My post a few weeks back on gun control lead to a lot of comments (because it was interesting, or because so many students wanted extra credit at the end of the semester?). I'll hope the case is that so many of you found the topics of gun control and interest groups both intriguing and relevant. So, to follow up, here's a New York Times interactive documenting how states have tackled the issue of gun legislation in the year after the Newtown Massacre. Seeing as our federal government hasn't passed any meaningful legislation in the hopes of curbing gun violence, it's been left to states to take up the issue. And, because of federalism, states have the power to pass meaningful laws that will directly affect their citizens.
So, take some time to explore the interactive and discover how states have attempted to pass legislation, and further, examine the legislation that has actually passed. There are several different categories of legislation to explore, and the results just may surprise you. What's your reaction?
I am honestly surprised by the legislation that has passed through state governments. Wouldn't you think that the government would have more laws that tighten gun laws? I looked at the laws that were passed and the majority loosened gun restrictions. 28 that loosened gun permit laws while only 1 tightened it. It is interesting to look at. I am not sure how I feel about this. I am in favor of people having guns, however it is risky to have more and more people having guns. But states tightened gun restrictions for people with mental illnesses. I think that that it is a step in the right direction. The most compelling law that was unfortunately vetoed was proposed in California, which would have effectively banned gun shows at the Cow Palace, the home arena of the San Francisco Bulls hockey team, by making them subject to approval by local authorities. The gun control debate is a serious and complicated one.
ReplyDeleteI agree completely with Ben on this. I think that states should tighten the gun restrictions with people with mental illnesses. The most shocking thing about this is that most states loosened it. Because I think that more people having guns will increase shootings and deaths. I mean i can see the reasoning for loosening the restrictions because people feel that having more people with guns will lessen the amount of shootings but i find that really hard to think. You really can't stop shootings because there might be someone that is perfectly fine but then snaps and goes on a rampage. It's just something that really can't be solved.
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