Ethical perspective gun control in the united states introductory to ethics

NATIONAL ECNOMICS UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF ADVANCED EDUCATION PROGRAMS *** ETHICAL PERSPECTIVE: GUN CONTROL IN THE UNITED STATES INTRODUCTORY TO ETHICS Group 4:  Nguyen Vinh Quan - 11214964  Duong Trung Nguyen - 11219367  Nguyen Tran Minh An - 11219351  Nguyen Le Thach – 11215237 Class: Business Analytics K63 Instructor: Mrs Nguyen Bich Ngoc, PhD Ha Noi, 2022 Ethical Perspective: Gun control in the United States TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION .3 Background Objective & Scope .4 Report outline GUN CONTROL PROBLEMS IN AMERICA .6 Gun culture in America 1.1 The prevalence of guns 1.2 A marketing move Gun laws in the history of America Mass shootings in America .10 American gun-owners’ attitudes 12 American attitudes toward extra gun policies 15 Why American owning guns 17 ETHICAL VIEW .19 1.1 1.2 Consequentialism 19 Theory overview 19 Theory application 21 Non-consequentialism .22 2.1 Theory overview 22 2.2 Theory application 23 Virtue Ethics 25 3.1 Theory overview 25 3.2 Theory application 26 Conclusion .27 SUMMARY 30 1|Page This is a preview Do you want full access? 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Log in Ethical Perspective: Gun control in the United States LIST OF FIGURES Figure 10 11 Title Gun death in the United States Anticipated influences of gun control policies Gun owners in the United States Guns in the social relationships of the United States citizens The United States gun owners armed frequency Opinion on gun laws of the United States partisan Opinion on gun laws of the United States gun owner partisan Opinion about gun laws of the United States citizens Gun and freedom The United States citizens’ reasons for holding guns Opinion of people in gun owning household in the United States Page 11 12 13 14 14 15 16 16 17 17 18 2|Page Ethical Perspective: Gun control in the United States INTRODUCTION Since the day it was first invented, gun have been known as a weapon that quickly and effectively deals damage and injury to the target A wonderful tool to protect people and a deadly device to take other lives With that saying, in this modern world, humans, besides the desire to grow wealthy and happy with continuous accumulation of knowledge and connection, still need to maintain their basic safety through a secure and protected environment to live in Despite the fact that they will never know whether there will be a day a random criminal pointing a gun towards them and pulling the trigger It is such terrifying scenery that none of them want to face or hear their beloved one encounter it Fortunately, gun control exists to protect citizens thanks to the laws established and carried out by governments around the world Some countries have very strict gun control that it will be nearly impossible for a normal citizen to own and bear arms, such as Japan Some keep loose policies about the restriction of guns, to a point where guns are sold at regular stores like Walmart and people just need to fill some forms to own that weapon, like America That is why debate over gun control is a considerable topic and how each government handles the enforcement of gun control is a heated issue throughout the world Especially in the USA, the country with several years staying in top of the list of most gun crimes and gun deaths around the world Along with the high civilization of this nation, debate over how the government should restrict the use and ownership of guns here is more intense than anywhere else Therefore, this report will give great attention to the issue of gun control, especially in the USA, and shed ethical light on this topic so that it can be seen with deeper and wider morality aspects Background Gun control can be briefly explained as legislation and enforcement of policies or measures intended to restrict access to the possession or the use of guns and firearms in general Controversy is always sparked around this topic of whether the 3|Page Ethical Perspective: Gun control in the United States limited access to the ownership and use of arms regulated by the government will infringe upon personal liberty and whether there is a link between the open access to arms and gun-related crime Supporters of gun-control legislation often argue that rigorous enforcement of gun-control policies helps reduce crime which is related to the abuse of firearms and therefore saving more lives While opponents of gun control affirm that decent citizens need adequate means to defend themselves against crime with illegal arms and so that minimal restrictions on guns will result in safer communities On the international scale, the intensity of gun-control affairs seems to differ among nations Most countries have strict gun-control regulations Japan has great restrictions on the possession and use of all firearms except in limited instances (e.g., hunting, athletic events, and research) Canada permits the possession and use of firearms for competitions and target practice, but it forbids the possession of handguns unless an individual can prove that a pistol is needed for self-defense The United Kingdom has banned handguns altogether and limits the possession of firearms to activities such as hunting, target shooting, pest control, and slaughtering Meanwhile, Germany permits the ownership of certain firearms so long as an individual meets the requirements for a firearms ownership license, which include that the applicant be age 18 or older and have expert knowledge in the handling of firearms and have the necessity to possess such firearms By sharp contrast, the USA constitutionally protects the possession of guns among citizens Ironically, it is also the country where murders (including mass murders) with gun related are extremely common, placing it in the number one position among developed countries with highest homicide-byfirearm rate Objective & Scope The purpose of this report is, firstly, to give an extensive overview around the issue of gun control, in the USA in particular, through data and statistics about gun ownership and gun-related crime or homicide cases Secondly, it will provide a scrutinized and logical discussion in the light of ethics and morality over the matter of whether gun control will the USA more good than bad, save more lives or make more space for criminals 4|Page This is a preview Do you want full access? 