By John Rommes / For The Herald
Did you know that according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, 90% of crimes committed with firearms (as of 2016) are done with the use of illegally obtained firearms? Now that you do, does punishing law abiding citizens with stronger and stronger restrictions solve the issue?
Guns, while created originally for military use, have spread to other important parts of life such as self-defense, sport, hunting, and in early times of the United States of America, defending against a tyrannical (oppressive and or controlling) government. The heavy restrictions of firearms are unconstitutional, potentially harmful, and affect the wrong people. Therefore, the laws on firearms should be kept down to a reasonable minimum.
The ownership of firearms is a constitutional right that should not be infringed. As the radio host, Alex Jones, said, “The Second Amendment isn’t there for duck hunting, it’s there to protect us from tyrannical government and street thugs… 1776 will commence again if you try to take our firearms!” Jones is one of many firm believers in the idea that the Second Amendment is necessary for the functionality of the United States, which in a way, it is. The Second Amendment was put in place to keep the government at bay and to protect the other Amendments withing the constitution. As put by the Founding Fathers of the United States themselves in the constitution, The Second Amendment states, “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” ProCon’s The words of the Founding Fathers are quite straight forward and reasonable, there are no limits or restrictions put within the Second Amendment, therefore, why do people get to decide rules 234 years later? The strict limitations on firearms are unconstitutional and gives too much power to the government, gun laws are also harmful to communities.
Heavy restrictions on firearms are often more harmful than helpful. A Colorado gun store owner tells that Colorado’s talk about outlawing detachable magazine firearms will make 60% to 75% of his stock illegal if the laws are put into effect. If three-quarters of the stock of any store is outlawed then they will likely go out of business and potentially struggle to provide for their families, and depending on how popular the store is the major loss in sellable product can cut the profits down from upwards of $200,000 to just $60,000, causing financial instability. Gun laws are often unfairly enforced against people of darker skin complexion, as said by Charles Gallagher “Whites walking down Main Street with an AK-47 are defenders of American values; a black man doing the same thing is Public Enemy No. 1.” The stricter the gun laws the easier it is for corrupt or unfair law enforcement officers to fine and imprison people for their skin complexion. Potentially harmful laws can also give the government powers that the citizens don’t have.
Gun laws can create divides between the government and citizens. Colorado is trying to ban detachable magazine firearms, NPR.org has written “The Colorado legislation would go even further and require magazines to be soldered, welded or affixed to the gun with strong epoxy.” By forcing law abiding gun owners to seal their mag wells due to people who illegally obtain firearms it punishes the wrong people, making it harder for them to defend themselves while the criminals disregard rules. Something else that may come as shock is Lawmakers in Colorado are poised to pass a measure that would outlaw the use of detachable ammunition magazines. By doing so, it would make it illegal to buy, sell and manufacture a wide range of firearm models, including rifles, shotguns, pistols and some handguns.By trying to make most firearms illegal it almost completely makes the Second Amendment completely useless, such as many of these gun laws. The restrictions on firearms won’t affect crime rates, but law-abiding citizens trying to exercise their rights.
Gun laws have very minimal impact with stopping criminals. Not only do gun laws have minimal effects against criminals, but they also harm communities and paint the image that laws override your constitutional rights. Limitations on said firearms can also leave people with a lowered or even a complete halt in income. Let’s make a hypothetical scenario really quick. Imagine this, someone broke into your home, and you know the criminal has a firearm with let’s say, a detachable magazine. Does a small, hard to load, low-capacity magazine pistol help you feel as safe as a more useful gun would? Gun laws are harmful to communities and don’t stop much, so do they work if most criminals don’t obtain firearms legally?
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