Guns Are Needed For Civilian Use
By: Daniel Sheehan
Although guns can be used to cause violence, civilians need them to protect themselves, their families, and their property.
In 1997 when the United Kingdom banned handguns from the public, the murder rates rose. This is because no matter what there are going to be criminals who will kill innocent people, and taking guns out of the civilians hands made it easier for the criminals to do so.
As NRA (National Rifle Association) CEO Wayne LaPierre stated, “The only thing that stops a bad person with a gun is a good person with a gun”. Taking guns out of the hands of civilians would cause more problems than good because criminals would know that it would be very hard for people to protect themselves.
Although there are other ways for civilians to protect themselves, none are as effective as owning and carrying a gun. According to the Women’s Self Defense Institute, the average police response time to a 9-1-1 call is 10 minutes. That is a long time if somebody is robbing your house or committing a violent crime against you or somebody you love.
Our founding fathers made the 2nd Amendment for a reason. The 2nd Amendment reads, “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.”
Our founding fathers knew that owning guns was necessary to keep order and peace in a free nation. They lived in a time when the government was ruled by a king or queen who wanted power over the people, and they believed that everyone had a right to be able to protect themselves, their families, and their property.
MAIG (Mayors Against Illegal Guns) would argue that fewer people having weapons would lead to less violence. A study from the Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy found that countries with more guns have lower murder rates. Also, all of the mass shootings in the United States since 1950 except one have been in states where citizens are banned from carrying guns.
Guns in the United States are used 80 times more frequently to prevent a crime than they are to kill a person. In 2011, there were 323 people killed by rifles, which includes “assault rifles”, in the United States. There were 496 people killed by hammers/club like objects, 1,694 people killed by knives/cutting instruments, and nearly 10,000 people killed by drunk driving.
Why would we ban “assault rifles” before banning hammers, knives, and alcohol? All of these are items which many people use responsibly but some people use irresponsibly leading to the deaths of innocent people.
Although when guns get in the hands of criminals they can cause tragedies, they are needed by civilians to protect themselves and to keep peace in a free nation.
Your essay is well written and supported with evidence. Keep up the good work.
-Carl Dumlao 6th
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Good essay. You used a lot of facts (logos), which is very exceptional. You also appealed to the readers emotions and used counter-arguments. To strengthen your essay, you could combine some of your paragraphs together. You should also end your argument with a well-rounded conclusion stating your point. In the conclusion, include a call-to-action. This is strengthen your argumentative essay.
– Khoamartin 5th
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This essay was overall satisfactory. You have good examples and you balanced your appeals which ultimately helped the audience be persuaded. On one note, combine your paragraphs, a lot of you information is talking about the same subject, so start a new paragraph when transiting to a new subject rather than another example that appeals to subject you are already stating.
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I absolutely adore this piece. I love you use of logos and pathos and even some ethos to bring your stance on the matter. I strongly agree with your viewpoint on gun control. MANY people do not realize how important it is to be able to defend yourself when no authority is around. I have personal stories that would not have happened if my dad didn’t have a gun on him 24/7. This piece appeals to me personally and as a concerned citizen of the untied states of America.
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Really good essay, you showed evidence ans more than enough samples from research.
I strongly agree that ‘we the people’ have and should have the power to hold are ground with our own security. You showed evidence from both sides and because of this, it made it a good essay.
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Your essay is well organized and concise. You did a good job providing both your opinion and statistics to dominate the counter argument. Citing where you get your information from is important, which you started to slack on in the statistical (8th) paragraph stating the various casualties. This essay was well written which ultimately persuaded me as a reader.
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– Monica Banda 7th ^^
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Your essay and topic were marvelous! Your essay incorporated numerous facts that not only strengthened your paper, but depicted your knowledge on the topic. While explaining you never had any unnecessary commentary. The audience obviously had no doubt about your logic. The facts placed in your essay were superb and my only gripe is, where is your emotional appeal? Stir the audience with emotion and seal the deal! Great essay, and I read it multiple times too!
