Gun control policy essay

Essay Instructions:

Question: You are a staff member for a congressman who is spearheading efforts to establish a reasonable alternative to current gun control laws. You have been assigned a major part of drafting a bill for introduction in the House of Representatives. Your part is to write the portion pertaining to “assault” type rifles – identical or similar to the one that was used in the elementary school massacre in Newtown, Connecticut. Template: You will use the following structure in writing your draft: 1. Policy – sub-title “Prohibition against importing, ownership, transportation and use of “Assault” type rifles capable of firing in semi-automatic or automatic modes.” You can fill in with any terms you want to use to clarify the policy including a “grandfather” clause providing for exemption of persons from the prohibition if they are already in possession of such rifles before enactment of the law or policy. 2. Rationale or Purpose – What is the purpose of the policy. What does it seek to promote (public safety, etc.) or prevent (mass killings of innocent children, etc.) Why would it be considered sound public policy. 3. Stakeholders – a simple enumeration of the sectors that would benefit or potentially be harmed by such policy and why reaching out to them or including them in the public debate would be essential to the drafting and implementation of the law or policy. 4. Analysis – Use the “strategic triangle” tool to analyze what you are proposing, in other words, why would the law or policy be of substantive value to the country and its population, establish the proposed law or policy's legal ground and current political support (legal and political sustainability) and explain why and how it would work at the implementation stage (operational and administrative feasibility). Identify the agencies that will implement the law or policy, how the law or policy will be implemented and how its effectiveness can be evaluated after a year of enforcement. 5. Do Not Include – Any discussion about handguns and concealed weapons, penalty for any offenses, 2nd Amendment arguments (ignore them for purposes of writing this paper.) 6. Limitations: Six to eight pages, double-spaced, with one-inch margin on the right, your name on the first page. No limitations on sources which you can cite either on each page where it was used or on an attachment. Good luck!

Essay Sample Content Preview:

ASSAULT WEAPONS CONTROL POLICY
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Prohibition against ownership, transportation, importing, and use of “Assault” type rifles capable of firing in semi-automatic or automatic modes
It can be postulated that, no one in our nation today require guns for self-protection purposes. This is because there are enough security personnel who are mandated to ensure the safety of all citizens. There are those who may blame mental illnesses and psychological disorders as a cause for misuse of assault guns, and that if such crooks were imprisoned, then incidences of gun misuse would not occur. It should however be noted that the man who shot innocent pupils at Sandy Hook Elementary did not have any psychological or mental illness. This is the same case with the young man in Colorado, who in addition to being declared psychologically fit, had bought the guns personally with background checks.
The trouble with assault weapons is that they can be used by those with ill motives to destroy lives within a short time. As we mentioned earlier, there is no reason why any citizen should be given a right on assault weapon for protection purposes. Security issues should be left with security personnel as well as relevant authorities. Providing individuals with such assault guns leads to misuse as in the case of much destruction that has been experienced in recent times in USA. Carey, (2012) opines that going by the recent trend of innocent killings, assault weapons have been used extensively, not for life protection, but in mass killings, hence the government authorities should ensure that the ownership, transportation, importing and the use of assault guns are entirely prohibited.
Rationale for Assault Gun Policy
If we consider the devastating phenomena of innocent killings such as those experienced in Sandy Hook Elementary School, Connectiticut and Colorado, there is an urgent need to implement a policy that is aimed at controlling the ownership, transportations, sale, importation and use of assault guns in the country. Legislators have to work overtime to table such a policy in congress and ensure that it passes through. We should discard the rights of assault gun ownership owing to the recent trends of massacres of innocent people including children in government and private entities. Kopel, (1994) adds to this notion by postulating that, unless we wake up from our deep slumber, the nation will find itself in a dilemma
A report from the institute of research on small arms in international security (1989) articulate that there are an approximation of four million assault rifles in US. This amounts to approximately 1.7% of the total guns that are available in the nation gun stock. This is a large number to be left in the hands of the citizens who are vulnerable to misusing them. Also in his studies, Roth established that 2.-3.8% of the mass killin...

Updated on January 26, 2024

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Gun control policy essay

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