Topic #1: Do we need to update the second amendment for a modern society?
Yes, we need to update it.
Side Score: 19
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No, it should not be updated.
Side Score: 12
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More gun control would reduce gun deaths: 13,286 people were killed in the US by firearms in 2015, according to the Gun Violence Archive, and 26,819 people were injured [those figures exclude suicide]. Japan is a country of more than 127 million people, but it rarely sees more than 10 gun deaths a year. Culture is one reason for the low rate, but gun control is a major one, too. Japan has a long list of tests that applicants must pass before gaining access to a small pool of guns. Side: Yes, we need to update it.
Also, the murder rate in the US alone is 15 times higher than other first world countries, which includes Western Europe, North America, Australia, and Japan. The murders of the murder rates are mostly committed with guns. Source: https://www.americamagazine.org/ Side: Yes, we need to update it.
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Check this link to see a graph of the gun deaths in America versus the gun deaths in less violent countries. Side: Yes, we need to update it.
The guns available now were not available back then ( 1791.) Our guns have changed, shouldn’t our gun laws? Firearms were a huge part of everyday life – from hunting down dinner to forming one of the many citizen soldier militia groups that kept the peace in the newly formed country. In 1790s America, we were still just starting out – the population of the whole country was only 3.9 million, which is closer to the population of Los Angeles alone than it is to the entire nation nowadays. To top if off, there was still a very clear and present threat of danger after the Revolutionary War had ended. The types of guns available at that time were very different from the AR-15s and other semi- and fully-automatic weapons we see on the news these days. In 1791, common guns included muskets and flintlock pistols. According to the Washington Post, a "Typical Revolutionary-era musket" had a one-round magazine capacity, and it could fire around three effective rounds per minute – in the hands of the most skilled wielder. It's maximum accuracy range had to be within 50 meters. Compare this to a "Typical modern-day AR-15," which has a magazine capacity of 30 rounds, has an effective fire of 45 rounds a minute, and an accuracy range of 550 meters. These are vastly different weapons. Side: Yes, we need to update it.
Studies show that the gun related murder laws have declined after they have made a stricter gun law. For example, Australia has changed its gun laws after a big terror attack, which then the gun related incidents have decreased by a lot. If this is applied to the second amendment, the high risks of firearms would decrease a whole lot as more than 30,000 people die from gun related deaths each year in the US alone. Source: https://www.americamagazine.org/ Side: Yes, we need to update it.
Although 30,000 people die from gun-related deaths each year in the US. There are more causes of death in the US than gun homicides. Approximately 2.5 million people die every year in the US. 48% from overuse of tobacco. 17% from a medical error, 10% from unintentional injuries, 9% from alcohol abuse. 3% from accidental poisoning, 2% form drug abuse, 1.5% from non-gun homicides, and last 1% from gun homicides. They should bun cigarettes instead of guns due to the higher death rate. Side: No, it should not be updated.
Even though it is true that there are more common causes of death than gun usage, it still does not change the fact that in 2013, there were 73,505 nonfatal firearm injuries (23.2 injuries per 100,000 U.S. citizens), and 33,636 deaths due to "injury by firearms" (10.6 deaths per 100,000 U.S. citizens). Side: Yes, we need to update it.
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Guns are not only used for self defence from a house invader. Criminals would also be able to buy guns from the black market or find another illegal way to get firearms. Guns are used by hikers for self defence from mountain lions. If guns were not allowed this death tolls would have a great increase as people would not be able to defend themselves from animals or intruders. Side: No, it should not be updated.
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If someone comes into your house with a knife, what would you use to defend yourself then, you do not have access to guns and you probably do not have experience of fighting someone who has a knife. the chances of you dying are much higher if you did not have a gun than if you did, as 55% of attackers retreat when a firearm is drawn. Side: No, it should not be updated.