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Well written essay! Your argument definitely persuades the reader about how guns should be allowed for civilian use. As someone above mentioned, I think it would be better if you combined some of the paragraphs in order to make your ideas more cohesive. However, your writing was extremely easy to read and understand, which helps the reader fully comprehend your argument. I like your integration of statistics into your paper, as well explaining what each abbreviation meant. It would have been nice if you added the sources to your information with the post. You probably could have added emotional appeal by adding a self anecdote or an inspiring story about someone who was able to use a gun to protect him/herself and their family. Overall, great essay!
Aaron, 5th period
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This is a very well though out essay. It’s very good. I really like it and I’m not saying that because I 100% agree with your stance. Your use of evidence really brings out your side of the argument, making people reconsider what side they’re on (in my opinion). Also, your use of a counter argument is very good. It was a solid fact that people will use against your side but you countered it very well, stating more statistics to back up you side. Overall, this a a very good essay.
-Charles 3rd
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Good job! This is defiantly an interesting topic, and if it wern’t you made it one. I like how you kept straight to the point, no fluff, no emotion, just simply stated your evidence. Having too many words that are not facts can bore the reader sometimes. I recommend that you not repeat words such as “founding fathers.” Having synonyms can make an essay more interesting and appear like you have more information. Also, a good thing to keep in mind when writing is to replace small words with bigger word synonyms. Overall it had a great format and a great flow to it. I could not have set it up better my self.
Deven Martin, 7th Period
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Your thesis and introduction was amazing because of the complexity and word usage. Your argument is thorough and it flows, however I would consider revising your spacing and combining your paragraphs with similar ideas because it looks like your stopping and starting over abundantly without really divulging into your facts. Also, the ethos you used in this paper were really strong and helped your argument.
Logan Harvill 4th Period
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Your essay made some great points but there are plenty of counterarguments to be made against it that your argument doesn’t appear ready to defend. “Our founding fathers made the 2nd Amendment for a reason.” Yes that’s true, but laws are constantly evolving and changing. Are the same rules that applied hundreds of years ago still valid now? These are questions that should be taken into account while writing. Include and counter them, and I’m sure your essay will become even better.
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Your essay is amazing and well written! You made great counterarguments. You should talk about the black market in regards to the gun trade in order to demonstrate that taking guns away from people wont do anything because as long as their is a demand there will always be a supply and bad people will do anything to obtain the gun. I love how you incorporated the 2nd amendment to prove you point. The conclusion was nice because you stated that guns do harm people but they are essential to innocent civilians who need to protect themselves. Your use of statistics proved your point by adding in depth evidence. I would suggest adding more emotional appeal to the essay because it will improve your essay. You can incorporate emotional appeal by using real life events such as school shootings that could have saved many people’s lives if only they had weapons to protect themselves from the attacker with a gun.
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Very very nice essay! I love the use of specific statistics to solidify your argument. Additionally, your approach was very linear and straight, so no claims accidentally contradicted. Your logical appeals, especially in the last three paragraphs. Your statement of how more people are killed by other devices than rifles was very powerful.
Yes you dont have any emotional appeals in this story, but in this case, the argument is powerful enough without it.
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^^Mark Returan 7th Period
lol sorry I made a mistake in the last two sentences of the first paragraph
anyways, your logical appeals are very good, especially in the last three paragraphs. I love how you implied that its not the gun’s fault for killing people, its the person’s fault.
I would like to say that sometimes, the definitions of “civilian” and “criminal” are skewed, so maybe you can define those words in a way to support your argument.
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You word choice was very persuasive and helped sway me toward your topic. Also your statistics were used well to back up the evidence.
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Sophia
CFPMS
8th Grade
Your essay is fantastic and very well written. There are a lot of facts and before I read this, I was against guns. I’m still a little against guns but your essay was really persuasive. Great job!
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