Gun Control In The United States

In the United States, gun control is a varying facet which may vary state by state, and firearms are generally put into several groups, which are handguns, shotguns, and rifles. There are also semi-automatic firearms as well. In a 2008 survey of several different countries, the United States has an 88% of firearm ownership, having 88 people out of 100 owning guns. Likewise, the United States as also the dominant nation in the survey which had the most gun related homicides per every 100,000, with more than six times the amount in Canada and forty-five the amount in the United Kingdom. Many would consider this due to the issue of gun control in America.

The laws, on a federal scale, make the minimum standards for the regulation of firearms, and like previously mentioned, many states have a varying set of laws regarding gun control on their own scale. Some states are laxer about gun control, like Alaska or Kansas. States like Maryland, however, have stricter laws, where there have been constitutional provisions which do not grant the people the unquestioned right to own guns. In Maryland, firearms are regulated and citizens may actually only own guns which were made after the year 1985 and are also on the list of approved guns on their state roster. Maryland, like other states, have passed laws which prohibit certain firearms or detachable objects like magazines for firearms.

In many states, there are laws which pertain to a person’s right to have a concealed weapon on their person. A person must have a concealed weapons permit, and for many states, citizens only may be registered to do so. In states like Alaska, Alabama, Ohio, Vermont and Arkansas, only citizens are able to apply for concealed carry permits. Some states, however will issue to both residents and nonresidents, like Nevada, Texas, Utah, Georgia and Florida. Some states will only consider doing so, and do not have an obligation to grant the person the permit. These states may include New York, California and Delaware.

Gun control in the United States is discussed on two different levels; federally and state-wide. For the United States, the federal government may decide certain aspects to gun control and gun laws, and the rest of the decisions and calls are made to be in control of the states. Some states have more severe and strict laws considering gun ownership and use, while others have lax and very basic laws, some even left up to federal decision and little more. Like many nations in the world, gun control and gun laws remain a complex and extremely important and often discussed concept in society.