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Log in Ethical Perspective: Gun control in the United States For the scope of the report, it will have inclusively gun-related data and figures inside the border of the United States Therefore, any analysis and discussion for the data over gun control will only regard the issue in the USA However, this matter can be broader and ethical review may go beyond the United States so that a comprehensive and objective point of view can be held Report outline This report discusses the moral perspective of non-police and non-military American possessing guns, and is divided into main sections The opening section is the Introduction, provides a brief summary and some background information about guns and gun control in the United States and other countries It also contains the objective and scope of the report The second section is about the reality of gun usage and firearm control policies in the United States This section is divided into smaller parts, each part briefly covers different aspects of gun-related problems in the United States The third section discusses the gun control problems in the United States through the moral viewpoint of the main theories of normative ethics, which are Consequentialism, Non-consequentialism, and Virtue Ethics; after providing general understanding about each theory In the last section of the report, the whole report is summarized to give an conclusion, and some solutions are suggested in order to assist the gun problems in the United States 5|Page Ethical Perspective: Gun control in the United States GUN CONTROL PROBLEMS IN AMERICA Gun culture in America Guns have always been a tool of power for Americans since the white people used them to subdue the native Americans and keep the African Americans as slaves Guns have increasingly become a national emblem for several decades following the American revolution from 1775 to 1783 The National Rifles Association (NRA) is the strongest pro-gun political lobby in the US with an annual budget of $250 billion This gun “control” advocacy group, since its founding in 1871, has more than million dues-paying members The love for guns in American history is also deeply rooted in the infamous image from the 1999 annual conference of the NRA, where Hollywood actor Charlton Heston was seen holding a rifle aloft and standing on the podium The vocal and aggressive spokesman of NRA had said that he would surrender his gun when it was “pried from my cold, dead hands” Besides, former vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin, late actor Charlton Heston and even former US president George H.W Bush have been members of the NRA Following the deadly shooting at the Columbine High School in suburban Denver in 1999, Heston had taken a defiant stand against gun-control laws and said his NRA “wasn't the villain in the High School massacre” 1.1 The prevalence of guns Guns are part of a deep political divide in American society The more guns a person owns, the more likely they are to oppose gun control legislation, and the more likely they are to vote for Republican candidates In 2020, 44% of American households reported owning at least one firearm According to the 2018 international study Small Arms Survey, there were approximately 393 million firearms in civilian hands in the USA, or 120.5 firearms per 100 people That number is likely higher now, given increases in gun sales in 2019, 2020 and 2021 6|Page Ethical Perspective: Gun control in the United States Americans have owned guns since colonial times, but American gun culture really took off after the Civil War with the imagery, icons, and tales – or mythology – of the lawless frontier and the Wild West Frontier mythology, which celebrates and exaggerates the amount and significance of gunfights and vigilantism, began with 19th-century Western paintings, popular dime novels and traveling Wild West shows by Buffalo Bill Cody and others It continues to this day with Western-themed shows on streaming networks such as “Yellowstone” and “Walker.” 