How to make current handgun control laws stronger, and more Research Proposal

How to make current handgun control laws stronger, and more enforceable - Research Proposal Example Instead it offer an umbrella protection to everyone by making laws which are definitely worth their weight in gold but are not actually imposed by all states. The gaps between state and federal gun control laws make the problem even worse. Federal gun control policy is simple: firearms must not reach irresponsible or dangerous people. This approach is particularly uncontroversial and hence approved by most quarters. Some of the key laws in this regard are the 1968 law passed in response to the killing of Robert Kennedy, the federal law prohibiting sale of firearm without background check, and prohibition on sales to illegal aliens. These laws should have been good enough to stop some incidents like the Virginia Tech massacre but the reason they failed lies in gaps existing between state and federal laws. Due to these gaps, Seung-Hui Cho was never reported to the federal police as he has already been termed mentally ill. According to 1968 federal law, people who are "adjudicated as a mental defective" are prohibited from possessing firearms. This is probably the most significant piece of legislation on gun control in last 50 years. Even though attempts have been made to pass other laws too, none have been as significan t in their impact as the Gun Control Act of 1968. The main objectives of the Act were as follows: (1) Eliminating the interstate traffic in firearms and ammunition that had previously frustrated state and local efforts to license, register, or restrict ownership of guns. (2) Denying access to firearms to certain congressionally defined groups, including minors, convicted felons, and persons who had been adjudicated as mental defectives or committed to mental institutions. (3) Ending the importation of all surplus military firearms and all other guns unless certified by the Secretary of the Treasury as "particularly suitable for ... sporting purposes."2 The country needs stricter gun control laws but a recent US Supreme Court decision may give another message. In June 2008, US Supreme court gave an emphatic nod to firearm owners when it overturned a Washington DC ban on possession of guns. No other recent decision was as vital in significance as this one since it offered an interpretation of the Second Amendment and also explained how constitution treats the subject. In writing the majority opinion, Justice Scalia, ruled that the Constitute does not infer "the absolute prohibition of handguns held and used for self-defense in the home.3" For this reason gun control laws are definitely one of the most controversial issues in the country. Even though we acknowledge the need for stricter gun control laws, the Supreme Court interpretations of the Constitutions and other rights, often create a hurdle for the implementation and passing of these laws. Jenson (2007) writes: "Gun control legislation has had a long and inconsistent history in the United States. Congress first passed laws controlling firearms in the early 20th century. Throughout the past century, the issue has been debated frequently by opponents and proponents. Each side has used a different interpretation of the Second Amendment of the Constitution, a provision giving citizens the right to bear arms, to boost its arguments for or against gun control.

Macroeconomic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Macroeconomic - Essay Example The volatility in the expenditures made by the consumers can be explained by the volatility in the terms of trade. The economy of Australia can be characterized by less volatile terms of trade after the period of 1980s. It can be judged that economic growth shares close association with terms of trade. An economy moving along the growth curve is expected to witness terms of trade while the economy under the growth curve will face the declining terms of trade line. Question a The global prices of the exports as well as the imports and the goods basket offered to the consumers are the two prime components that make up the terms of trade. Australia can be treated to be the country that has the potential to affect the world prices of the goods. The terms of trade can also get influenced by the geographic boundary of an economy. Coal is abundant in the country and therefore Australia engages itself in coal export (Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, 2011). A rise in the prices of coa l relatively to the prices of the other ICT goods will shed the effect in rising the terms of trade. The exchange rate of the economy and the terms of trade are closely associated. The nominal exchange rate got reduced being the resultant of financial crisis of 1990s. The influences with the geographical boundaries can play a part in volatility of import prices but the prices of the exports are influenced only by changes in world prices of the goods. In the short time period the fall of imports are steeper than the price of exports. The unstable growth in productivity in the sectors of tradable or non tradable goods played a part in boosting the exchange rate. The phase after the 1980s led to rapid productivity growth in the sectors of finance as well as insurance. The inflows of capital paved the way for strengthening of the U.S. dollar and this can be accounted to be the second factor. In the short run the exchange rate remained lower than the market rate. The economic growth rema ined at more or less at relatively stable state as the volatility in terms of trade played a major role. The less volatility in the terms of trade also contributed in keeping the rate of inflation at a lower level. In the initial phases of the new millennium the terms of trade began to rise. Over the last decade and a half Australia shifted from exporting price impulsive properties towards exports of goods whose price can be anticipated. Australia now engages itself in exporting the rural goods. It offers a wide variety of goods for export and experts are of the opinion that the export of the rural goods is an effective strategy for the country as exports of such goods can be assumed to capture a proportion of foreign market (Australian Government Productivity Commission, 2012). Therefore foreign capital will plight in into the country. The exports of the rural goods have taken the steep rising curve over the course of time and the exports of the goods comprises of vegetables and da iry products. Question b The terms of trade is influenced by the factors that are summarized below. The fluctuation in the levels of demand on the global platform The shocks in the market of commodities Globalization shock The fluctuations in the levels of demand on the global arena and the shocks on the commodity markets plays their part in raising the prices of the