Analytical Study on the Issues of Gun Control - Essay Example

?An analytical study on the issues related to Gun control America is one of the biggest democracies in the world with its unique features. The democratic aspects of the country have often demonstrated in many of the issues in America. One of such issues that reflect the democratic features of the country can be very well attributed to the issue of gun control existing in the state. This issue has often been referred to as a major issue affecting the images of American Democracy. The commencement of the issue of gun control in the country could be traced back to hundreds of years. Since then it has been put both as political issue and legal issue in the state and the most interesting fact is that the same continues even today. The issue of gun control is augmented with the present tendencies of using handguns by the civilians and students, who cause for much havoc among the people. The sniper shootings in America have made a deep threat among the civilians in America. In such circumstances it is worthwhile to redefine the American democratic system with its application in the present issue. Therefore, this essay tries to analyze the issue of gun control with the democratic features of pluralism, stratificationism and hyper pluralism. The Issues related to Gun control in America show a specialty of the democratic aspect, that is, Pluralism. There are different notions regarding gun control in America. The BBC reports, “Americans now appear equally split between urban liberals who want gun control and tough environmental controls, and country dwellers who oppose abortion on demand and support hunting with guns” (BBC News). Some of the states like California, Illinois, New York and the District of Columbia support some sort of control in gun rights. The states like Washington, Florida and Texas stand for the gun rights. In the states like Alaska and Arizona the concealed carry laws are so simple and so everyone can have guns. The gun control has been viewed differently by Democratic Party and Republican Party. The Democratic Party stands for the gun control measures whereas the Republican Party stands against the gun control (BBC News). So it can be stated that the issue of gun control is a partisan issue. Some states, some groups and some political parties support gun control whereas some, on the other side, critically object it. The gun control in the country remains to be a sharply attacked by the gun lobby prevalent in America. NRA (National Rifle Association) is the most powerful lobby arguing for the citizens’ rights of gun. It adheres to the Bill of Rights as put forward by the 2nd Amendment which ensures the citizens to possess gun. The gun lobbyists in America stand as a supreme interest group in America projecting the dominance of interest groups in American democracy. The bill on gun control was presented in the different Houses of the state but was denied support by taking the 2nd Amendment of the Constitution which states that every American citizen has the right to protect his/her life from others, and therefore, the Constitution gives him the right to bear arms. This constitutional right could not be changed even in the modern scenario due to the influence of the gun lobbyists. The Second Amendment of American Constitution stands for the rights for guns. It ensures the citizens’ rights to own the firearms. The modern incidents of mass killing by the firearms have made the people to rethink about the excessive use of guns in America. The mass killing 32 innocent people on the campus of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University at Virginia, and the similar incidents at various parts of the country, have put the states to regulate on the use of guns by the civilians. The proposal of the states to ban gun was thoroughly failed by the influence of gun lobbies in America. In America around 145 groups are arguing for the gun culture and NRA is having the most influence of these all. The Pluralistic aspect of democracy has excessively played its role on this issue. Pluralism is a phenomenon of the American democracy. It enables the different interest groups in America to govern the American democracy. It is through pluralism people satisfy their demands. So, pluralism can be termed as, “the theory that a multitude of groups, not the people as a whole, govern the United States” (udel.edu.). Different groups like trade unions, different associations, lobbies, etc compel the government to make decisions in favor of them. There are always the competing groups and each group works as bargaining groups for their needs. The aspects of competing and balancing make a firm hold of the groups on the government. Pluralism does not always propagate equality rather it stands for the interest of the groups it represents. According to pluralists, direct democracy is not always desirable, and so pluralists govern the policies and decisions of the government. In America, the government is not dominated by the single group but a combination of different small groups. These small groups actively take part in the decisions of the government (udel.edu.). It can, in other way be stated that these pluralist groups take part actively in the governmental policies. According to them government cannot centralize its power rather the power is decentralized (Pluralism) to different pressure groups. Although these groups do not possess the support of the majority of the people, these have been playing a crucial part in the making up of the decisions in the state. Pluralists consider the democracy as a part of decentralization of power. So most of the groups are politically strong; or in other words, most of the political leaders are the spokespersons of these groups. They work vice versa. The political autonomous of these groups give them the “freedom to do business in the political marketplace” (udel.edu.). In order to attain large support these groups always try to