Violence and Mental Illness

After having read/listened to the four articles, I developed the stance that it would be best to remove the second amendment right from mentally ill people, who are diagnosed as potentially violent or self-harming. The main article that dealt with this point of view was "Please Take Away My Right to a Gun" by Wendy Button. The article explained that she struggles with depression and when it hits, she can feel suicidal. She states that possessing a gun would make it just that much easier and more tempting to commit suicide. By taking away that easily accessible weapon, there is a significantly less chance of her harming herself or anyone else. Button states it simply as this, "I have a better chance of surviving if I never have the option of being able to pull the trigger." In my opinion this is a mindset/concept that can extend beyond mental illness as well. There aren't any strong cases to support the second amendment anymore, and nearly all homicides are performed with guns. Personally I wouldn't be opposed to removing the second amendment rights of all people, but I realize that such a drastic change would never happen. Taking guns out of the hands of mentally ill people, however, is something that can and should happen. It is an unecessary temptation that is bound to lead to trouble.

The Cask of Amontillado shows that mental illness and madness in general can cause little things to drive someone over the top. This is expressed in the story when the narrator states that Fortunado had insulted him a "thousand times". It is probable that he is exaggerating a great deal, and that Fortunado may have unintentionally said something that angered the narrator. I think that the Cask of Amontillado simply assumes that mentally ill people overthink things that are said or done. This leads them to feeling as if they had been insulted and shamed by that person.

While in some cases this may be true, I think that the story exentuates this more than is realistic. Most people wouldn't kill someone over a simple insult.