Tim Moorstein Sociology 393 Fall 2001 Guns: Safety or Right "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" (Bill of Rights, Article II). This seemingly simple phrase is probably the source of more debate and argument than any other single sentence in American history. The argument is not black or white, pro or con. Rather, it encompasses many …showed first 75 words of 957 total…

…showed last 75 words of 957 total…the person who possesses the firearm that is dangerous (The Facts of Gun Violence_1). Gun controls do not control the criminal, they only keep the law abiding citizen from protecting themselves. In a recent study, the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence reported that the states with restrictive gun laws have some of the highest violent crime rates in the nation. Conversely, the states with "right to carry" laws have a 21% lower violent crime rate (Cloud 1).