1.2 A marketing move Historian Pamela Haag attributes much of the country’s gun culture to that Western theme Before the middle of the 19th century, she writes, guns were common in American society, but were unremarkable tools used by a wide range of people in a growing nation But then gun manufacturers Colt and Winchester started marketing their firearms by appealing to customers’ sense of adventure and the romance of the frontier In the mid-19th century, the gun manufacturers began advertising their guns as a way people all around the country could connect with the excitement of the West, with its Indian wars, cattle drives, cowboys and gold and silver boomtowns Winchester’s slogan was “The Gun That Won the West,” but Haag argues that it was really “the West that won the gun.” By 1878, this theme was so successful that Colt’s New York City distributor recommended the company market the 44-40 caliber version of its Model 1873 single-action revolver as the “Frontier Six Shooter” to appeal to the public’s growing fascination with the Wild West Gun laws in the history of America Gun control has been a prevailing problem for a long time in the United States Throughout its long history, the USA governments have been implementing many policies in attempts to address the gun issues In 1971, ten amendments to the U.S Constitution, eventually known as the Bill of Rights, were ratified The second of them said: “A well-regulated Militia, being 7|Page Ethical Perspective: Gun control in the United States midpoint between excess and deficit, the virtuous life is defined by the moderation in all things Modern day Virtue Ethics theory has inherited greatly from the initiating theory of Aristotle Morality must include motives, emotions, intentions, and moral wisdom A moral action must originate from appropriate feelings and motives, taking into account all the factors of the situation Virtue ethicists consider their virtue not only a characteristic trait, but an essential part of human’s happiness and flourishing They look for the supreme examples of the virtue (for example of kindness, there are Buddha, Jesus, Santa Claus, etc.), focus on those examples to train and practice their virtue, to make moral decisions and to judge the rightness of the actions of others There appears to be a circular though process where virtue is defined by right actions, and the right actions are determined by virtue This circular though process is believed to unable to provide adequate guidance about how to ethically response in some particular situations Because of that, Virtue Ethics theory is often considered not to be useful, despite the fact that the theory fit with people’s commonsense about moral decision making However, Virtue theorists can still follow their maxim consistently and apply the Virtue Ethics theory effectively, as they hold the opinion that the guidance in moral decision making is well available, it exists in the very essence of the statements about virtues 3.2.Theory application Gun problems in the United States involve a whole national population, while Virtue Ethics theory subject to individual’s virtue to make moral decisions or moral judgements, as there are differences in the scope, there are hardly any arguments on gun control policies that based on the theory of Virtue Ethics Having a gun is not necessarily included in the characteristic traits that Aristotle believed to be covered by moral virtue, which are fairness, benevolence, honesty, loyalty conscientiousness, and courage Additionally, when subject to the “Golden Mean” notion of Aristotle, owning a gun can be considered as at the extreme end of the potential dangerousness of people, not so moderate However, people having a gun for legal and reasonable reasons indeed make their life happier and better, as they worry less about being 26 | P a g e This is a preview Do you want full access? 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Log in Ethical Perspective: Gun control in the United States caught up in crime scenes or improve themselves through sport shooting and hunting for example In this case, some points in the Virtue Ethics theory of Aristotle are not satisfied, so it is hard to exactly determine whether carrying a gun is ethical or not by Aristotle’s theory It can be said that owning a gun is not unethical Apply the Virtue Ethics theory to mass shooting cases, it is obvious that those action is wrong Open fire in the public is not moderation by any means, it is the very end of cruelty of people behavior Those criminal actions are also not made anybody flourish The actions may bring contemporary to the shooters, but they are either often caught by the police forces or found dead by suicide or retaliating fire Ended up in jail or dead is obviously not a happy life In addition, gun-related incidents are also judged immoral in modern Virtue Ethics, since either the intention or motive of the doers are evil In case of the gun control policies, the policymakers must have clear intention to reduce the quantity of gun-related death and maintain the peace of the society; along with improving social well-being as the motivation Wisdom is also required so that the policies are reasonable to everyone and not being too extreme in any aspect Conclusion Normative ethics contains theories that are applied to judge the morality of an action There are main pillar theories of normative ethics: Consequentialism, Nonconsequentialism, and Virtue Ethics Each theories possess their own values and criteria but are not distinct with each other Consideration over particular moral situation can se more than on theory, and the decision in the viewpoint of one theory often contain some elements of the other two That is, there are interactions between the three major theories Consequentialism judges the rightness of an action based on its results, an action is right if it creates the best balance of good over bad Consequentialism often comes in two forms: ethical egoism theory prioritizes individual’s own interest and aim to achieve the best outcome for that person; while utilitarianism apply to everybody equally and aim to bring the best consequences for all involved people The 27 | P a g e This is a preview Do you want full access? 