Resolve - The United States should ban all assault wapons.

Assault weapons have in fact found a place in society. As history has proven, attempts to ban Assault weapons have failed; as is evident in the case of the Federal Assault Weapons Ban (FAWB). The FAWB was enacted on September 13, 1994 as a part of a far-reaching crime prevention initiative called the Violent Crime Control and Prevention Act of 1994. The ban was designed to limit or prohibit the possession of semi-automatic assault weapons and features such as; grenade launchers, flash suppressors, bayonet mounts, and pistol grips. The ban was sunsetted in 2004 and has not been renewed since. My argument consists of three main areas of analysis. First, in spite of the assault weapons ban violent crimes continue to occur in our nation. This is because the weapons named in the ban are rarely linked to gun related crimes. Many studies show that the preferred weapon by criminals and gangs is not the AR-15 or an AKM-47 which are big, bulky, and expensive weapons named on the banned list. Instead these felons use Glock 9mms and similar small handguns that you can easily conceal and buy for a small amount at almost any sporting goods store. In addition, crime continued in spite of the ban because the small percentage of individuals determined to commit violent crime, such as mass shootings, are willing to circumvent bans and other measures to acquire these weapons when they want them. Therefore, the ban creates an environment for a black market wherein banned assault weapons can be bought and sold. Additionally, manufacturers have produced the "Copycat" weapon, which are firearms similar to the banned firearms but with minor changes to evade the ban, and equal or greater danger. Secondly, several studies show that the ban did not reduce gun crime at all. A study at the University of Pennsylvania"s center Criminology found no significant evidence that the misnamed assault weapons ban reduced gun crime in any way. Another study by John R. Lott, empirical researcher and author of the highly acclaimed book, "More Guns, Less Crime" found similar results. Mr. Lott"s research found no impact on violent crime rates from the assault weapons ban and in fact, a slight increase in murders and violent crime rates. When the ban was lifted in 2004, gun crimes and police killings were expected to surge, instead, they declined. In the first nine months that the ban was lifted, nationwide murder rates fell by 3.6%. The trend was consistent; murders kept on declining after the weapons ban ended. Even more interesting, the seven states that had their own assault weapons ban saw a smaller drop than the 43 states with out such laws. The states with bans averaged a 2.4% decline in murders (and in three if those states the murders rose) while states without bans saw the average decline more than 4%. This evidence leaves the question; should we really be going after assault weapons? As my third and final argument I would like to remind everyone that this ban is in violation of the 2nd amendment of the Bill of Rights, i.e the right to bear arms. Although it can be argued that weapons have changed since the time the Bill of Rights was signed, it is important to remember why the 2nd amendment was established; in response to the Battle of Lexington. The Battle of Lexington was an event of the American Revolution in which the British Monarchy attempted to take the weapons of the American people because it was too dangerous for them to have weapons of superior class. That is basically what the US government is trying to do now by taking our assault weapons. Only now the superior weapon is the AR-15 and not a single shot musket. The 2nd amendment grew out of the Battle of Lexington because the founding fathers wanted citizens to be able to defend themselves against the possibility of tyrannical governments and criminals with weapons that would do the job effectively. If our government now wants to take away our assault weapons, not only are they depriving us of our ability to effectively defend ourselves, they are defying the will of the men who built this great nation. In conclusion, banning assault weapons will not benefit the US in anyway and in doing so will only bring harm to our chance of defense. Thank You.