The individual should not have the right to possess a firearm.

For clarification, I am missing a source from my round 2 argument which supports several claims [1]. Anyhow, to refute my opponents argument from round 2.>> "The USA has a higher proportion of gun-involved homicides carried out than almost all countries where private gun ownership is illegal. It is only beaten by developing nations such as Guatemala & Colombia." - While the U.S. has a high number of homicides, it is worthwhile to note that the U.S.'s rate of homicide is in fact decreasing, and that gun control measures are not the only influence on homicide rates. As noted by one of my earlier sources, "the strong correlation with racial and socio-economic variables suggests that the underlying determinants of the homicide rate are related to particular cultural factors."" [2] The same article also notes that the American and British rates of murder are in fact converging," In 1981 the American rate was 8.7 times the English rate, in 1995 it was 5.7 times the English rate, and the latest study puts it at 3.5 times."This trend shows that the U.S. rates are decreasing in a world of greater gun freedom, while in the UK, with strict gun control, rates are increasing. >> "Between 1987 and 1990, in the US, guns were used in defense during a crime incident 64,615 times annually. This equates to only 0.2% of incidents." - That was 21 years ago, and as my source points out, guns are in fact used 2 million times a year for self-defence [1]. >> "In recent years from the Santa-Claus shooting in December 2008 to the Nebraska shopping mall shooting in December 2007, there are frequent reminders of gun massacres that have only been allowed to happen based on legislation which allows private gun ownership. " - Pointing out a single isolated incident isn't grounds to ban guns. Californias strong gun control laws did little to stop that shooting and if guns were allowed to be used in self-defence, the shooting could have been prevented. >> " As I have shown with the statistic above, guns were used in defense in only 0.2% of criminal acts during the given period." - This point I have negated. >> " There are also higher levels of gun-related deaths in the USA than the majority of countries worldwide. http://en.wikipedia.org......, with only other western country coming above the USA: Estonia. There are more gun related deaths in the US than in Zimbabwe, Costa Rica & Azerbijan. The idea that guns give some kind of 'security' is nonsensical." - As I have pointed out, cultural factors plays a more important role than gun legislation, and as I pointed out time and time again in round 2, more gun control leads to a greater homicide rate. There is a correlation with a lowered homicide rate and less gun control. >> "Try telling the people who live in the District of Columbia that guns provide some kind of security. I am myself British, and live in the city which experiences the highest proportion of gun-crime - Nottingham. It is notorious for its gun crime. In the UK however, the highest level of gun crime entails deaths of around 1.5 for every 100,000 people. In the District of Columbia this reaches 24 for every 100,000. That means that in the DoC there are SIXTEEN TIMES more gun related homicides." - Less gun control meant less murder in D.C., as I showed in round 2. As this source shows, a ban on handguns led to higher crime rates [3], and their homicide rate is set to decrease even further at current trends. >> "Gone are the times when private gun ownership was necessary to protect ones possessions and family. It is an old law based on a time when state security was weak and did not reach all areas. Nowadays gun ownership is simply un-necessary, and in fact causes more problems than it solves. " - As I demonstrated in round 2, a ban on civilian gun ownership leads to higher crime rates and takes guns out of the hands of ordinary people, not criminals. State security can't be relied on 100% of the time by the people and self-defence is necessary. [1] = http://www.roanoke.com... [2] = http://reason.com... [3] = http://www.justfacts.com...