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Log in Ethical Perspective: Gun control in the United States theories of Consequentialism can simplify the process of making moral decisions into calculating the consequences of available methods Non-consequentialism, or Deontology, not judge an action on its results, but by the nature of the action itself A right action is the one that follow the obligation There are two most influential theories of Deontology with different define of the obligation that one should follow Kant’s theory considers the most essential component of an ethical action is “good will”, a will to follow the duties simply because they are duties A right action must always include the good will, without it the action is deemed unethical even if it fit the moral codes On the other hand, natural laws theory says that the obligation that people should follow can be interpreted from the natural development of things Deontology theories are not situational, they provide concrete guidance about how to make moral decision, simply following the obligations Virtue Ethics seems to be the most abstract among the major theories of normative ethics According to this theory, an action is permissible if it comes from virtue Virtue is the characteristic trait of individual that represent the model of excellence, people tend to follow this trait when they act or feel Virtue Ethics decisions and judgements are personal opinions, even though they seem to go along with people’s commonsense, the theories are considered not so useful by many people Guns have been deep-rooted in the rich culture and history of the United States Many American carry firearm with them for many reasons After considering the matter of people possessing guns through the lens of the major normative ethics theories, the conclusion is that possessing gun is not unethical It cannot be claimed that possessing guns is totally ethical, as there exist some contradictory in the arguments from some theories Virtue Ethics for instance, carrying a powerful weapon means the extreme of dangerousness, not the moderation, yet many people still accept that Another matter of gun problems in the United States is the increasing number of gun-related death, which has the positive correlation with the availability of firearm in the society Those incidents may come from intentions that the doers convince 28 | P a g e This is a preview Do you want full access? 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Log in Ethical Perspective: Gun control in the United States themselves to be right, for example religious reasons or to stop other crimes Even if the motivation or intention is right to the doers, it does not get the agreement and understanding of others Through any theories, it is not so hard to overwhelm the doer’s struggle of justification and determine that the actions are immoral There are report about large numbers of gun-related death every year in the United States, yet people not feel any strong ethical repulsion toward the matter of possessing guns The governments must take actions in order to preserve the peace of the society Gun control policies should be implemented, however, it is next to impossible to design laws that can get agreement from all three major normative ethical theories, as there are contrasting viewpoints So the problem is how should the laws be designed to fit most of the ethics theories In the field of Consequentialism, the most dominant theory in arguments about the gun control policies, there exist contrasting ideas which are will the number of mass shooting or gun-related casualty decrease by whether limiting or allowing civil citizen carry firearm And without decisive evidence, this is a huge and hard-to-overcome hindrance in the way to imply highly effective polices on gun problems Subject to other theories, the policies must be designed to bring the peace to the society, be applied to every American citizen, and be reasonable in any aspect with the least trade-off prices 29 | P a g e This is a preview Do you want full access? 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Log in Ethical Perspective: Gun control in the United States SUMMARY Guns are powerful, convenient, easy to shoot and easy to acquire in the United States Guns have deep connection with the history of the US and have been an important part of the United States culture Those elements make gun very dangerous, widespread and have caused uncountable number of gun-related death and gun-related incidents in this country The government of the US already implied some policies to control the accessibilities to firearms, in order to maintain peace by prevent any more public mass shootings and other similar incidents from happening The demand for stricter gun control have risen up every time a mass shooting occurred The US government have been improving their gun-related laws from 1791 till today, yet the policies efficiency seems to be insufficient as the rate of gun-related death is still high, and even rising as the time went by In modern days, there are still contrasting views of Democrat party and Republican party in the matter of gun control laws We provide discussion about the ethical view of gun control problems in the United States through the major viewpoints of normative ethics theories, which are Consequentialism, Non-consequentialism and Virtue Ethics These theories have their distinctive value and criteria to judge the morality of actions, and for moral decision making, but often intertwine with each other in any case of consideration Consequentialism focus solely on the outcome of the action to determine if it is ethical or not, that is, a right action is the one that lead to the best balance of good over bad On the other hand, Non-consequentialism, or Deontology not concern the final outcome, but judge the action in its nature, that is, an ethical action must follow the obligation Virtue Ethics theory is more abstract than other two theories, as its central concern is virtue, a characteristic trait that represents the model of excellence and be the tendency that people follow when they think of something In Virtue Ethics, a right action must come from individual’s virtue Virtue Ethics is considered not as useful as the other two ethics theories After applying different ethical theories, it is concluded that the matter of American possessing guns is not unethical There are still some contradictories in the 30 | P a g e This is a preview Do you want full access? 