To what extent is gun control a priority?

More people have been killed by guns than by terrorist attacks
• Some argue that constitutional rights should not be set in stone; they
should be relevant to the times we live in
• Most gun violence is inter-communal
• Therefore the real priority is not gun control but the eradication of injustice
and the reduction of ghettos
• The various drug cartels might be seen as the root of the problem
• Violence is normalised in various ways, for example, video games
• Disturbed people would be less likely to acquire guns
• In homes guns can easily fall into the hands of the young
• The gun lobby and vested interests
• Limits to gun control – self-protection, hunting, other sports

‘People’s views matter as little in a democracy as in a one-party state.’ How far do you agree?

Points for whether people’s views matter as little in a democracy

Consensus politics reduces the scope for change
• Public apathy
• The electoral system ensures that a truly popular government is unlikely
• Community involvement is often negligible
• Powerful interest groups are unchallenged
• The interests and needs of minorities are unrepresented
• Lack of diversity – women and minority ethnic groups
• General feeling of powerlessness
• If we deserve better, how do we go about achieving it?
• Corruption in public office
• Other views often do not count in one-party states