Las Vegas Shooting Essay
Las Vegas shooting has become one more terror attack that has revealed pitfalls in the national security system of the US. The shooting has revealed the failure of the US law enforcement agencies and the Department of Homeland Security to prevent terror attacks that may cause dozens of victims. At the same time, Las Vegas shooting has revealed a number of fundamental problems that still remain unaddressed and are highly controversial, such as the problem of the gun control, domestic terrorism, and the role of law enforcement and national security agencies.
Las Vegas shooting was the terror attack committed by one person only, who carefully planned the attack and conducted the attack during the concert. Casualties of the attack exceed 50 persons. However, the number of victims is much larger since much more people feel being insecure in their own country because the shooting can occur anywhere and anytime. Ironically, the US Department of Homeland Security focused on the international terrorism as the major threat, while Las Vegas shooting has proved that the domestic terrorism is still the major threat to the public safety. In a way, the domestic terrorism is more dangerous than the international one because, as was the case of Las Vegas shooter, because domestic terrorism do not have extensive international network that may be traced, identified and destroyed by the US intelligence and law enforcement agencies. Domestic terrorists are more dangerous because they are more difficult to identify. Their goals are unclear and it is difficult to forecast, where they may strike and why. The lack of understanding of their motives is one of the major problems that makes it difficult to identify them and detain them to prevent their terror attacks. For example, motives and goals of Las Vegas shooter are still unclear and no one can be certain what his motives and goals were. In case of the international terrorism, motives and goals are more or less understandable, like radical Islamism fighting against the US domination in the world and challenge of traditional Muslim values, for example. This is why the domestic terrorism is a serious threat to the US public safety and national security. The US Department of Homeland Security and law enforcement agencies cannot address this threat effectively so far.
In response to such threats, appeals to introduce changes in the US legislation emerge. The ban of the right to bear weapon and the consistent enhancement of rights of law enforcement agencies are among the most popular appeals that emerge after terror attacks like the one in Las Vegas. Proponents of the ban of the right to bear weapon insist that the easy access to weapon for any citizen of the US is one of the major risk factors that results in mass shootings. As people have easy access to weapon, they can buy weapon freely but the system of control over their further use is ineffective because it fails to prevent the misuse of weapon and the use of weapon for mass shooting. On the other hand, a large part of the US society opposes to such legal change because it offends their constitutional right to bear weapon granted by the Fourth Amendment to the US Constitution. Americans believe that their right to bear weapon is the guarantee of their safety and safety of their families and property.
The enhancement of law enforcement agencies is also justified by concerns to enhance the public safety. However, such idea also has many opponents because the expansion of rights and enhancement of law enforcement agencies because people are not fully confident in the police, while the expansion of their rights is perceived by the public as the threat to their privacy and other rights.
