Why We're Still Arguing About GUN CONTROL: The tragedy in Las Vegas has reignited the debate over America's gun laws.

• Author: Smith, Patricia
• Position: Cover story

The hail of gunfire in Las Vegas went on for a full 10 minutes.

During that time, more than a thousand bullets rained down on a helpless crowd of 22,000 people at an outdoor country music festival. Stephen Paddock, 64, had turned his room on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Hotel into a killing perch. By the time the onslaught ended, 58 people were dead and more than 500 wounded in the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history.

When police finally stormed Paddock's room and discovered that he'd killed himself, they found more than 20 guns, rifle scopes, high-capacity magazines that can hold up to 100 bullets at a time, and at least one bump stock, a device that allows a semiautomatic rifle to fire faster, at a rate similar to that of a fully automatic weapon.

As authorities try to figure out what motivated Paddock, the tragedy has reignited the national debate over the Second Amendment and gun control. The U.S. has more guns per capita than any other developed country--and far more gun violence. The guestion is whether stricter gun control laws would help. Congress, like the nation, has long been divided. Here's what you need to know to understand the ongoing debate.

1 What is gun control?

Gun control is a broad term that covers many kinds of restrictions. It can include regulations on what kinds of firearms can be bought and sold, who can possess or sell them, and where and how they can be stored or carried.

Gun control can involve the responsibilities a seller has to check a buyer's background and whether a gun sale should be reported to the government. The term also covers limits on types of ammunition and the size of magazines (the part of the gun that holds ammunition).

In recent years, gun control debates have focused on three issues:

* background checks for buyers

* the laws regulating who can carry weapons in public

* the kinds of guns and gun accessories available for purchase.

In the aftermath of the Las Vegas shooting, attention has focused not only on assault rifles, which are military-style weapons capable of firing multiple bullets quickly, but also on devices that can be attached to semiautomatic guns to make them fire more quickly.

2 What's the state of federal gun control today?

Federal law prohibits specific groups of people from owning firearms. The list includes convicted felons, those diagnosed with certain types of mental illness, and undocumented immigrants.

Since 1994, licensed gun dealers have been required to conduct background checks on potential buyers through an F.B.I, database. This is meant to prevent the sale of guns to someone who's prohibited from owning one.

But many small-scale gun sellers claim to be "hobbyists," who aren't required to conduct background checks. Because many of these sellers do business at gun shows, this is often referred to as "the gun show loophole." Another problem: Most people with serious mental illness never receive a diagnosis, so they can still own guns legally.

3 Where does the American public stand?

Gun control has long been one of the most sharply divisive issues in the U.S. In general, Democrats and city dwellers tend to favor tighter restrictions on guns. Republicans and people in rural areas, where guns are more common, tend to favor protecting gun rights.

But following the Las Vegas attacks, a Politico poll found that 64 percent of Americans want tighter gun laws, while 29 percent oppose more regulation. There's more consensus on some specific measures: A recent Pew Research Center poll found that 83 percent of Democrats and 81 percent of Republicans support background checks for all gun purchases.

4 What are the arguments against gun control?

Gun rights advocates see weapons possession as a matter of individual rights. They say that people have the right to arm themselves for hunting, self-defense, and sport--or just because they want to.

Gun owners say weapons can actually make society safer by giving people the power to defend themselves.

"The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun," Wayne LaPierre of the National Rifle Association (N.RA.), the country's most powerful gun-rights group, famously said in 2012.

The debates often come down to the Second Amendment, which was adopted in 1791. Americans have long argued over its wording: "A well regulated Militia,* being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

For generations, the U.S. Supreme Court avoided answering the question of whether the Second Amendment guaranteed an individual's right to bear arms or just the people's collective right, through a militia. But in 2008 and 2010, the Court ruled that the Second Amendment protects an individual's right to keep a firearm. But since the Court did say some level of regulation was appropriate, the rulings have only fueled the debate over what limits the government can place on gun ownership.

5 What are the arguments in favor?

While gun rights advocates say arming people makes for a safer society, people who favor gun control say the opposite is true: The more people...