GUN REFORM HALTED BY MIXED IDEAS
May 2018
When Parkland happened, the conversation in America shifted to gun control — once again.
This time, however, a new generation was involved. After Parkland, thousands of students across the country joined the National School Walkout, calling for change. At the walkout, many expressed frustration with the state of gun policy in the United States. But many were unsure of what the future held.
“Since Parkland, there have been so many opinions on gun control,” said Jack Greco, a junior. “As for the future of gun control, I’m not sure what’ll happen — there may not be much change in gun policy, or the government could crack down on gun control.”
Parkland happened three months ago. Since then, how has gun policy changed?
So far, most policies implemented have been scattered in several cities and states around the country. According to CNN, these measures range from raising the age limit for owning guns to increasing restrictions for those with history of domestic violence.
On the federal level, there’s more focus on collecting data. Congress’ spending bill included a bill dedicated to obtaining more data for the U.S.’s gun background check system. There are a number of other policies being considered, but whether they’re likely to pass is up for question.
In order to implement policies, policymakers rely on data and analysis. One research institution, RAND Corporation, conducted a project with the goal of investigating the effects of different kinds of gun control policies.
However, one of project’s conclusions was that there simply wasn’t enough data to find out.
The project website said, “We reviewed thousands of studies to identify all available evidence for the effects of 13 gun policies on eight outcomes. After excluding studies that did not meet our criteria for establishing a law's effects, we found little persuasive evidence for the effects of most policies on most outcomes.”
The current state of gun control is scattered, but RAND had an interesting conclusion: after interviewing experts with a range of perspectives and political backgrounds, they found that these experts agreed on policy objectives. Instead, what they disagreed on policy effects — the very effects RAND worked to determine, but came up largely inconclusive.
At Carlmont, many students agree that there is a need for gun laws. However, many disagree on what type of laws are needed — echoing RAND’s conclusion.
“What we have in place right now is ridiculous. It’s an accessibility issue — people who shouldn’t have their hands on guns have them. A lot of the guns currently allowed were originally designed for the military, and I don’t think the average citizen needs a weapon of mass destruction,” said Liane Brown, a junior and member of the committee that organized Carlmont’s walkout.
Greco, a gunowner, agreed with Brown that there should be gun laws. However, he disagreed on other points.
Greco said, “I don’t think everyone should be allowed to own a gun — there should definitely be gun laws. However, it’s not necessarily more guns leading to more violence — for instance, Wyoming has minimal gun laws compared to California, but they don’t have much gun violence. I do think that there should be gun laws, but I’ve heard some gun laws that sound ridiculous and disobey the Constitution.”
While the current state of gun control may be largely scattered, government and economics teacher Kris Weisman predicts that when the students — the students who grew up with the experience of mass shootings — reach a voting age, gun policy will change.
“As for policy, I think that assault weapons will be banned. Sale purchase of ammunition will be banned. I don’t see other policies, such as arming teachers with guns, happening because it socially and politically makes no sense,” said Weisman. “These policy changes can happen within the next 10 years, but it’s dependent on whether current students are politically active and vote.”
Brown, like Weisman, sees students playing a key role in the future of gun control.
Brown said, “A lot of current actions are at a standstill. I’m really proud of the walkout, but I don’t think adults give us enough credit. I feel like we, as students, can make social change, and hopefully that translates into political change. The more people who join the cause — not just youngsters, but others as well — the more likely it is for policy to change.”
This time, however, a new generation was involved. After Parkland, thousands of students across the country joined the National School Walkout, calling for change. At the walkout, many expressed frustration with the state of gun policy in the United States. But many were unsure of what the future held.
“Since Parkland, there have been so many opinions on gun control,” said Jack Greco, a junior. “As for the future of gun control, I’m not sure what’ll happen — there may not be much change in gun policy, or the government could crack down on gun control.”
Parkland happened three months ago. Since then, how has gun policy changed?
So far, most policies implemented have been scattered in several cities and states around the country. According to CNN, these measures range from raising the age limit for owning guns to increasing restrictions for those with history of domestic violence.
On the federal level, there’s more focus on collecting data. Congress’ spending bill included a bill dedicated to obtaining more data for the U.S.’s gun background check system. There are a number of other policies being considered, but whether they’re likely to pass is up for question.
In order to implement policies, policymakers rely on data and analysis. One research institution, RAND Corporation, conducted a project with the goal of investigating the effects of different kinds of gun control policies.
However, one of project’s conclusions was that there simply wasn’t enough data to find out.
The project website said, “We reviewed thousands of studies to identify all available evidence for the effects of 13 gun policies on eight outcomes. After excluding studies that did not meet our criteria for establishing a law's effects, we found little persuasive evidence for the effects of most policies on most outcomes.”
The current state of gun control is scattered, but RAND had an interesting conclusion: after interviewing experts with a range of perspectives and political backgrounds, they found that these experts agreed on policy objectives. Instead, what they disagreed on policy effects — the very effects RAND worked to determine, but came up largely inconclusive.
At Carlmont, many students agree that there is a need for gun laws. However, many disagree on what type of laws are needed — echoing RAND’s conclusion.
“What we have in place right now is ridiculous. It’s an accessibility issue — people who shouldn’t have their hands on guns have them. A lot of the guns currently allowed were originally designed for the military, and I don’t think the average citizen needs a weapon of mass destruction,” said Liane Brown, a junior and member of the committee that organized Carlmont’s walkout.
Greco, a gunowner, agreed with Brown that there should be gun laws. However, he disagreed on other points.
Greco said, “I don’t think everyone should be allowed to own a gun — there should definitely be gun laws. However, it’s not necessarily more guns leading to more violence — for instance, Wyoming has minimal gun laws compared to California, but they don’t have much gun violence. I do think that there should be gun laws, but I’ve heard some gun laws that sound ridiculous and disobey the Constitution.”
While the current state of gun control may be largely scattered, government and economics teacher Kris Weisman predicts that when the students — the students who grew up with the experience of mass shootings — reach a voting age, gun policy will change.
“As for policy, I think that assault weapons will be banned. Sale purchase of ammunition will be banned. I don’t see other policies, such as arming teachers with guns, happening because it socially and politically makes no sense,” said Weisman. “These policy changes can happen within the next 10 years, but it’s dependent on whether current students are politically active and vote.”
Brown, like Weisman, sees students playing a key role in the future of gun control.
Brown said, “A lot of current actions are at a standstill. I’m really proud of the walkout, but I don’t think adults give us enough credit. I feel like we, as students, can make social change, and hopefully that translates into political change. The more people who join the cause — not just youngsters, but others as well — the more likely it is for policy to change.”