Argumentative Essay: Gun Control In America

Words: 1514
Pages: 7

San Bernardino. Colorado Springs. Aurora. Columbine. Virginia Tech. Tucson. The list goes on. For a period of time, gun control will remain at the back of everybody’s mind, hardly thought about. Then when another mass shooting occurs, it will become a hot topic once again, covered on almost every news station in the country. Given a few days, weeks, months, the hype will eventually die down once more. But every time there is another fatal shooting, the debate over gun control gets dragged back into the spotlight. How many shootings will it take for the government to make an actual change? How many more people must die? It is a perpetual cycle that plagues the American nation. People must consider that if guns truly kept us safe, then the …show more content…
We’re still at the stage of rebellious teenager, and we don’t like it when the government tells us what to do. People don’t trust the government to do what’s right. They are very attracted to the idea of a nation of individuals, so they don’t think about what’s good for the collective. (qtd. in Goldberg 1)
Mauser states that because Europe is older than the United States, the federal government has an easier time regulating the everyday citizen’s access to guns, and stricter gun control is the norm. Instead, the norm in America is having lockdown drills to prepare for a possible school shooter. School shootings are so widespread now, that schools need to take precautions in the case of an event. Lockdown drills are seen throughout campuses in America. At Wichita State University, they advise their students, “If the person(s) is causing death or serious physical injury to others and you are unable to run or hide you may choose to be compliant, play dead, or fight for your life.” The University of Colorado at Boulder asserted, “You and classmates or friends may find yourselves in a situation where the shooter will accost you. If such an event occurs, quickly develop a plan to attack the shooter… Consider a plan to tackle the shooter, take away his weapon, and hold him until police arrive.” (qtd. in Goldberg 5). Schools should be places for learning, not for fear and intimidation. The fact that schools need to advise their students on what to do in the case of a shooting is demonstrative of our problem with guns in