Gun Legalized Or Not: Should Everyone Be Legally Armed?

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Should everyone be Legally Armed?
Since time immemorial, the issue of gun ownership has been contentious, and liberals and conservatives never seem to agree on the way forward. In 1791 when the Second Amendment in the United States constitution was sanctioned, it was agreed that civilians should indeed own guns. The amendment read, “A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.” This amendment led to the commencement of a long and seemingly endless debate on the issue of gun-control in the US. Some people believe they are protected by the law and should, therefore, be allowed to own guns. Conversely, others believe that while people should be allowed to own gun, there should be more laws that make the process harder. As per the latter lot, by making the process harder, the country will able to reduce the number of firearms which are in the wrong hands. However, the former lot believe that the country will become insecure if that happens because fewer people will be able to defend themselves. By seeking to understand the views of each side, this article will present a comprehensive and informative analysis of the issue of guns and whether everyone should be allowed to own a gun.
In 1968 after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy and Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. began a massive campaign calling for more gun control laws to be introduced and upheld. The death of President Kennedy was quite shocking, and the country felt the vacuum created by his passing. Robert’s fight was fruitful because, in 1968, the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 and the Gun Control Act of 1968 were passed (Washington Post, 2012). This was a win for the pro-gun control laws because it not only gave people hope but also made it hard for the mentally ill, convicted felons, and the drug users to have access to guns. The ease with which people access guns can be a problem especially if their intentions are bad. Therefore, it seems appropriate and responsible for the government to make the process harder especially for the convicted felons, the mentally ill, and the drug users.
According to Shermer (2013), “Pistol owners’ fantasy of blowing away home-invading bad guys or street toughs holding up liquor stores is a myth debunked by the data showing that a gun is 22 times more likely to be used in a criminal assault, an accidental death or injury, a suicide attempt or a homicide than it is for self-defense.” These comments are quite informative and help to further the debate and support the notion that tougher gun control laws should be in place. According to a 2015 report by the Violence Policy Center (1), “In 2012, across the nation there were only 259 justifiable homicides involving a private citizen using a firearm.” However, the same report says that “in the same year, there were 8342 criminal gun homicides tallied in the SHR.” Additionally, the report cautions that the numbers provided do not include “lives ended in gun suicides or unintentional shootings that year.” These reports are quite disturbing...