rely on the needs of the people. In the case of gun control also, these lobbies stated that the people need to safeguard their lives from intruders and assassins. This compelled the government to allow the people to continue in their rights of ownership. The government has to rely on these groups for the execution of power. In this issue also the influence of gun lobby has been playing its part so effectively. They take the support of National Rifle Association, the strongest platform of the firearm owners in America. They have the strong political support and thus the bills in favor of gun control are objected strongly in various Houses. The pluralistic aspect of the issue of the gun control in America stands for no perfection. The elements like hyper pluralism and stratification can be seen in this issue. The aspects like hyper pluralism and stratification have its own methods to consider the issue much attached to these two. Charles S. Matzke states that, “Hyper pluralist theory asserts that too many groups are getting too much of what they want, resulting in a government policy that is often contradictory and lacking in direction” (Matzke 158). Here in the issue of gun control too the intervention of lobby can be seen as demanding for its goal. In pluralism it has been some sort of relativity but as these groups are sub sided with some unlawful behaviors these groups can be termed with the elements of hyper pluralism. In America it has been noticed that more ethnic groups are on the rise to satisfy their demands. The writer, Jonathan Rauch says, “People have noted, and many have bemoaned, the rise of ethnic groupism in America, in which blacks and Hispanics and Asians and women and others separate into groups by gender or skin color or percentage and then demand things” (Rauch 56). This groupism has grown into all the layers of the society urging the government for its needs. So, all the groups, even though they start as pluralists, later turn as hyper pluralists and make so much of excessive pressure on the government policies. With the issue of the gun control, the Democratic Party’s attempt to establish a control on the concealed carry has been put down by the interplay of hyper pluralism in the country. America can be seen as a country that dominates the other nations of the world; but the country can be seen as being dominated by different groups with their interests. The attitude of the elite groups strongly associated with the issue of gun control in America. Who needs gun, the people in the lower section of the society or the people in the upper section of the society? It is very clear that the groups that speak for its needs are the spokesmen of the people who are both economically and politically sound. It is more called stratification as the issue stratifies the society into citizens and non citizens, owners and non owners of firearms. The law again divides people in the different states of America differently. It has become another key ingredient of American democracy. By this stratification the people are divided economically and socially. The history of America is associated with the element of class and this class disparity is higher even now in America. “Up to 1969, the disparity generally declined, but it has increased rapidly and consistently to the present.” So the writer is compelled to say that, “This increasing disparity poses a serious threat to American democracy and the success of a pluralist society” (Gabrenya 4). The social and economic stratifications, prevailed in American society, have turned the interest groups to speak for the upper class. Even though many Hispanic groups belonging to Mexico and other Latin American countries are there, the interests of the government always stands with the majority. In analyzing the issue of gun control in the state it can be viewed that the interest groups stood only for the upper strata of the society. The beneficiaries of the law, in the gun issue, are the elite class. So, in analyzing the political issue of gun control the earlier democratic aspect of social stratification appears as so strong. This democratic element can be visible in almost all issues of the state. In all issues a few groups’ interests are maintained for the loss of the majority of the common people. America is proud of being a strong democracy in the world and it upholds the images like liberty, equality and fraternity, but the present issues have changed the three legs of American democracy to pluralism, stratificationism, and hyper pluralism. These elements overrule the decisions of the country in all matters. In taking the issue of gun control in America the aspect of pluralism dominates the issue as in other issues of the state. It may be a landmark of American democracy; but the groups’ biased interests can harm the status of the country before the world. The country too as a whole has taken steps to prevent the biased interests of the groups. The gun control has been established in some of the states and there is the outcry to extend the gun control and the ban of concealed carry to other states too. The three images of the democracy in America, namely pluralism, stratificationism, and hyper pluralism have to protect the interests of the country so as to regain its reputation in the world. Works Cited BBC News. US politics and gun control. BBC. October 23. 2002. Web. Nov. 23. 2011 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/407576.stm Gabrenya W. K. Jr. Culture and Social Class. my.fit.edu.2003. Web. Nov. 23. 2011. http://my.fit.edu/~gabrenya/social/readings/ses.pdf Matzke, Charles S. Government in America People, Politics, and Policy Brief Tenth Edition. Pearson Education, Inc. 2009. Web. Nov. 23. 2011. http://roomc320.yolasite.com/resources/AP%20Teachers%20Manual.pdf Rauch, J. Government's End: Why Washington Stopped Working.ReadHowYouWant.com, 2010. Print. udel.edu. Pluralism. udel.edu. Web. Nov 23. 2011. http://www.udel.edu/htr/Psc105/Texts/pluralism.html Read More