Hello Everyone,

I have been on this platform for nearly a year on and off, (Having to take a break from the endless essays) and have discussed matters that I find interesting. Mostly, because I am genuinely curious on how the other side thinks, but partially because I find divisive topics such as abortion, free speech and immigration entertaining as it creates hot debates with strong opinions both sides.

Today I want to talk about a subject that is likely to join the ranks of division. Gun Control.

I would like to address the mindset of people joining into this. I find that people are so entrenched in their views already that they refuse to listen to the other side. They will say anything just to get a point in the debate rather then actually listening, you are not a loser for conceding to an argument, it is ok to change your mind. (I understand that I am most likely speaking to a brick wall, I thought I would start this off in the most positive way possible). It becomes laborious, pointless and boring when people refuse to see sense and the conversation devolves into repeating the same point in different ways.

Firstly, I will reveal that I am from England so my point of view is likely to be different due to the difference in our experiences / societal norms we are all used to in our own nations. Guns are HEAVILY restricted in the UK, and this is the main reason why England and wales have been consistent averaging 28 fatalities a year which is 0.04 / 100,000 people. USA on the other hand reportedly produces 13.7 deaths per 100,000 people.

I am not simplifying the argument by saying that the only reason of the frankly disgusting increase of deaths is due to the fact that my government heavily restricts guns while America doesn't, I understand that there are many attributing factors. People can point to culture, poverty, mental health, drugs, crime and communities as to why gun crime is so high. Although these are all important subjects in their own right, I think that these factors are only multiplied by the route cause, lack of gun control.

I will start off with a couple pro's I see for less gun control.

National Security:
I think an often overlooked pro to everyone owning guns is national security. If a country were to attempt to invade America it would be almost impossible due to such a heavily armed population. Every small village would stand as bastion against the invading force, obviously in this modern landscape nukes are a bigger threat to America then a ground invasion by armed soldiers but nevertheless, it also protects the civilian population from a tyrannical government / civilian uprisings if they were to occur. It is important to note that this is more theoretical then evidenced.

Individual Security
Fairly obvious, if everyone has a gun why shouldn't you? Granted I wouldn't say this is necessarily a pro, more of a necessity due to the lack of gun control. Either way, it would be hard to impalement gun laws because of this.

There will be more pros but these two are the most important in my eyes. Self defence, individual liberty and deterrence of tyranny.

I don't think there is any reason for me to list any of the cons I see with the lack of gun control in America as I would rather hear peoples stances and then challenge them. I will clearly outline my view:

In an ideal world, I believe that guns should not be accessible to a civilian population that doesn't need them, they should be accessible to military personnel, hunters and top level security. Anyone working a normal job that doesn't explicitly require to kill or protect should not need to access them. I will also point out that just because you are protecting, doesn't mean you need a gun i.e. nightclub bouncer, supermarket security, school teachers etc.

America is WAY too far gone to save. If you ban the purchase of firearms, there are already 400+ million in the country. If you vastly improve licensing standards, there are already 400+ million firearms in the country. If you implement new technology on the guns that will restrict use.... you get the point. Unfortunately, I believe that any measures that would be put in place now would be a drop in the ocean, have no real affect on the issue and only increase tensions and fatalities.

But this is not an excuse to not try. Due to the sheer size of the issue, we would need to look at how we want the world to look like for our grandkids and further generations and start implementing regulations that would gradually pull us up to a securer world. Here is some ideas as to how I may improve the issue: (PLEASE NOTE I AM OVERSIMPLIFYING.)

1) Roll out a more extensive licencing process. Extra focus on mental health, include tests that reveal ability for critical thinking and intelligence, focus on backgrounds (if there is historical records of extensive gun violence charges in their family they must be put even more under the microscope). Set a time limit such as 3-4 years to be completed. If failed or not completed, they should not be able posses a fire arm.

2)Weapons amnesty - allow anyone to turn in their firearms and be rewarded financially. I wouldn't expect many people to do so but it would definitely remove a fair amount of guns off the streets. This will also help the people who failed the new licensing process as they at least get money back for their gun.

3)Increase the penalty for owning a gun when you are not supposed to, to deter more people.

4) Roll out fingerprint technology on newly manufactured guns so that only the registered owner can shoot the weapon, this will also help with identifying perpetrators that commit gun crimes.

I am not saying this will get the number to 0 deaths, but it will definitely decrease overtime if these are implemented. It is a marathon not a sprint.

Whether you are majorly pro guns or majorly against guns, everyone should be able to agree that something needs to change and that it has got out of hand.

I haven't even mentioned the second amendment, I am sure it will be brought up, and I am interested in what people think about this. Do I have good intentions, or do I just like being told what to do by the government?