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Essay / The Issue of Gun Control at Bowling for Columbine
The topic of gun control has been a mainstay in the United States for over twenty years now; continues to grow with each shooting covered by national television. Coming from a family that had no guns in the home, I never saw the need for people to own guns that looked like they were stolen from a gun store. Although many people have contributed to the gun control debate, renowned documentarian Michael Moore does his best to gather information in his documentary Bowling for Columbine. Even though this documentary is more than fifteen years old, it still seems relevant today. With Moore's assertions about how America's gun problem is tied to fear, media coverage, and violent history, Moore is able to draw the viewer in for two entertaining hours. The question, however, is whether Moore provides enough information to support the claims being made, or whether he is simply trying to steer the audience in a certain direction. Say no to plagiarism. Get a Custom Essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the Original EssayThe United States always seems to live in fear. With animation that shows fear as the reason we formed our country, Moore really makes the case to the audience why so many people own guns in the United States. He even goes so far as to compare Canadians to American citizens. He does this by seeing how many houses in a populated area of Canada lock their doors, which, to his surprise, is not many. Yet only 7% of Americans don't lock their doors. Why then? Is it because Americans are afraid of being robbed? Among gun owners in the United States, 67 percent said they own guns for protection, so this could be the case. I believe Moore makes a good point with this statement and supports it well with his investigation. When you turn on the television, what do you see? I mostly see stories about someone being shot in the street or someone trying to rob a gas station with a gun. I never see stories about local pollution. Moore highlights this problem with the media in his documentary when he speaks to a reporter and asks why they aren't covering the story of the poor welfare system in Flint, Michigan. The journalist immediately closes the van door and refuses to answer the question. According to Valerie J. Callanan, "the media plays a major role in defining social conditions as problems and influencing individuals' perceptions of reality." I don't believe the only thing happening in our country is gun related, but that's what the media claims. If people only rely on what the media and news say, they will constantly be shown how "dangerous" the United States is and will instill fear in people's minds. The United States also has something to worry about, and the majority of the time we "solve" the problem by doing something violent. Moore points this out in an animated short that shows how we “solved” the Native American problem by killing them all with guns. It is also clear that guns played a role in keeping African Americans and Hispanics “in their place,” as Clayton E. Cramer stated. However, violence and guns don't always solve America's problems. As Andrew F. Krepinevich stated, "the United States may consider Vietnam.