Mass Shootings in US - Free Essay Example

We are living in difficult times. The world today is characterized by so many crises that it has become a norm to experience crisis after crisis. Sadly, the United States has become the center of the crisis in the world, with so many crises since the beginning of the 21st century. Mass shootings in the United States have become the order of the day. These stories even no longer make headlines in the media; they are reported as other news. This is a very sad situation. This essay attempts to address the crisis of mass shootings in the United States and how the problem can be solved or prevented. The essay utilizes information from credible sources and citation has been done accordingly as per the instructed format of citation. To stop the mass shootings crisis, very keen measures should b taken, and that includes regulating gun laws. A crisis also referred to as a catastrophe can be defined as s period of intense danger or difficulty. There are many categories of crisis. Mass shootings, back in the United States at first were not considered to be a crisis. This was because they were perceived to be rare occurrences. For an occurrence to be referred to s a crisis, it must be rampant and occur for a considerable period of time. For example, gay marriages cannot be referred to as a crisis. This is because, for one, there is no potential danger that is associated with gay marriage. Secondly, gay marriages do not need to be stopped and thirdly, they are not so rampant. They are few scattered cases. As the definition dictates, a crisis is periodic, and there is much danger associated with it. Therefore, mass shootings are in every way a crisis. The shootings have been occurring for the year 2010. Of course, there were such cases in the past, but they could not have been defined as a crisis because they were rare. On the morning of 14th December 2012, Adam Lanza, a 20-year-old introvert, woke up, took a gun from his parents drawer, used it to kill his own mother and drove to sandy hook elementary school located in Newtown, Connecticut. The young man shot his way into the locked building, shooting or maiming everybody that blocked his way or appeared in the vicinity. In fifteen minutes or less, the introvert buy had massacred 20 boys and girls in the first grade and six staff members; including teachers. After he realized that he only had one bullet left, he shot himself in the head and died on the spot. The death toll on that single day in the school compound was 27. His father later released a statement saying that he was in a state of disbelief and together with the family, they were trying to find answers. The speculation was that the youth had been teased for quite a long time by his classmates and had decided that enough was enough. This, like many other instances, left the country in a s tate of shock and disbelief. The social media went mad for a few days, and then things were back to normal. The twenty-seven Americans had been buried and forgotten, but their family would live with the sores forever. We are living in an America where a teenager can shoot all his schoolmates over claims that they always tease him or her (Lee, 46). Surely, is this the American dream? The American society has a problem, and it is a problem that the people of the united states have brought upon themselves, in a bid to protect their rights (Schildkraut et al, 90).To solve a problem, it is best to address it from the grass root. The grass root of mass killings in America is the fact that over 40% of households in America own a gun. Mass shootings are done by use of these firearms. Interestingly, most of the people who perform these acts own licensed firearms (Weinberger et al, 69). Each year in the United States, guns are connected to over 500,000 crimes. These crimes resulted in 110, 00 or more injuries. The number of citizens who are injured dwarfs the number of those who are killed. Each day, the national electronic injury surveillance system provides an estimate of about 200 injuries which occur from gun violence. Twenty people out of these are fatal, and a considerable number results in deaths. This is simply an overview of what guns have done to the American society. The national conversation about gun violence often misses both pictures about gun violence in the United States (Lankford, 56). This Is because it fails to discuss mass shootings in details. Over the past few years, mass shootings can be defined the United States biggest crisis. More and more lives are being lost, giving more reason why the crisis should be dealt with instantly. A mass shooting is an American problem, and the solution is simply American. So far, the reasoning that has been applied in dealing with the crisis has been rather unAmerican. This great nation has dedicated its resources to global prominence more than in solving its own domestic issues. The source of the problem, as stated earlier is guns; therefore, the primary solution should be dealing with gun regulatory laws in the country. The American people view guns as security equipment from any form of danger. Naturally, the most obvious form of danger is human being himself. Truth is spoken, the United States is a country of crime. The crime levels in America have hit unthinkable levels over the past few decades. This fact bases the arguments of people who support civilian gun ownership. However, there is a different perspective. How about if no civilian owned a gun? The natural answer to this is that the American people would not need guns as they would not have much to protect themselves from. Therefore, regulating gun laws such that very few people own guns would be a perfect solution for dealing with mass shootings. Truth be spoken, guns are doing more harm than good in the United States society (Metzl, et al, 45). Therefore, banning guns would not only solve the problem of mass shootings but would also solve many more problems (Nedzel et al, 123). Most people who are arrested every day are arrested for gun-related crimes, mass shootings being one of them. Civilian ownership of guns has even complicated crime in America that even the police themselves have become victims of mass shootings. There have been reported cases whereby the police have also been shot by someone on a shooting spree as they try to stop him. Gun regulatory laws have been in the discussion for a very long time. With most of the American population vouching for guns in the argument that security starts with you. However, if you can get access to friends and families of victims of gun violence, then you would know the pain that comes with losing loved one from equipment that was supposed to protect that very person. Notably, individuals who perform these acts do not steal these guns, in fact, most of them have no past criminal records. This backs up the argument that these people perform these crimes for the one reason that guns are readily available. After the shooting spree, most of them shoot themselves and therefore, there is no one left to answer to these crimes against humanity. Those who do not kill themselves are arrested by the police and most end up with capital punishment anyway, and therefore at the end of the day, death is paid with death, blood for blood and an eye for an eye. This is simply not a solution to be applied especially in this era. Mass shootings are an occurrence which should be avoided, and avoiding it simply means regulating civilian ownership of Guns. In conclusion, it is apparent that we are living in a united state that was not the dream of our forefathers. Mass shootings have been so rampant that they are competing with terrorism in statistics of the numbers which have succumbed to their results. Therefore, mass shooting is a crisis which should be dealt with in the most effective way possible. Interestingly, this solution is very simple and does not require too much of the taxpayers money directed towards it. It pertains regulating civilian ownership of guns, by revising the gun ownership laws. Work cited Lankford, Adam. Mass shooters in the USA, 1966–2010: Differences between attackers who live and die.? Justice Quarterly? 32.2 (2015): 360-379. Lee, Barbara A. Dealing with students with psychiatric disorders on campus: Legal compliance and prevention strategies.? JC UL? 40 (2014): 425. Metzl, Jonathan M., and Kenneth T. MacLeish. Mental illness, mass shootings, and the politics of American firearms.? Journal Information? 105.2 (2015). Nedzel, Nadia E. Concealed carry: The only way to discourage mass school shootings.? Academic Questions? 27.4 (2014): 429-435. Schildkraut, Jaclyn, and Tiffany Cox Hernandez. Laws that bit the bullet: A review of legislative responses to school shootings.? American Journal of Criminal Justice? 39.2 (2014): 358-374. Weinberger, Steven E., et al. Firearm-related injury and death in the United States.? Annals of internal medicine? 163.4 (2015): 322-323.