2nd Amendment Research

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          "Firearms per 100 people (2007)" 

This image can be found on theatlantic.com. 
          The second amendment of the constitution states that "'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.'"( theatlantic.com) This amendment has caused quite a lot of controversy due to questions it raises such as what does "well-regulated Militia" really mean? What does "free State" mean? is this amendment still valid in the present day setting? In light of the large number of school shootings that have occurred lately the American people have been taking a good look at gun laws. " Federal law sets the minimum standards for firearm regulation in the United States, but individual states have their own laws, some of which provide further restrictions, others which are more lenient."     ( theatlantic.com)  So in certain states gun laws might be more strict or loose but none of them can prohibit guns outright due to federal law. Though there are some restrictions set in place that are standardized, " The Gun Control Act of 1968 prohibited the sale of firearms to several categories of individuals, including persons under 18 years of age, those with criminal records, the mentally disabled, unlawful aliens, dishonorably discharged military personnel, and others." ( theatlantic.com) This Act helped to determine who is allowed to purchase a firearm in America. Then, " In 1993, the law was amended by the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, which mandated background checks for all unlicensed persons purchasing a firearm from a federally licensed dealer." ( theatlantic.com) So again more restrictions on who can buy guns in America. But still, "As of 2016, there were no federal laws banning semiautomatic assault weapons, military-style .50 caliber rifles, handguns, or large-capacity ammunition magazines, which can increase the potential lethality of a given firearm. "  ( theatlantic.com) So there are lots of options for weapons that one can purchase in the United States but it's not like that in all countries. 


"Firearm Homicides per 100,000 People (2013)"

This image can be found on theatlantic.com. 



       For example, Gun laws have become more strict in Canada due to a shooting that occurred in December 1989 when " a disgruntled student walked into a Montreal engineering school with a semiautomatic rifle and killed 14 students and injured over a dozen others." ( theatlantic.com) This caused the government to create more gun regulations now in Canada, " Federal regulations require all gun owners, who must be at least 18 years of age, to obtain a license that includes a background check and a public safety course." ( theatlantic.com) This, in my opinion, seems like a pretty good policy and a good way to make sure everyone who is purchasing a gun knows a lot about it.  Canada has also different categories of guns:" nonrestricted (e.g., ordinary rifles and shotguns), restricted (e.g., handguns, semiautomatic rifles/shotguns, and sawed-offs), and prohibited (e.g., automatics)."( theatlantic.com) This limits the number of guns in circulation and kinds of guns that people can purchase. I think America can learn from other countries because we can always learn something new and improve to be the best and safest that we can be. 

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