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Werner von Siemens Gymnasium München

11 Punkte, 2015

Rainer P. ©
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English W- Seminar

Research log (11/1)

1/11/2015


In my seminar paper I will be talking about the National Rifle Association's influence on American politics and culture. Over the past few years many shootings have occured all over the Unites States of America and therefore many discussions and controversy have risen up.

Despite of people being victims of mass shootings over and over again, gun advocates still exist with one of the biggest gun rights organizaion being the NRA. Whenever shootings happen the NRA is always there to whitewash guns. Even if there is just a small outcry for gun control, the NRA immediately stands on the opposing side, arguing that gun control legislation violates the 2nd Amendment, which specifically forbids the infringement by the federal government of the people's right to '' keep and bear arms''.

But why are there people who oppose gun control even after many human lives have perished because of gun violence? What are the ethics of gun ownership?


In order to answer these questions, a further look into American history and society is needed, because there are many points of view to approach this issue. Now i will talk about some main ideas that I have in mind. At first i would like to give general information about the NRA and their influence on American culture.

Then i will talk about the ethics of gun ownership followed by the different interpretations of the 2nd Amendment.


The NRA is a nonprofit organization which was founded 1871. Its primary mission is ''to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.'', especially the 2nd Amendment. It has informed its members about firearm related bills since 1934 and it has directly lobbied for and against legislation since 1975. The NRA was originally created to advance marksmanship and still teaches firearm competency and safety. Just as the NRA’s focus has shifted over time from its start as an organization focused on training and marksmanship to one that is a major opponent in the battle over gun control, the reason why Americans own guns also have changed.


Protection is the main line when it comes to owning a gun. Regardless of the best efforts of law enforcements, violence will still exist and neither enforcement nor prevention can be effective all the time. So should law-abiding people own guns to protect themselves? This is basically the argument behind the NRA's reaction to the Sandy-Hook shooting.

They argue that many lives could have been saved if there had been armed law-abiding people who would have taken down the shooter. It might never have happened if the shooter had known he would confront armed people. The solution to fight guns with guns might sound insane, but there is truth to this idea, because most of the time criminals pick targets that are weaker than them.

Arming law-abiding citizens means they are no weaker targets anymore. Then again taking away all of the citizens' guns would lead to the same result. But Americans just can not give up their beloved guns. And that leads us back to the gun control debate.


At the center of the gun control debate is the interpretation of the 2nd Amendment. Gun rights advocates claim that gun ownership is an individual right guaranteed by the 2nd Amendment and that guns are vital for self-protection. On the other side gun control advocates believe guns should be banned or restricted because many innocent lives are lost due to their irresponsible use.


Another reason why there are gun rights advocates is because '' The right to bear arms has long been an American tradition. From the time colonists settled on North American soil, Americans have held weapons to protect themselves. Armed citizen-soldiers won America's freedom from English rule more than two centuries ago.

Partly because of this long-standing tradition, attempts to restrict a citizen's right to own a gun evoke strong emotions. The modern debate over gun control erupted over a series of high-profile assassinations in the 1960s and gained new urgency after gun-related violence rose in the 1980s and 1909.''[1]



1: Alters, Sandra M. "The History of the Right to Bear Arms." Gun Control, Restricting Rights or Protecting People. Detroit: Thomson Gale, 2007. 148.Print.


Sources:

-Kim, Henny H. Guns and Violence. Greenhaven, 1999. 224. Print.

-Kruschke, Earl R. Gun Control. ABC-CLIO, 1995. 408. Print.


-Wogan, J. B. ''Beyond gun control precluded from banning the ownership of firearms, cities are finding new ways to go after gun violence.'' Governing Sept. 2014: 32+. Academic OneFile. Web. 9 Jan. 2015

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