Feb 04 2009
Day one, lets talk about guns…
Hello everyone, this is the first day of blogging about topics within the study of criminology. I want to keep it interesting so I’ll try to stick to controversial topics that will trigger discussion. Some of my information will come from books I have read, others will come from what I have learned from my professors, and my opinion will be apparent throughout my blogs also. The first topic I thought would spark some debate is the discussion of guns. How dangerous are they and should we control them more than we do?
I’m going to give some information from a book on homicide that discusses guns, I welcome comments and the next blog I’m going to provide my opinion on gun control.
Leonard Beeghley (2003) emphasizes the issue of gun availability. He hypothesizes “the greater the availability of guns in a population, the greater the homicide rate” (2003, p. 108). He argues guns are more lethal than any other weapon because they require the least amount of physical strength, psychological commitment, and danger for the weapon holder. When compared to cars, guns are much easier to access and use. Licenses may also be obtained at a younger age with less training. Guns are easily accessible to gang members, felons, and other dangerous individuals through the black market in the United States.
The United States differs from other nations because in addition to the high availability of guns, most murders are committed with guns. Switzerland has a similar number of guns compared to the United States, but has a much lower homicide rate. Beeghley recognizes this and states it is not only the availability of guns but also four other factors, expansion of illegal drug markets (129), greater racial and ethnic inequality (135), greater exposure to violence (141), and greater income inequality (149), that collectively contribute to the high homicide rate in the United States.
Other scholars argue that guns make the United States safer because they can be used as protection for individuals who could potentially be victims. Scholars also argue that there would be a displacement effect if guns were eliminated because “guns don’t kill people, people kill people” (2003, p. 120). A displacement effect occurs when preventing a specific crime causes the offender to move to another place, choose a different type of crime, different method, or a different target. In this case, the offender would use a different type of method to commit homicide. Most of Beeghley’s hypothesis revolves around the context in which murder occurs rather than the “nut behind the gun.”
What do you think?
Beeghley, Leonard. 2003. Homicide: A Sociological Explanation. New York: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
