| |
| |
|
Politics Information |
|
|
|
The Gun Control Debate
The gun control debate in America is a battle between personal freedom and public safety. For nearly 160 years, there were no limits to the Second Amendment, which guarantees "the right of the people to keep and bear arms." In 1934, however, and especially in the last four decades, Americans have begun to proscribe and debate the extent of that right. The National Firearms Act of 1934 was the first restriction on gun rights in American history. As a result, fully automatic weapons are available only after an extensive background check on the owner. In 1968, the term "gun control" gained new meaning with the passage of the federal Gun Control Act. Ratified in the wake of two important political assassinations -- Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr. -- the Act requires that all guns carry serial numbers forever tied to the original purchaser. Additionally, it prohibited gun ownership by convicted felons and, as a result of a 1990s amendment, it requires a criminal background check for purchasers at the time of sale. Certain states have their own gun control legislation, although all are governed by the federal Act of 1968. Individual states can deem their own levels of restriction on concealed weapons and "open carry," or the visible transporting of a weapon. And restrictions vary widely by state, with New York and Illinois seen as the most restrictive and Arizona and Texas, the most relaxed. The latest incarnation of the gun control debate has been in the form of the Assault Weapons Ban of 1994, which Congress failed to uphold in its latest session. The law prohibited the sale of any semi-automatic assault weapons manufactured after 1994. Supporters of the ban said it helped keep violent weapons off the street, while opponents claimed it imposed a confusing classification system, was overly restrictive and had little effect on controlling violent crime. Gun rights advocates argue that a well-armed public helps prevent crime and ensure personal safety. Gun control proponents, on the other hand, fear that widespread gun ownership actually increases crime rates and leads to other negative outcomes, both public and private. Is the Second Amendment out-of-date, or does it guarantee an integral right? Opine Tree encourages debate on today's most controversial political topics, including abortion, affirmative action, cloning, the death penalty, euthanasia, gay marriage, gun control, health care, social security, stem cells, as well as other debate topics.
MORE RESOURCES:
politics - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
China has the Answer to Environmental Dead Zones Recently scientists have been watching the exponential growth of marine life dead zones off the coasts of human civilizations. In China there are dead zones now, which are over 250 kilometers in radius off the coasts of Shanghai and Beijing. How to Become a Whistle Blower Since the United States Government is promoting the whistle blower concept it is every citizens duty to report fraud and abuse of power in any branch of government. We must have an equal and level playing field. Water Conservation, Retention and Better Policies As the populations expand in Colorado outside of Denver, Las Vegas, North County San Diego, Atlanta, Phoenix, Tucson, San Bernardino, Riverside, Albuquerque, etc; The West will need to look to transferring the load of cities like Los Angeles, Phoenix, San Diego, and San Bernardino to getting water from the ocean through Desalination Plants. At one point during the last drought states had to make a choice between fighting fires or saving the water for drinking. On The Privatization of Social Security Reform Social Security has been talked of Capital Hill for many years. However, it is just put in a real action by President Bush recently. A Look Ahead to 2008 (Part II) Last week, I began my look ahead to the 2008 presidential campaign with the potential Republican candidates. Today, I will continue by taking a look at the potential Democratic candidates. Is Reinstating The Draft Such a Bad Idea? In his bid for the presidency, John Kerry pronounced a "secret plan" to reinstate selective service. The fact that New York Democrat and fellow leftist Charles Rangel had proposed this plan wasn't mentioned, so Kerry's allegation created hysteria within the blue states. The Bush There Or Here Fallacy and the War in Iraq Today we wish to examine a fallacy, or error in reasoning, which we have found springing up now and again in today's popular discourse about the so-called War On Terror. This one comes straight from the top -- well, not the VERY top -- but from Washington D. The Pilgrims and Beacon Hill Mob In 1966, Dr. Carroll Quigley, a professor of history at the Foreign Service School of Georgetown University and an employee of the Tri-Lateral