Guns should be more regulated in the United States

I apologize as well for letting this debate slip my mind. Since we no longer have as many rounds, I'll just jump right into the debate:In response to my opponent's first contention:Numerous studies, also by Harvard, have demonstrated the exact opposite: gun control actually has been shown to lead to fewer homicides. According to a study by Lisa Hepburn and David Hemingway:"[A] review of the academic literature found that a broad array of evidence indicates that gun availability is a risk factor for homicide, both in the United States and across high-income countries. Case-control studies, ecological time-series and cross-sectional studies indicate that in homes, cities, states and regions in the US, where there are more guns, both men and women are at higher risk for homicide, particularly firearm homicide."The findings of another Harvard study, by the David Hemingway and Matthew Miller, found that specifically in developed nations more guns can often lead to an increased homicide rate. According to the study, the developed countries where guns were more widely available had markedly higher armed crime rates; these findings held true even when the USA was omitted.A third Harvard study found that within the US, more guns was generally correlated to a higher armed crime rate. According to the study:"After controlling for poverty and urbanization, for every age group, people in states with many guns have elevated rates of homicide, particularly firearm homicide...This relationship held for both genders and all age groups, after accounting for rates of aggravated assault, robbery, unemployment, urbanization, alcohol consumption, and resource deprivation (e.g., poverty). There was no association between gun prevalence and non-firearm homicide."Incidentally, the Western European countries that are often used as examples (I.e. Norway) are significantly wealthier than the Eastern European countries (Estonia, Belarus, Russia, etc.) that you cited as examples. In fact, Norway is one of the richest and most productive countries in europe. This is the more likely reason for the apparent correlation; more wealth allows more people to buy more guns.In response to my opponent's second contention:Your examples all shared a common thread in that they pushed for widespread gun ownership to protect against an oppressive government. Frankly, the fact is that no individual, even with an assault rifle, could defeat the government single-handedly. Even a sizable militia would be able to do little more than terrorize small cities before being wiped out by the government. This seems self-evident, but if you feel that it merits more attention I can address it more thoroughly in the next round. With that out of the way, I present my arguments for stricter gun control: 1) More guns mean more suicides In 2010, according to an article published in the Boston Globe, there were more gun-related suicides than homicides; These suicides made up three fifths of all gun related deaths. While you may prefer to think of suicides as planned ordeals that are carefully performed after months of consideration, the truth is that they are usually not planned; they tend to be impulsive, and the widespread availability of Exploding-Instant-Death-Tubes can only increase this staggering statistic. According to Harvard studies by Deborah Azrael, David Hemenway, Steven Lipman, and Matthew Miller: " After controlling for poverty and urbanization, for every age group, across the United States, people in states with many guns have elevated rates of suicide, particularly firearm suicide... States with higher levels of household gun ownership had higher rates of firearm suicide and overall suicide. This relationship held for both genders and all age groups. It remained true after accounting for poverty, urbanization and unemployment. There was no association between gun prevalence and non-firearm suicide." 2) Most people favor gun-control laws Another Harvard study also showed that the general public supports gun control. The majority of adults support strict gun control laws, and this number jumps even higher for common-sense protocols like background checks. According to the study: "Household gun ownership levels have been decreasing in the United States since the 1980s. Most adults, and even most gun owners, favor most gun control laws short of bans on gun ownership." Even inside the NRA, the majority of the membership disagrees with the more outspoken leaders, instead opting for some measure of gun control. According to the Harvard study: " National Rifle Association (NRA) members are similar to other gun owners in many respects, but they are more likely to own six or more guns. Unlike the NRA leadership, both NRA members and non-member gun owners support waiting periods and mandatory registration of handguns." I have no more to add at this time ,and I am beginning to run out of characters. I respectfully encourage you to vote in favor of gun control. On that note, I turn the debate over to pro.