"Guns don't kill people, people kill people"

 I hate when people discuss gun control and defend the NRA "Guns don't kill people, people kill people." Well, cars don't kill people yet tens of thousands die in car accidents every year. There would be even more people dying on the road if we didn't have regulations like seat belts, no texting and driving, and no drinking and driving. You have to go to drivers education classes and pass a written and physical driving exam. So, why don't we have more regulation for who can access a gun?

I really enjoyed the section Robin read to us in class from Bruno Latour:

"You are different with a gun in hand; the gun is different with you holding it. You are another subject because you hold the gun; the gun is another object because it has entered into a relationship with you, The gun is no longer the gun-in-the-armory or the gun-in-the-drawer or the gun-in-the-pocket, but the gun-in-your-hand, aimed at someone who is screaming."

I think this really encapsulates the argument I, and many other liberals, are trying to make. Guns in the drawer/armory/pocket do not kill people, but guns in the hand of someone do.

"A good citizen becomes a criminal, a bad guy becomes a worse guy; a silent gun becomes a fired gun, a new gun becomes a used gun, a sporting gun becomes a weapon... neither subject nor object (nor their goals) is fixed."

Today's social and political positions scare me, if I'm being honest. I think as Americans, it's great to have free speech and free thinking. I think it's important to have more than one party, differing opinions, etc because that is how we keep our individuality and avoid a totalitarian state. But how do we balance the right to have an opinion and something as controversial as gun control? In my mind, it is hard for me to see how an issue resulting with innocent deaths could be controversial, but I know a lot of people really value their freedom to own a gun. I think increased regulation is a simple and effective solution. Obviously there will still be criminals and it would be naive of me to think gun regulation would get rid of crime. However, the school shootings in the past few decades should not have occurred, but they did because we are allowing people who shouldn't have guns, to have guns.  America is so concerned with being "free" that we are prioritizing the freedom of gun owners over the freedom of children going to school every day.

What I take away from this is a more philosophical perspective of the gun control issue. Today the argument seems to be "People kill people" vs "Guns kill people", but the issue is so much more complex. I shared this excerpt on Facebook for that reason, I think people everywhere, on both sides of the controversy need to read this in order to deepen their understanding of what is really going on.