Gun Control

Internet censorship

Is the American war on terror justified?

Should grading system in schools be abolished?

HSEE

WikiLeaks:
High-tech terrorists? Or journalists?

By Alan Shapiro

To the Teacher:

Examine the actions of Julian Assange and WikiLeaks, the online organization he heads. The first student reading below provides samples of some widely publicized documents released by WikiLeaks; the second offers multiple and competing views of Assange and WikiLeaks; the third answers some basic questions about the organization and what they and the editors of the New York Times say about their handling of the WikiLeaks materials. Discussion questions and subjects for class debate follow.

Pros and Cons of Censorship

Censorship is prevalent in the modern society. It is a highly divisive issue. Here's a look at its pros and cons.

Censorship is the control of information and ideas in a society. Both democratic and non-democratic countries use it. With the explosion of communication technology, it has become all-pervasive. There is a dispute as to whether censorship is good or bad.

The government has the right to control or censor the internet.

Same-sex prom date:
A civil liberties issue

by Alan Shapiro

A Very Controversial Health Insurance Law

by Alan Shapiro

To the Teacher:

Introduction
Gun control
Context
Gun laws vary widely from country to country, so this topic focuses upon arguments for tightening gun laws in principle. Particular debates might centre upon different categories of guns (for example automatic weapons, handguns or shotguns), licensing requirements for ownership, the right to carry concealed weapons, or requirements that manufacturers increase the safety features on their weapons. The USA is exceptional in protecting the right to own firearms in the Second Amendment to its Constitution, and gun control has been a major issue in American politics over the last few years, partly due to a series of tragic massacres involving children.

WHAT DEGREE OF GUN CONTROL SHOULD WE HAVE ?

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NO ONE BUT LAW ENFORCEMENT SHOULD HAVE GUNS
BACKGROUND CHECKS AND HAND GUNS AND ASSAULT RIFLES SHOULD BE COMPLETELY BANNED
BACKGROUND CHECKS AND MAKE IT ILLEGAL TO OWN ASSAULT GUNS WITHOUT A PERMIT, ILLEGAL FOR FELONS TO HAVE ANY GUNS, AND ILLEGAL FOR PEOPLE UNDER 21 TO HAVE HANGUNS
NO RESTICTIONS ON GUN OWNERSHIP, EXCEPT FOR

The following list of prohibited persons[3] are ineligible to own firearms under the Gun Control Act of 1968.[4]

  • Those convicted of felonies and certain misdemeanors
  • Fugitives from justice
  • Unlawful users of certain depressant, narcotic, or stimulant drugs
  • Those adjudicated as mental defectives or incompetents or those committed to any mental institution and currently containing a dangerous mental illness.
  • Non-US citizens, unless permanently immigrating into the U.S. or in possession of a hunting license legally issued in the U.S.
  • Illegal Aliens
  • Those who have renounced U.S. citizenship
  • Those persons dishonorably discharged from the Armed Forces
  • Minors defined as under the age of eighteen for long guns and handguns, with the exception of Vermont, eligible at age sixteen.
  • Persons subject to a restraining order
  • Persons convicted in any court of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence (an addition)

Persons under indictment for a crime punishable by imprisonment for more than one year are ineligProvisions of the ban

The Federal Assault Weapons Ban was only a small part (title XI, subtitle A) of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act.

The act created a definition of "assault weapons" and subjected firearms that met that definition to regulation. Nineteen models of firearms were defined by name as being "assault weapons". Various semi-automatic rifles, pistols, and shotguns were classified as "assault weapons" due to having various combinations of features.

The act addressed only semi-automatic firearms, that is, firearms that fire one shot each time the trigger is pulled. Neither the AWB nor its expiration changed the legal status of fully automatic firearms, which fire more than one round with a single trigger-pull; these have been regulated by the National Firearms Act of 1934 and Firearm Owners Protection Act of 1986.

The act separately defined and banned "large capacity ammunition feeding devices", which generally applied to magazines or other ammunition feeding devices with capacities of greater than an arbitrary number of rounds and which up to the time of the act had been considered normal or factory magazines. These ammunition feeding devices were also referred to in the media and popular culture as "high capacity magazines or feeding devices." Depending on the locality and type of firearm, the cutoff between a "normal" capacity and "high" capacity magazine was 3, 7, 10, 12, 15, or 20 rounds. The now defunct federal ban set the limit at 10 rounds.

During the period in which the AWB was in effect, it was illegal to manufacture any firearm that met the law's definition of an "assault weapon" or "large capacity ammunition feeding device", except for export or for sale to a government or law enforcement agency. Possession of illegally imported or manufactured firearms was outlawed as well, but the law did not ban the possession or sale of pre-existing "assault weapons" or previously factory standard magazines which had been legally redefined as "large capacity ammunition feeding devices". This provision for "pre-ban" firearms created a higher price point in the market for such items, which lasted until the ban's sunset.

[edit] Expiration of the ban

Opponents of the ban claimed that its expiration has seen little if any increase in crime, while Senator Feinstein claimed the ban was effective because "It was drying up supply and driving up prices. The number of those guns used in crimes dropped because they were less available."[2] The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) stated it "can in no way vouch for the validity" of Brady Campaign's claim that the ban was responsible for violent crime's decline.[3]

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention studied the "assault weapon" ban and other gun control schemes, and found "insufficient evidence to determine the effectiveness of any of the firearms laws reviewed for preventing violence."[4]

Provisions of the ban

The Federal Assault Weapons Ban was only a small part (title XI, subtitle A) of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act.

The act created a definition of "assault weapons" and subjected firearms that met that definition to regulation. Nineteen models of firearms were defined by name as being "assault weapons". Various semi-automatic rifles, pistols, and shotguns were classified as "assault weapons" due to having various combinations of features.

The act addressed only semi-automatic firearms, that is, firearms that fire one shot each time the trigger is pulled. Neither the AWB nor its expiration changed the legal status of fully automatic firearms, which fire more than one round with a single trigger-pull; these have been regulated by the National Firearms Act of 1934 and Firearm Owners Protection Act of 1986.

The act separately defined and banned "large capacity ammunition feeding devices", which generally applied to magazines or other ammunition feeding devices with capacities of greater than an arbitrary number of rounds and which up to the time of the act had been considered normal or factory magazines. These ammunition feeding devices were also referred to in the media and popular culture as "high capacity magazines or feeding devices." Depending on the locality and type of firearm, the cutoff between a "normal" capacity and "high" capacity magazine was 3, 7, 10, 12, 15, or 20 rounds. The now defunct federal ban set the limit at 10 rounds.

During the period in which the AWB was in effect, it was illegal to manufacture any firearm that met the law's definition of an "assault weapon" or "large capacity ammunition feeding device", except for export or for sale to a government or law enforcement agency. Possession of illegally imported or manufactured firearms was outlawed as well, but the law did not ban the possession or sale of pre-existing "assault weapons" or previously factory standard magazines which had been legally redefined as "large capacity ammunition feeding devices". This provision for "pre-ban" firearms created a higher price point in the market for such items, which lasted until the ban's sunset.

[edit]Expiration of the ban

Opponents of the ban claimed that its expiration has seen little if any increase in crime, while Senator Feinstein claimed the ban was effective because "It was drying up supply and driving up prices. The number of those guns used in crimes dropped because they were less available."[2] The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) stated it "can in no way vouch for the validity" of Brady Campaign's claim that the ban was responsible for violent crime's decline.[3]

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention studied the "assault weapon" ban and other gun control schemes, and found "insufficient evidence to determine the effectiveness of any of the firearms laws reviewed for preventing violence."[4]

  • Arizona Immigration law

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