Posted on 07/08/2003 10:42:28 AM PDT by NativeNewYorker
New York (dpa) - A study released Tuesday on legal gun ownership
worldwide shows the United States - not surprisingly - leads the
world, but it also shows that Europeans own a high number of firearms.
The number of guns owned by civilians in the United States is
between 238 million and 276 million, making country of 268 million
people the most armed in the world, the study by the Graduate
Institute of International Studies in Geneva said.
But it also said the 15 European Union nations, with more than 300
million people, have a total of 84 million firearms, with Finland
leading in per capita gun ownership.
The study was presented to a 156-nation conference at U.N.
headquarters on progress made in banning the illicit trade of small
and light weapons around the world, which killed an estimated 500,000
people a year. Those weapons are military sidearms, assault rifles,
rifles, sub-machine and machine guns and grenade launchers.
The Swiss study focused on legal gun ownership among ordinary
citizens, excluding military personnel and police officers. It said
what the study revealed about Europe debunked the belief that
Europeans are disarmed and do not privately hold a large stock of
guns.
It said 80 per cent of the estimated 84 million firearms in Europe
are in civilian hands, with Finland leading with 39 guns for every 100
citizens, followed by Norway with 36 guns, Sweden with 24 guns and
Denmark with 18 guns.
But the United States, which the study estimates has between 83 and
96 guns for every 100 people, still has far more guns per person than
Europe, where the survey estimates there are 17.4 guns for every 100
people.
The study said Americans are most armed in the world, followed by
Finns and Yememis.
The National Rifle Association, the leading U.S. group representing
gun owners, says there are more than 200 million privately owned
firearms in the United States. These guns are owned by about 60
million people, NRA statistics posted at the 4-million-member
organization's website say.
The Swiss group was among the nongovernmental organizations that
were taking part in the conference to review implementation of the
2-year-old U.N. agreement to ban the illegal trade of small and light
weapons. There are an estimated 600 million such weapons around the
world, both legally and illegally owned.
The U.N. has denounced the lucrative illegal trade of small arms
for fueling civil wars, threatening peace efforts and development
projects in poor countries.
When the week-long conference opened Monday, the research group,
the International Action Network on Small Arms (IANSA), said little
progress had been made to implement the ban. It said only 37 of the
156 governments have set up national committees in the past two years
to coordinate action against small arms, and 56 have submitted
progress reports to the U.N. on implementing the ban.
Progress has been ''particularly slow'' in countries in North
Africa, the Middle East and parts of Asia, it said.
Yup. 4 pistols, 2 revolvers, 4 rifles, and 6 shotguns are in my inventory. I also reload all calibers and gages except a .22 and .17 HMR. Messers Browning, Charles Daly, Colt, Smith, and Wesson are my friends.
Why didn't the report mention that progress has been particularly slow in the United States? Has our Government signed up with the UN to disarm the people of the United States? Our politicians seem to sign up for whatever the UN wants. I would have to assume that Schumer and Feinstein have signed our country up, but are trying to keep it a secret.
I think you mean "cartridges."
U - S - A!
U - S - A!
U - S - A!
Might as well try to ban the wind.
Such weapons are easily manufactured- there are villages in Pakistan that can create a well-made duplicate of almost any weapon you bring them, without the use of modern machine tools.
There are an estimated 600 million such weapons around the world, both legally and illegally owned.
Illegally according to whom?
What they especially don't want to own up to is the fact that virtually all of these deaths they're talking about are caused by governments and those acting as agents of governments, and not by plain old civilians.
I was at an IDPA match this weekend and we were discussing the costs associated with the various competitions. Someone remarked how expensive the race guns, etc were.
Someone else commented that Cowboy Action Shooting was probably the most expensive, needing 4 guns, lots of leather and costumes, etc.
One voice drawled, "Hell, in Texas, that's just cleaning out a closet".
I think Jeff Cooper was the one who said it is impossible to have too many books, guns, or fine wines. (I'm doing my best on all three.)
-ccm
Yeah, but I really skew the numbers up. I'm sure I'm not the only one with an assortment of lenders in case the neighbors need to borrow.
The study I saw, said North Dakota had the highest firearms ownership of any state. (also the lowest crime rate in the nation)
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