The Cost of Gun Violence

http://heedinggodscall.org/content/pfctoolkit-10
http://www.businessinsider.com/americas-gun-problem-explained-2013-4?op=1

     Guns in America is an extremely common subject now, that it is almost too common. Sure, they can give civilians protection, but they contribute to many horrible incidents. The average number of guns per holder has increased from 4.1 to 6.9 from 1994 to 2004. There are nearly 283 million civilian guns, with 2 million sold each year. With the increase of gun sales, there has also been a increase in homicides. The link above has more information on the matter. Japan, Germany, Italy, and France all have less than 150 homicides annually. America, however, reached up to 10,000 homicides every year. The US has surpassed all other countries in the homicide number, which due to our leniency on gun sales. 30,000 people are killed every year and 30 people are shot everyday! In fact, the leading death cause of people aged 15-24 is homicide.

     There are many different incidents involving guns, but school shootings are one incident that has increased dramatically. Since the 31st shooting in Oregon, there has been 62 documented school shootings, and 41 deaths. One-third of the homicide deaths are citizens under 20. Out of all the school children in the United States, more than one-fifth have experienced a shooting. A few years ago, deaths have been mostly because of automobile accidents, but now the leading cause is homicide. Now, families are able to seek warrant on people and have them searched for guns. Most of the time, it is a mentally unstable person firing the gun on civilians. When these people purchase guns, they can get away with it because forty percent of people do not go through background checks.

     Not only does gun violence cause many injuries and fatalities, they also cost a lot of money. A lifetime medical cost for all gun violence victims is about 2.3 billion! Also, the cost for everything, including medical, criminal justice proceddings, and new security precautions, is 100 billion annually. Overall, letting guns into civilian hands is expensive and dangerous. In my opinion, guns should not be completly prohibited to citizens, but like in other countries, the laws are very strict and only very qualified people can get their hands on one. The government should make many background checks and analyze people very carefully before allowing them to get their hands on any firearms. Some people should be able to have guns, but not all people.