Personally, I think I have a pretty accurate idea of what I know about guns and what I don’t know.
The Mongols killed off 10% of the world’s population without firing a single shot. More recently, 70% of Tutsis were slaughtered in the Rwandan genocide, mostly with machetes.
In the discussion regarding gun death rates being higher in states that have weaker laws versus the stricter ones, an interesting point to consider is that if you take cities like Atlanta, Dallas, New Orleans, Memphis, Miami, St. Louis, and other big cities in the South run by corrupt Dems with a large black underclass and the accompanying high black on black violent crime rate out of the equation, you likely get Southern states that tend to look more like New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine that have more casual laws but are that great deal less violent than DC, Chicago, and New York City.
If all non-members of the NRA would stop shooting people, deaths from gun violence would be reduced by 100%.
Here’s an idea:
- Commit a crime using a gun, mandatory life sentence, no parole.
- Commit a crime using a gun resulting in death, hang from the neck until dead.
There are 30,000 gun related deaths per year by firearms. That is not disputed. What is never shown, though, is a breakdown of those deaths to put them in perspective; as compared to other causes of death.
• 65% of those deaths are by suicide which would never be prevented by gun laws
• 15% are by law enforcement in the line of duty and justified
• 17% are through criminal activity, gang and drug related or mentally ill persons
• 3% are accidental discharge deaths
So technically, “gun violence” is not 30,000 annually but drops to 5,100.
Still too many? Well, first, how are those deaths spanned across the nation?
• 480 homicides (9.4%) were in Chicago
• 344 homicides (6.7%) were in Baltimore
• 333 homicides (6.5%) were in Detroit
• 119 homicides (2.3%) were in Washington DC (a 54% increase over prior years)
So basically, 25% of all gun crime happens in just 4 cities. All 4 of those cities have strict gun laws so it is not the lack of law that is the root cause. This basically leaves 3,825 for the entire rest of the nation or about 75 per state.
That is an average because some States have much higher rates than others. For example, California had 1,169. Alabama had 1.
Now, who has the strictest gun laws by far? California of course but understand, it is not the tool (guns) driving this. It is a crime rate spawned by the number of criminal persons residing in those cities and states. So if all cities and states are not created equal, then there must be something other than the tool causing the gun deaths.
Are 5,100 deaths per year horrific?
How about in comparison to other deaths?
All death is sad and especially so when it is in the commission of a crime but that is the nature of crime. Robbery, death, rape, assault; all are done by criminals to victims and thinking that criminals will obey laws is ludicrous. That’s why they are criminals.
But what of other deaths?
• 40,000+ die from a drug overdose – THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR THAT!
· 36,000 people die per year from the flu, far exceeding the criminal gun deaths
• 34,000 people die per year in traffic fatalities (exceeding gun deaths even if you include suicide)
Now it gets good
• 200,000+ people die each year (and growing) from preventable medical malpractice.
• You are safer in Chicago than you are in a hospital!
• 710,000 people die per year from heart disease. Time to stop the cheeseburgers!
So what is the point? If Obama and the anti-gun movement focused their attention on heart disease, even 10% a decrease would save twice the lives annually of all gun related deaths (including suicide, law enforcement, etc.).
A 10% reduction in malpractice would be 66% of the total gun deaths or 4 times the number of criminal homicides. Simple, easily preventable 10% reductions!
So you have to ask yourself, in the grand scheme of things, why the focus on guns?
It’s pretty simple.
Taking away guns gives control to governments. This is not conspiracy theory; this is a historical fact.
Why is it impossible for the government to spill over into dictatorship? Why did the Japanese not even attempt to attack California in WWII? Because as they put it, there is a gun behind every blade of grass.
The founders of this nation knew that regardless of the form of government, those in power may become corrupt and seek to rule as the British did. They too tried to disarm the populace of the colonies because it is not difficult to understand; a disarmed populace is a controlled populace. Thus, the second amendment was proudly and boldly included in the constitution. It must be preserved at all costs.
So the next time someone tries to tell you that gun control is about saving lives, look at these facts and remember these words from Noah Webster
“Before a standing army can rule, the people must be disarmed; as they are in almost every kingdom in Europe. The supreme power in America cannot enforce unjust laws by the sword; because the whole body of the people are armed, and constitute a force superior to any band of regular troops that can be, on any pretense, raised in the United States. A military force, at the command of Congress, can execute no laws, but such as the people perceive to be just and constitutional; for they will possess the power.”
We need to introduce our non-gunner neighbors with a modern shooting range.
A polite chance for the public to visit a gun range, smell the gunsmoke, and squeeze off a few if they so choose after a mandatory (!) gun-safety class of 15 minutes. This should NOT be a police party but officers are welcome as fellow gun professionals and enthusiasts. The range MUST have that healthy “yes, sir” feel of a military range, where absolutely no bullshit can be tolerated. Security will be automatic but check with the town anyway.
All you sportsmen’s club guys ... talk this one around.