Assault Weapons Ban

There has been much debate over a blanket ban of assault weapons.  An assault weapon is nothing more than a military-style rifle, which can be semi-automatic or fully automatic. The semi-automatic rifles are the weapons up for debate, as many states already have restrictions regarding automatic weapons. These semi-automatic assault weapons are not much different than hunting rifles or pistols, in that a single round is fired for every pull of the trigger. The right to own these firearms was given to American citizens in the Second Amendment, and they should not be banned.

The core of the ban-supporters’ way of thinking comes from the belief that the firearm is to blame in the shootings that took place in Sandy Hook and Aurora, which could not be farther from the truth. In order to commit these horrific mass murders, the shooters would have to be insane, or evil.  These evil people are to blame in these tragedies, not the weapon they choose to use. How can we be sure that these criminals would not have acted on their perverted plans with a knife or any other kind of weapon? A firearm is nothing more than a tool, used more times for protection or sport than shooting sprees.

The Second Amendment grants American citizens the right to bear arms. Our forefathers did not include this right for hunting or sport, but for the possibility of our government crumbling and becoming tyrannical. There are many past examples of governments turning on their own people, leaving the population to protect themselves and their families. Germany, Italy, and Spain have all been through these times of transition, and the United States has just as much of a chance to go down that same road. These “military-style” rifles provide ordinary citizens with the means to defend themselves from a mercenary police force, rogue military branches, or any other form of degradation.

The assault weapon ban has supporters that believe the removal of these firearms from the public will cause the gun crime rates and death tolls to diminish. On the contrary, these aren’t the guns with the highest death tolls. Handguns are the most used firearms in gun crimes. These handguns also happen to be semi-automatic. This evokes the rational thought that banning handguns would severely decrease the amount of gun crimes, which we all know would be an impossible, irrational objective.