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Log in Ethical Perspective: Gun control in the United States arguments of some theories, so that claiming the matter being totally right is unreasonable On the other hand, in cases of gun-related incidents, the criminal may have some way to justify their actions and convince themselves that their doing is for good purposes That is, in the viewpoint of Deontology, their motives or purposes seem to be right, but only to themselves However, there are many holes in the justifications that can be used to counter them, so in general, the actions of using guns to bring about death is wrong Within the society of America where gun-related death and gun-related incidents happen in large quantity, gun control policies should be implemented However, the laws itself will violate some elements of some ethical theories, so it is almost impossible to fit all three normative ethics theories altogether In order to maintain peace in the society and reduce the rate of gun-related death, the gun control laws should be established, nevertheless Since meeting all the moral theories is next to impossible, the laws must minimize the violation of ethical theories, that is, laws that are applied to every citizen of the United States, are reasonable to everyone and not too extreme in any aspect, with the lowest trade-off prices Stopping gun violence in all its forms through a multifaceted public health approach Gun violence is a complex issue requiring many approaches to its prevention We are committed to evidence-based policies, programs, and practices and ensuring that all these preventative measures are designed and implemented equitably We also suggest some solutions to help addressing the gun problems in the United States Apply the public health approach for effective gun violence prevention Fund and conduct gun violence research, which is fundamental for effective gun violence prevention Enact and implement policies, programs, and practices that create time and space between individuals who may be at risk of suicide and firearms Enact and implement policies, programs, and practices that reduce easy access to firearms by people at risk of interpersonal violence and invest in interventions that address the root causes of gun violence in structurally disadvantaged communities 31 | P a g e This is a preview Do you want full access? 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Log in Ethical Perspective: Gun control in the United States Expand both federal and state domestic violence firearm prohibitions to reduce abusers’ access to firearms and improve collection and reporting of domestic violence related data Enact and implement policies that reduce easy access to firearms by people at elevated risk of interpersonal violence and ban assault weapons and large capacity magazines that increase lethality in mass shootings Implement programs and practices that promote safer firearm storage and handling Train healthcare professionals on lethal means safety counseling so they are prepared to ask patients about firearm access and provide effective and respectful counseling when appropriate Enact and implement a true universal background check law that requires background checks on all gun sales and transfers, including private and online sales, and eliminate “default proceed” sales 10 Enact and implement state extreme risk laws to prevent tragedy before it occurs and support robust implementation through federal funding 11 Reinstate the federal ban on assault weapons and large capacity magazines In the absence of federal action, states should continue to enact and implement assault weapons and large capacity magazine bans 12 Focus gun violence prevention policies on evidence-based risk factors, not mental illness Use appropriate language and avoid harmful stereotypes 32 | P a g e This is a preview Do you want full access? 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Log in Ethical Perspective: Gun control in the United States REFERENCE Anna Brown, J Baxter Oliphant, Julianna Menasce Horowitz, Kim Parker, Ruth Igielnik (2017) America’s Complex Relationship With Guns Pew Research Center Accessed on 11/13/2022 EFSGV (2021) Gun Violence in the United States Accessed on 11/13/2022 Katherine Schaeffer (2021) Key facts about Americans and guns Pew Research Center Accessed on 11/13/2022 Lewis Vaughn (2019) Doing Ethics: Moral Reasoning and Contemporary Issues W W Norton & Company New York Pierre M Atlas (2022) American gun culture is based on frontier mythology – but ignores how common gun restrictions were in the Old West The Conversation Accessed on 11/13/2022 Ted Van Green (2021) Wide differences on most gun policies between gun owners and non-owners, but also some agreement Pew Research Center Accessed on 11/13/2022 33 | P a g e