Gun Control

            Elaine DeLeon DeLeon 1.
             English 101.
             Dr. Alison D. Goeller.
             11-30-02.
             War in America .
             Disarming Iraq has become one of President Bush's main objectives. His new national security doctrine declares that Washington has the right to take preemptive action against any nation that threatens it or its allies. But I think that we need to start somewhere else first, at home here in America. Before taking action on others, America should look in its own backyard where it is being outgunned by it own citizens. In the wake of the beltway sniper attacks people have cried out for tougher gun control laws and the need for older laws to be enforced. I feel the remedy isn't just better enforcement of the laws that already exist, but to improve the old ones with the help of new ones. America can protect the rights of gun owners and promote gun responsibility with new laws and strict enforcement of existing laws.
             Legislation needs to close the obvious loopholes in federal law. First of all, this would include stopping the sale of fire arms at gun shows without completing the required background checks. Right now a gun show host is permitted to sell the gun without a background check, allowing criminals and underage teens easy access to assault weapons. Then there is the 1986 NRA-backed law, which hampers the federal authorities" ability to inspect gun dealers, making the prosecution of the lawbreaking dealers harder and reducing penalties for faulty bookkeeping to a minimum. Knowing this, I was not surprised when it .
             DeLeon 2 was reveled that the Tacoma gun shop, where the beltway sniper obtained his rifle, had a history of faulty bookkeeping and was allowed to stay in business.
             Next there is the new ballistics database; a system that the Bush Administration and the NRA say is unreliable and not accurate.