Where it started

Second Amendment: "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." means that the people of the US can own and lawfully use firearms. This amendment to the US Constitution also means that we can build a militia to fight against a tyrant government. If you break the amendment into two separate phrases it makes it easier to understand. "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State..." references the modern day National Guard but back when the constitution was written there was no National Guard so the "well regulated militia" was then just a band of farmers that worked together to fight tyranny. "...the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." states that people of the US have the right to lawfully use and own firearms. It also states the people's rights can not be taken away by the government.

Current Gun Laws

1934: National Firearms Act of 1934 regulated the manufacture, sales, and possession of full-automatic weapons that were being used by organized crime.

1968: Gun Control Act of 1968 enacted to keep guns away from people with criminal backgrounds, anyone who is too young to possess a firearm, or anyone who is mentally ill.

1994: Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act sets up a five day waiting period on the purchase of a handgun and local law enforcement agencies are to perform a background check on that person. There is a loophole that allows the sale to go through after five days if the background check is not performed.

Before 2008, background checks did not screen for mental illness.

Up until 2015, background checks were not required for guns sold at gun shows or on the internet.

firearms and the economy

• The firearm industry employs over 260,000 people with full-time jobs.
• The firearm industry makes up a huge part of U.S. yearly income, and is still growing, in the past 3 years it has grown from 27.8 billion to 31.8 billion dollars.
• Gun control laws give too much power to the government and may result in government tyranny and the government taking away all guns from citizens. 57% of people surveyed by Pew Research in Feb. 2013 said that gun control laws would "give too much power to the government over the people."

violence and firearms

The addition of gun control will lead to more violence.

• Britain banned handguns in 1997; their homicide rate increased by 50% over the next 8 years
• Australia implemented a gun "buy back" and purchased and destroyed over 1 million guns, however in 2010 the number of privately owned guns had grown back to the 1996 level
• A couple years after the "buy back" program in Australia unarmed and armed robbery rates nearly doubled and the non firearm suicide rate increased
• from 1960 - 2010 every mass shooting took place in a "Gun Free Zone"

self-defense

• Police response takes an average of 8-11 minutes, in some cases it can take longer
• Only 12% of home burglars have guns
• 200,000 women per year defend themselves with guns
• A gun is the most threatening deterrant, and the most effective