Guns should be banned in the united states.

I affirm that guns should be banned in the United States. I this hold this position on the grounds that all weapons are enemies, even to their owners. Guns don't know sides, their only duty is to kill. That is, and has always been, the primary goal of any weapon, and to say otherwise is folly. Your definition of 'defense' is to kill. The power behind the gun is that it has the capability to kill. However, what few gun supporters recognize, or attempt to omit, is that guns kill (Can't wait for the rebuttal on this sentence). Having said this, I will proceed to your four contentions. 1) Protection for your home: This is a seemingly logical point. Use a gun to keep your house safe yeah? The only problem is that guns are mostly just able to be used as a scare tactic for criminals, rather than being any good for actual defense. A home is close quartered, with many obstacles standing in the way of you and your target. In most cases, physical combat would be better for home defense, because it will actually damage your opponent, rather than wasting bullets. Not to mention that keeping a gun in the house is dangerous, even without a firefight for your homes safety. A study [http://www.consumeraffairs.com...] showed that the presence of a gun drastically increased the number of children who died within the household (253 in high gun states, 15 in low gun states accidentally. 153 high gun states, 22 low gun states suicide). But then you say "Lock up the gun, and put it in a safe place in the house" right? Well, in that case, what is the use of having the gun at all? The burglar isn't gunna stand there and wait for you to say "hey, lemme unlock the combination on this box so I can pull out a gun and shoot you". Rather, their just gunna go after you. It'd be much better to learn physical self defense, like a karate form, because your body will always be there to defend your house, while the gun only causes more problems than it solves. 2) Self Defense: Again, I restate to take self-defense lessons. Guns are illegal to carry in some places, your body is not, and therefore, it will always legally be ready. However, there are many effective, if not more so, defense methods than just killing. Tazers [http://www.youtube.com...] (This video also shows how easy a gun is to be disarmed, another point for PD) or Bear mace [http://www.youtube.com...] would do just fine. The tazer would completely render your opponent harmless, while the bear mace would surprise, confused, and cause temporary lose of sight long enough to KO him by your own means. Both would defend you and the public, and neither would cause death, just pain, all that's needed until the proper authorities can come. 3) Criminals: Yes, if guns were banned, criminals would have a bit more power. But when has that stopped them in the past. Some people are authorized to carry guns, and criminals know that, yet the still rob banks, convenience stores, houses, and people on a day-to-day basis. It has not deterred them so far, so it is safe to assume that they would continue like always if no one had them. But this would make it easier for law enforcement as well. Now, they know that if anyone is carrying a gun, they are breaking the law, and can act appropriately to see justice is served, preferably by arresting the offender. 4) Government: This is the only moderately logical defense. However, it still has it's flaws. First off, the government has stockpiles of advanced weapons technology, something I am sure as a gun enthusiast you know full well. A couple thousand hunting rifles and pistols would stand no chance against a full-fledged military operation. Second, there would be no reason for a rebellion as long as we keep our government in line by the system of checks and balances. True, I agree that our government is getting more corrupt with corporate, foreign, and personal lobbying. Nevertheless, a government, especially the US, would not be daunted by a citizen uprising, unless there was a nearly 100% participation rate by the countries people. Therefore, in either case, we should work on cleaning up our politics first, rather than preparing for a full-scale civil war. If the government gets to that point were it has to be overthrown, it will be, they have a habit of doing that. So, to conclude this first argument, guns are BAD. They are for killing, not creation. No matter what light you try to put it in, there is no reason to continue to fight evil with more evil. There is always another solution, which, while it might seem harder and slower, ultimately is more just, rewarding, and stronger than simple primitive destruction. The more steps that are taken to better society, rather than reinforce it with outdated ignorance, the less we will need those self-destructive methods. Guns need to be abolished, and peace promoted. Your move