.
The authors take into account the findings of the CDC about the rising rates of gun violence as a public health concern. Also, the article discusses the need for gun control based on data collected from the FBI, the police, and hospitals across the country. The authors argue strongly for gun control laws, which must also be strict.
The article is important for the current study because it will provide information on public health issues, especially with the inclusion of information from the CDC and hospitals.
Lott, John. More Guns, Less Crime: Understanding Crime and Gun-Control Laws. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 2012. Print.
Lott is a tutor and researcher at the University of Chicago. In this book, the author attempts to provide a detailed analysis of gun laws and their impacts on gun violence control in different states of the US. The author argues that there is a link between strict gun laws and the reduction of the rate of gun violence. However, he further argues that there is some evidence that the increased rate of gun ownership reduces the rate of crime in a given area.
Reading this book increases the level of knowledge and awareness of the gun laws in existence in different states. Also, it provides additional information relating to the control of gun violence using strict laws and its possible impacts. Therefore, this book is essential for the proposed study. I used keywords such as violence, death, injuries, control, laws, homicide, suicide, and rates were used as a strategy to locate the most critical information from the book.
Webster, Daniel, and Jon Vernick. Reducing Gun Violence in America: Informing Policy with Evidence and Analysis. New York: JHU Press, 2011. Print.
As the title of the book suggests, the authors aim to provide evidence and analysis of the impacts of “informing Policy” in reducing gun-related violence. The authors claim that the application of strict laws alone cannot control gun violence in the US for various social, political, and migratory reasons. To enhance gun control in the US, the authors provide some empirical and theoretical evidence to support their hypothesis that public-police collaboration is likely to be the most effective way of controlling gun violence in public places.
With this unique information, I find the book essential for my proposed study as it pertains to gun violence reduction using various initiatives. I used keywords such as violence, death, injuries, control, laws, homicide, suicide, and rates were used as a strategy to locate the most critical information from the text.
Controversy analysis essay
Currently, more than 30,000 people in the United States succumb to gunshot wounds every year. In most cases, the majority of the victims are disproportionately young people, which mean that gun violence is one of the major causes of premature deaths in the country (Farah and Kellermann 1061).
In 2011 alone, an estimated 337,900 crimes were committed with guns, and more than 73,000 victims of gun violence received treatment for non-fatal gunshot wounds in various hospitals throughout the country. Since 2010, the rate of gun violence has increased significantly in the United States, triggering the need for gun-violence control programs both at the federal and local levels. According to (4), gun violence in the US is unusually high, with the rate of homicide increasing every year.
For instance, some 8,583 cases of homicide were committed with guns in 2001 alone, which was more than 65% of the total cases of homicide recorded in the year. This means that at least two-thirds of homicide cases in the US involve firearms. It is also worth noting that more than 70% of the cases of homicide involving firearms are committed with handguns (Cummings, Thomas, James, and Richard 979).
It is also estimated that more than 18 million guns are purchased by civilians every year; thousands of others are owned illegally and not recorded. In total, it is estimated that more than 300 million guns are in the hands of civilians (Branas and Thomas 563). Such a state puts the country’s population at risk of massive cases of gun violence, as witnessed in the recent cases where civilians have attacked schoolchildren, killing several and wounding others.
Even though cases of gun violence are high in the country, it is worth noting that there has been a decrease in the rate of gun violence since the early 1990s. Several theories have been proposed to determine the cause of the decline, but the need for strict gun control laws has emerged as a predominant topic of debate and controversy.
The debate on Gun violence control has attracted several theories, with politicians, scholars, activists, and the public involved involving several arguments. For instance, proponents of gun violence control using strict legal processes have attempted to show that states with strict gun control laws like Texas record the lowest rate of gun violence every year.
Also, proponents of these laws have argued that gun control laws are likely to ensure that underage, insane, and violent people in society have limited or no access to guns. Proponents also argue that there is some evidence that a lack of strict laws on guns also contributes to the high rate of crime involving guns.
On the other hand, opponents of gun control, however, tend to differ with these claims. For instance, there is a strong argument that access to guns is not the only factor that should be controlled if the country is to reduce the rate of gun violence. Rather, the rates of poverty, unemployment, and school drop out should be reduced to reduce the rate of gun violence involving crime, homicides, and suicides.
Works Cited
Branas, Charles and Richmond Thomas. “Investigating the link between gun possession and gun assault”. Am J Public Health, 99.11 (2009): 2034-2040
Cummings, Paulsen, Koepsell Thomas, Savarino James, and Thompson Richard. “The association between the purchase of a handgun and homicide or suicide”. Am J Public Health, 87.6 (2010): 974-978
Farah, M and Alfred Kellermann. “Firearms in the home: parental perceptions”, Pediatrics, 104.5 (2009):1059-1063
Kellermann, Arthur and Frederick P. Rivara. “Silencing the Science on Gun Research”. JAMA, 309.6 (2013): 549-550.
Lott, John. More Guns, Less Crime: Understanding Crime and Gun-Control Laws. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 2012. Print.
Rosenthal, Lawrence and Joyce Lee M. “McDonald v. Chicago: Which Standard of Scrutiny Should Apply to Gun Control Laws”. Nw. U. L. Rev. 105. 437 (2011): 336-345.
Stray, Jonathan. “Gun Violence in America: The 13 Key Questions With 13 Concise Answers”. The Atlantic. 2013.
Webster, Daniel and Jon Vernick. Reducing Gun Violence in America: Informing Policy with Evidence and Analysis. New York: JHU Press, 2011. Print.
Webster, Daniel, John Vernick, Katherine Vittes, Emma McGinty and Shannon Frattaroli. Case of gun policy reforms in America. John Hopkins Bloomberg School of public Health, 2012. Print.