K. D. Lunneborg - Persuasive Speech: Gun Control

November 10, 2025

This is a longer speech that I gave for my Rhetoric I class at Wittenberg. This one’s a persuasive speech which means that I finally got to take down the bad arguments. Enjoy!

Karl Lunneborg

Rhetoric I – M25

Fr. Cain

11 November 2025

Persuasive Speech

Recorded Video:
25-11-10 Persuasive Speech.mp4

Manuscript:

As we have seen in recent years, the laws that implement gun control have become hotly debated. Gun control, according to the NRA-ILA, “is an umbrella term that refers to laws and ordinances that restrict how law-abiding citizens can buy, own, or use firearms.” While many people will cite the undeniable tragedy of shootings, the larger problem here is that the people who would carry guns are restricted from carrying guns, and those are the same people who would protect innocents around them. I’d like to explain the arguments on each side, and then show you why gun control is bad for everyone.

There are two main arguments around gun control, of course, the proponents and the opponents. Each of them have their arguments, and I’ve looked into both, and divided them into four segments: the problem that they see, the cause, the cure, and the cost to implement this cure. The proponents bring up the problem as mass shootings, suicides, and murders that happen every single year. The cause for the proponents is that it is too easy to get and carry guns. So basically they’re saying that we have these mass shootings, suicides, and murders every year because the current laws make it too easy to get a gun. To solve this problem, they suggest that we pass legislation to restrict guns more, including red flag laws, universal background checks, etc. The cost that they see is that, well, it would merely be harder to get guns. This is all they see. And if it were only harder to get guns, then, well, these gun control laws might not be so bad. However, there are some unseen parts to their argument. I will give an overview of the opponents argument first.

The problem that the opponents see is that the good guys don’t have a way to protect themselves or those around them. The reason for this is that it is too hard to get and carry guns. It’s interesting, that the cause here is the same cost that the proponents are suggesting. I will let you come to your own conclusions on that point. The cure for this is to allow open and concealed carry under constitutional carry laws, not require universal background checks. The cost here is that there is potential for more mass shootings, suicides, and murders, due to how easy it would be to get and carry guns.

Again, I mentioned there were some unseen parts to the proponents’ argument. These lie in their cost and their cause. When I say ‘unseen,’ I am referring to the parts of their argument that are present, but are not said. The fault of an argument will usually be hidden in these unseen parts. The seen and spoken cause, if you remember, of the proponents’ side is that it is too easy to get and carry guns. The flip side to this argument is that criminals are not afraid to murder people, because there’s going to be no one around to stop them. If there are no guns for law abiding citizens, then the lawbreakers are going to procure those guns and use them against the law abiding citizens. The unseen cost to the proponents’ cause is that it will be easier for criminals to get away with murders, because, again, it will be unlikely that there will be armed citizens around to stop them. We have also seen this happen in Great Britain, with over five thousand firearm offences, even with their strict gun control policies.

Most gun control laws that people are working on enacting today are focused on purchasing restrictions. These include red flag laws and universal background checks, among others. Right now, I’d like to only focus on those two, primarily the latter. Red flag laws might seem to be a good idea at first, but they can be misused. There are no restraints on enacting these red flag laws, allowing them to be used without good cause. You see, red flag laws are laws that stop the mentally ill, people in a bad place, etc.; those people who probably shouldn’t have their hands on a gun at that moment, these laws stop them from buying a gun. However, there are no checks and balances with these laws, and without that, it’s really hard to rely on these laws.

The universal background checks are another issue. If you were to go to a gun shop today and purchase a gun, you would already have a background check. However, ‘universal’ means that even private sales would need background checks. Background checks are all well and good, but not reliable enough to be necessary in all cases. The NRA-ILA points out that background checks still won’t stop people who haven’t committed a crime before, even if they are looking to do exactly that. They also won’t stop the mentally ill if they haven’t received treatment before. Nowadays, a lot of them haven’t. David Kopel, in an essay for the CATO Institute, brings up the point that there is no practical way to force a rancher and his neighbor to drive into town, however far away that might be, and process the transaction of transferring a gun. He also mentions that this has been tried in Canada, but it did not work out. And if you what kind of country America is, you know that there is no chance of Americans being more willing than Canadians to give up their rights. On top of this, one must think of what a criminal essentially is. A criminal is one who breaks laws. Therefore, it should be obvious that anyone willing and ready to commit a crime with a gun will not care if their procurement of a gun is also illegal.

For gun owners, gun control is going to lead to more restrictions, not only in buying guns, but likely later for owning them. These laws might not affect you; for now, at least. A foot in the door, so to speak, is all the government needs to seize your possessions, and the case is no different concerning these laws. In the future, these laws on purchasing will probably turn into laws on owning, as we have seen in other countries. If you are a gun owner, I highly encourage you to support your second amendment right to bear arms, and help get like minded people into legislative roles so we can preserve this right.

As an average, non-armed citizen, you might think that gun control will not affect you or you daily life. In a way, this is true. You probably won’t see the immediate effects of gun control in your day-to-day shopping trip, walk to the park, or life in your home. However, gun control still has a good chance of affecting you, especially as it grows more and more restrictive. By continually making it harder to get a gun, good guys are not able to protect the innocent people around them. Studies have shown that there are at least sixty thousand times a year that armed citizens use guns defensively.

In conclusion, all this shows that gun control, whether in the form of red flag laws, universal background checks, or something else, is bad for gun owners, armed civilians, and unarmed civilians alike. They make it harder for good guys to procure guns so they may protect the innocents around them, as well as themselves. They can and will also lead to more restrictive laws, even on owning guns, as we have seen in other countries. Universal background checks don’t work reliably enough to try and force people to go out of their way so that private transactions have background checks as well. Because of this, I encourage you, whether you own guns or not, to do all that you can to help protect our second amendment rights to bear arms.

Bibliography:

NRA-ILA. “Why Gun Control Doesn’t Work.” NRA-ILA, 2025, www.nraila.org/why-gun-control-doesn-t-work/. Accessed 10 Nov. 2025.

Kopel, David. “The Costs and Consequences of Gun Control.” Cato Institute, 1 Dec. 2015, www.cato.org/policy-analysis/costs-consequences-gun-control. Accessed 10 Nov. 2025.

Doughlas. “Defensive Gun Use in the US.” 2A Firearms Academy, 27 July 2025, www.2afirearmsacademy.com/defensive-gun-use-statistics/. Accessed 10 Nov. 2025.

theworldstatisticswebsite@gmail.com. “Gun Crime Statistics in UK 2025 | Key Facts – the World Data.” -, 4 Nov. 2025, theworlddata.com/gun-crime-statistics-in-uk/. Accessed 10 Nov. 2025.