The issue of gun control has always been a hot topic in America. With the recent shooting in Tuscan, however, discussion of the issue has been revitalized and gun control has once again become fodder for political pundits of all sorts.

Unfortunately, it seems that rational behavior and compromise have been left at the door for most of these discussions. A mass shooting of this sort is always an emotional subject for everyone that often brings the most extreme viewpoints to the surface of those discussing gun control.

While some may argue that the sale and possession of firearms must be illegalized completely and others hold staunchly to their belief that it is a Constitutional right for any American to own a gun, there are a few things that most people in this country can agree on.

The fact of the matter is that 97,820 people were shot and 9,484 were killed by guns last year in America. Meanwhile, only 200 people were killed by guns in Canada, 194 in Germany, and 39 in England and Wales. The U.S. firearm homicide rate is greater than Canada, Germany, and England/Wales by rates of 5, 13, and 44 respectively. This is a huge disparity that needs to be addressed with legislation.

The first is that there is absolutely no reason for this country to allow automatic or semi-automatic weapons. These assault weapons are too dangerous for civilian possession and are a threat to our society. The Federal Assault Weapons Ban signed into law by Bill Clinton prohibited the manufacturing of semi-automatic weapons for civilian use, but expired in 2004. All attempts to renew the ban have been blocked from reaching the House floor. This needs to change.

We also need to ban or more strictly regulate the manufacturing and distribution of handguns for civilian self-defense. The fact of the matter is that these guns are used to kill people. According to the FBI, 75% of homicides committed using firearms involved handguns. While long guns, which are typically used for hunting, need to be regulated, as well, special attention must be paid to handguns.

If we have fewer guns in this country, then there will be fewer murders and suicides. According to the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, keeping a firearm in the home increases the risk of suicide by a factor of 3 to 5 and the risk of homicide by a factor of 3. On average guns are more likely to raise the risk of injury than to protect and are used to intimidate or threaten more often than they are used to prevent a crime.
However, the guns that people in this country do own need to be strictly regulated.

There needs to be a national gun registry such that authorities can easily trace who owns which firearm and where/whom they purchased it from. Before being able to purchase a gun, a person should pass not only a background check, but also provide references and prove their mental stability. Jared Lauchner, the accused party in the Tucson shooting, would most likely not have been able to purchase a gun in a state like New York, where it can take almost a year to get a handgun and references are a required part of the handgun licensing process.

No one should be able to walk in and out of a store to purchase his or her first gun in one visit. Guns need to be less accessible and it needs to be much more difficult for dangerous people to buy guns if we, as a country, are to prevent spontaneous acts of violence.

Finally, once people own guns, they should not be able to carry concealed weapons. Allowing a potentially untrained, impulsive, or emotionally unstable person to carry a concealed weapon places the public in danger of a spontaneous outburst that could leave people killed. No federal law exists that prohibits carrying concealed weapons off federal property, and legislation needs to be passed to make this a national policy. At the very minimum, people should have to apply for special concealed weapons permits.

Gun control is a national security issue that needs to be addressed if we, as Americans, are to feel safe in our own country and feel secure that illegal weapons sales are not occurring across the border. We need to remember that guns can be used to kill people, so they shouldn’t be available to anybody who wants one that very second.