Essay, Research Paper
Blood Turns the Wheels of our Lives
Guns have played an important role in the shaping of America, from the
revolution in 1776 to the rampant crime of modern day. They have been used to fight two
world wars and stop tyranny all across the earth. The ownership and usage of guns in
America is beneficial because it advocates self defense, supports the battle against
tyranny, and encourages psychological evolution in society.
Crime in America does not fluctuate in accordance to guns and conceptual self
defense needs to be more prolific and recognized. Crime has always taken place and will
always take place, and criminals will always have guns; this reality allows people no
choice except to understand and accept the role of guns. The most significant gun control
laws of the twentieth century have had little affect on crime and death rates. The National
Firearms Act of 1939 and the Gun Control Act of 1968 had absolutely no apparent affect
on the constantly fluctuating death rates (GunTruths.com). In fact the murder rate rose
significantly twelve years following the Gun Control Act of 1968 (GunTruths.com).
Since 1900 the number of firearms in the country has constantly risen. However, the
number of violent crimes caused by firearms has been in flux, without any regard to gun
ownership. At the end of the twentieth century the greatest number of firearms are
owned, yet the murder rate is at a thirty year low (GunTruths.com). In a study by the
University of Chicago regarding the deterrence of crime because of handguns, it was
shown that murder was reduced by 8.5 percent, rapes by 5 percent and aggravated assaults
by 7 percent (GunTruths.com). Guns are an imperative part of survival and protection,
without them we will be subject to fear and submission deriving from crime and the
threat of violence.
Tyranny has been a threat in America from it’s beginning years as a new nation to
it’s substantiated position as a world power. When Great Britain ruled over what is now
the United States, oppression and taxation without representation were common parts of
people’s lives. The allowance of guns within colonial society enabled civilians to fight
against Britain and to free themselves from civil exploitation. They decided that their
future was not one of tyranny and oppression, but one of freedom and liberty. Firearms
were the most used weapon in the American revolution and without the use of firearms
the country in which we reside would not exist today (Zinn, p.76). Throughout the last
two centuries guns have been used to protect freedom and people’s way of life. When the
south succeeded from the union it was guns which were used to fight for their way of life.
When blacks were oppressed in the mid twentieth century they turned to carrying guns for
protection. The Black Panthers carried firearms for their own protection in the mid
twentieth century. Today all around the world the American government battles against
undemocratic and tyrannical forces using firearms. The use of guns against oppression is
a very important concept for Americans to understand for it could be highly necessary
someday. Americans could be faced with a decision to take up arms someday and die on
their feet rather than live on their knees.
Fatal gun accidents take place all around our nation. People have become
sympathetic and weak to this situation, especially in regards to the deaths of young
children. There were one-thousand-five hundred accidental deaths due to firearms in
1997 (FBI.gov). Only two-hundred and twenty of those deaths were children, which is
only about fifteen percent of the total amount (FBI.gov). In many cases these accidents
occur because an individual has acted irresponsibly with a firearm, in conclusion taking
their own life. In other cases someone will act irresponsibly and take someone else’s life.
In the first situation the person deserves to die for acting with a lack of intelligence.
Society is better off without these potentially dangerous people. Their station in life
could be one leading to the death or injuries of individuals around them. In the second
situation the person’s life is given in order to teach the assailant and society the dangers of
intellectually inferior people. These people who accidentally shoot another person should
be regarded as inept and exemplified as a failure in society. The death of their victim is a
martyr’s death, one that is looked upon as something that benefited society. The accidents
that could potentially take place due to firearms are tragedies that further the
psychological advancement of society.
Firearms have affected America in many positive ways in regards to the fighting
of oppressive forces, defending one’s self and evolving society psychologically. Guns
will always be an element in our lives; if they are outlawed, then the only people who will
have guns will be the criminals. Firearms have been an optimal tool in America, they
ensure our freedom and they will play a large role in any major conflict in years to come.
Guns allow us to rid ourselves of potentially negative parts of our society, such as
irresponsible individuals. Everyone can benefit from the allowance of guns in our
society, for if we don’t protect ourselves and create our own freedom, who’s going to do it
for us?