Commission who informed or blew the whistle on them; published a 1311 page book called Tragedy and Hope: A History of the World in Our Time. Ethanol, Water, Pollution, North Korea and Free Trade Ethanol is a great way to produce fuel, great fuel to trade and It makes sense to grow your fuel. Only a few problems; it takes water, processing makes CO2 and how much can we get for it when we export it?Ethanol Plants are popping up across America and turn corn into fuel, but corn takes water to grow and states like Nebraska, North and South Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri are in drought. George Bush--A New World Order When this president's father was in the Oval Office, he was fond of singing the praises of the "New World Order" that was to arrive. The phrase carried a lot of baggage, especially with conservatives who had long heard the term associated with a one-world government with little room for individual rights. Internet in Russia and Ukraine - Part 1. General Information and Statistics User BaseThe non-US and non-English Web segments have been boosted by a growing trend towards PC penetration and cheaper Internet access in the last couple of years. The US share of the global population online, once above ninety percent, is now under a quarter, while the number of Internet users who do not speak English at all continues to grow. Pierre Dupont de Nemours After arranging the Armistice that ended or settled outstanding issues after the Revolutionary War Pierre Dupont de Nemours came to join the Royals including the Hapsburgs who were living near Jefferson and other esoteric Merovingians in and around Delaware. He and his family became important armaments manufacturers and it is reasonable to remember what Eisenhower said in his Military-Industrial Complex speech. How to Deal with Poverty A SOLUTION FOR EMPLOYMENT PROBLEMS TO AID IN THE FIGHT AGAINST POVERTYI know that with globalization the future looks brighter and brighter for many people: But will many people also be left behind in this expanding economy? I know that with technology expanding as it is, many of the jobs that required more human effort are disappearing while other types of jobs that involve more technical expertise are being created. Now do the jobs created by this expanding technology compensate for the loss of jobs in the non-tech sector, considering also the expanding population around the world? Two problems arise. Bio Attack Nation Unready We are told by out leadership that we risk loss of American life from a Bio-Attack. This is quite a scary notion. Iranian Elections - Roadmap To Continued Apathy The recent first round of the Iranian elections somewhat resembled the rise to power of the promising Mohammed Khatami first time round in 1999. But despite the break from apathy seen over recent elections, the liveliness does not bode anywhere near the same promise that Khatami managed to swirl up six years ago. Media and the Iraq War, Some Random Thoughts Indeed 2001 Here are some miscellaneous thoughts on issues many of which are opinion and should be looked at as such, some are not even my opinion but opinions of people I have talked with and wished to pass on. The first item I wish to discuss is the World News reporting which is anti-American. Telemarketing and Job Losses Telemarketing and DO NOT CALL lists sure made headlines, but I bet there is something you did not realize. The good news about such industries is they bring in good telecommunication infrastructures, lower costs for consumers telephone bills, and are pollution free. Mother Russia and Poland When Boris Yeltsin spoke about an experiment that 'they' wrought upon his Russian 'brethren' on June 1st, 1991; did anyone ask who THEY were? Here is what he said:"Our country has not been lucky. Indeed, it was decided to carry out this Marxist experiment on us -? Instead of some country in Africa, they began this experiment with us. Council of Six The head of the Club of Rome has said that the major issue that prevents World Peace is the matter of terminology or differences in what people mean across different cultures. I have no illusions about having devised a fool proof proposal here - but it would be nice if the dialogue existed and not until it does exist will there be much hope for real change. The Criminality of Transition Lecture given at the Netherlands Economic Institute (NEI) on 18/4/2001Human vice is the most certain thing after death and taxes, to paraphrase Benjamin Franklin. The only variety of economic activity, which will surely survive even a nuclear holocaust, is bound to be crime.
|
| Article List | Index | Site Map |
|
All logos, trademarks and articles on this site are property and copyright of their respective owner(s).
The comments are property of their posters, all the rest is Copyright © 2006 CanadaSEEK.com - All Rights Reserved. |