Guns are rarely used in self-defense. Of the 29,618,300 violent crimes committed between 2007 and 2011, 0.79% of victims (235,700) protected themselves with a threat of use or use of a firearm, the least-employed protective behavior. In 2010 there were 230 "justifiable homicides" in which a private citizen used a firearm to kill a felon, compared to 8,275 criminal gun homicides (or, 36 criminal homicides for every "justifiable homicide"). Of the 84,495,500 property crimes committed between 2007 and 2011, 0.12% of victims (103,000) protected themselves with a threat of use or use of a firearm Side: Yes, we need to update it.
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However, studies have shown that people in the US rarely use guns as an actual self defense weapon, as only 0.12% of victims from gun related homicides who owns a gun actually used it as self defense as while the homicide is happening most people freak out and actually forget that they own a gun at their house. Source: https://gun-control.procon.org/ Side: Yes, we need to update it.
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guns are used for self-defense 2.5 million times a year. [57] The police cannot protect everyone all of the time. 61% of men and 56% of women surveyed by Pew Research said that stricter gun laws would "make it more difficult for people to protect their homes and families." [58] Nelson Lund, JD, PhD, Professor at George Mason University School of Law, stated, "The right to self-defense and to the means of defending oneself is a basic natural right that grows out of the right to life" and "many [gun control laws] interfere with the ability of law-abiding citizens to defend themselves against violent criminals." Side: No, it should not be updated.
Argument 2: Adding gun control laws won’t do anything because, according to "Gun Control" "it does not discourage crime gun ownership discourage crime." A study that was taken place on Nov. 26, 2013 found and reported that, in between 1980 and 2009, "assault weapons bans did not significantly affect murder rates at the state level" and also "states with restrictions on the carrying of concealed weapons had higher gun-related murders." This shows that states that did ban assault rifles had no difference in gun related crimes. Even though gun ownership in the twentieth century nearly doubled, the murder rate decreased. The author More Guns, Less Crime: Understanding Crime and Gun Control Laws,John R. Lott, Jr., PhD, wrote, "States with the largest increases in gun ownership also have the largest drops in violent crimes.” Also deaths from shootings plummeted on average by 90 percent and injuries by 82 percent. Side: No, it should not be updated.
However, people don't only use guns for massacres, but guns are being used as way to suicide as 60% of suicides are done with firearms. With gun control, the suicide rate can decline by a lot. For example, the European country, Austria, have started monitoring gun control and soon after the suicide rates have dropped as people have been using guns as a method to suicide, and by taking that away it resulted for less people to end it's life. Source: https://soapboxie.com/social-issues/ Side: Yes, we need to update it.
Even though firearms are very lethal, and are frequently used for suicide. There are other ways of suicide. You have an 82.5% chance of dying by attempting suicide with a firearm but drowning has a 65.9% rate of lethality, suffocation 61.4%, Poison gas 41.5%, jump 34.5%, drug injections 1.5%, Cut 1.2 % and other 8%. There are still high rates of lethality with other methods of suicide. Side: No, it should not be updated.
Out of every country in the world, the USA has the most guns. With a rate of 112.6 guns per 100 residents. This is because guns are legal. Japan puts citizens through a rigorous set of tests. Japan, which has strict laws for obtaining firearms, seldom has around 10 shooting deaths a year in a population of 127 million people. If Japanese people want to own a gun, they must attend an all-day class, pass a written test, and achieve at least 95curacy during a shooting-range test. Then they have to pass a mental-health evaluation at a hospital, as well as a background check, in which the government digs into any criminal records or ties and interviews friends and family members. Finally, they can buy only shotguns and air rifles — no handguns — and must retake the class and the initial exam every three years. Unlike in the US, Japanese law has long outlawed guns. Still, the wisdom from Japan seems to be that tighter regulations keep guns confined only to those fit to use them. Therefore, with stricter gun rules the number of gun deaths will decrease drastically. Side: Yes, we need to update it.
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