Gun control

The term gun control, according to the Wikipedia, "refers to attempts by society (generally by government or 'the State') to limit the possession, production, importation, shipment, sale, and/or use of 'guns' -- in this context, generally personal firearms: handguns and long guns. Weapons normally produced and intended for military and paramilitary (e.g. SWAT team) use, such as fully-automatic weapons, are especially contentious."

Infoplease defines gun control as "government limitation of the purchase and ownership of firearms," with the "availability of guns ... controlled by nations and localities throughout the world." Although, it states, the "'right of the people to keep and bear arms' is guaranteed by the Constitution, [it] has been variously interpreted through the years." For example, "in 2002 the Justice Department, under Attorney General John Ashcroft, indicated that it interpreted the amendment as more broadly supporting the rights of individuals to possess and bear firearms."

---

U.S. gun control legislation

Time magazine researched a timeline of gun control legislation, including Pres. Franklin Roosevelt's National Firearms Act (NFA) in 1934, aimed at criminal gangs, Federal Firearms Act (FFA) of 1938, Gun Control Act of 1968 championed by President Lyndon B. Johnson after three high-profile assassinations (Pres. John Kennedy, Attorney General Robert Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.).

Related SourceWatch Resources

• Armed Females of America
• Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence
• Bush administration: gun violence
• Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (CCRKBA)
• civil liberties
• Coalition to Stop Gun Violence
• National Rifle Association (NRA)
• Second Amendment Foundation (SFA)

External links

Background

• The Gun Control Act of 1968, Public Law 90-618.
• Gun Control. Adapted from a report by William Krouse, Congressional Research Service. Updated October 3, 2002.
• Gun Control, American Civil Liberties Union position.
• Gun Control vs. Gun Rights, OpenSecrets.
• The Brady Campaign To Prevent Gun Violence web site.
• GunCite Discussion of Gun Control and Second Amendment.
• Gun Control, Washington Post Special.
• Global Gun Control, Washington Post Special.
• Gun Control, TIME Newsfile.
• Gun Control: The Great Debate, ABC News.
• Canadian Gun Control, about.com.
• Gun Control, Australia.
• The Right to Keep and Bear Arms. Report of the Subcommittee on the Constitution of the U.S. Senate, 97th Congress, February 1982.
• David B. Kopel, Trust the People: The Case Against Gun Control, Cato Institute, July 11, 1988.
• Gun Control. Cato Institute Handbook for 107th Congress.
• U.S. Justice Fund, Open Society Institute.
• Gun (Weapons) Control Timeline, 380 B.C. to 1997.

As a Political Issue, U.S. presidential election, 2004

• Gun Control: Political Leaders on the Issues, issues2000.org. Updated to include current candidates.
• Sensible Gun Laws, Dean for America.
• Candidates on Guns, A Project of the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence/Coalition web site. (Current as of 29 April 2004.)

Articles & Commentary

• Jon Dougherty, "The New World Disorder," WorldNetDaily, June 8, 2003: "United Nations to host global gun-control event. Conference backs measures to track, confiscate, destroy various weapons."
• "U.S. Justice Dept. concludes 2nd is an 'Individual Right'," TechnoCrat, December 19, 2004.

Timeline of the Major Gun Control Laws in America