Gun Control, Is It A Popular Issue/Solution?
             The gun control issue apparently isn't a top concern with most American citizens today. This could be because most people realize the gun isn't the problem causing crime today and therefore restricting it further would not be the solution.
             From 1993 through 2001, when asked the question, "What do you think are the two most important issues for the government to address?", only one half percent to four percent of adults polled spontaneously mentioned gun control as an important issue. Between the years 2001 and 2003, the response was between less than one half percent to one percent (Harris). If this issue was such a great concern to the American people, these results would show a much higher percentage of the people voicing their opinions that it should be addressed by the government. These results show that citizens feel there are greater, more important issues that need to be addressed by the government than gun control. Issues ranking much higher than gun control include the economy, the war, and health care (Harris).
             There is a higher number of violent crimes committed with firearms each year than violent crimes committed with other weapons. However, violent crimes are committed using other weapons such as knives and sharp objects or blunt objects. From 1993 to 2001, about twenty-six percent of the approximate 8.9 million violent crimes in
             the United States were committed by offenders armed with guns, knives or other objects used as weapons. Firearms were used in ten percent of these crimes, but six percent were committed with a knife or other sharp object such as scissors or a broken bottle, four percent were committed with a blunt object such as a brick or bat, and five percent were committed with other, undetermined objects used as weapons (Harlow).
             These statistics show that although the firearm use in violent crimes is higher, other weapons can b...