Gun Control

Gun Control, a hot topic around the entire country. Before getting into the subject I would like to say that I have never owned a gun but I have fired a plethora of firearms and enjoyed them immensely. Why? Simply, because they're fun. I certainly understand that guns do not kill people, people kill people. However, if you examine how gun control is handled around the world a pattern is certainly discernible.

What I see as the major difference in the countries around the world with low gun related mortality rates and high gun mortality rates is how society treats the issue. In countries where guns are treated as dangerous weapons used to end the life of our fellow human beings, the gun laws are strict and  most citizens do not feel a need to own a firearm even for self defense. In other countries guns are viewed as a way of life and a right that all citizens are entitled to, the gun laws are lax or non-existent and the gun related mortality rates are out of control.

I do not advocate taking guns from our citizens, but I have to question the wisdom behind a law that states a gun is a right that all citizens should be entitled to own them. In the United States we have a problem with gun violence, however we are not nearly the worst in the world. We have many laws currently governing gun control but not the means to enforce or even monitor the support of these laws. I am constantly hearing arguments on the subject from both sides. One side spouting we need more control the other yelling we have too much and they would rather die than let the government take their guns away. I do not understand either side. I see a country split by ignorance and out of control emotion. What we need in this country is education and proper utilization of policy. I know many people who fit into both sides of the argument and of those people some are more than responsible enough to own and maintain firearms, but a disturbing number on both sides are most assuredly ill-equipped to be responsible with such a great power.

3D Printed Gun

 To be honest I am very surprised that guns are legal in the United States as it seems to be the default stance of our politicians to restrict dangerous things from our citizens in lieu of education and restrictive laws of obtaining said dangerous items. One of my biggest pet peeves about this issue is that many Americans believe everyone is entitled to own a gun but a license to drive is a privilege. One is a tool used primarily to kill and the other is something that has become a necessity in today's modern world yet the perception on the rights are reversed. I would much rather we started putting proper funding into the ATF and start to properly monitor gun control in our country than to take to the extreme like Greece where every person must undergo mandatory psychiatric screenings. However if the alternative is to remain where we are and ignore the fact that some people simply can not handle the responsibility of owning a gun I would welcome the strict laws of countries like Greece with open arms, especially in contrast to countries like the Philippines and Colombia where people can make guns in their back yards and political disagreements are settled by killing your opponents.

~Hugh