Free Republic

Didn't you know, if you disagree with someone who calls themselves "liberal", the only reason must be you're a right-wing conservative. There's no way they're just wrong.

Just remember, the British disarmed the population and dumped all those guns in the ocean as soon as the war was over.

Welcome to massachusetts.

One of the reasons I'm taking my tax dollars and moving to another state.

In response to the Bergen County article.

I wasn't able to post it on their website, so if anyone else can, feel free.

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I have recently reviewed the posting on gun control on your web site and am dismayed by the large number of incorrect assumptions, primarily based on incorrect data.

1) To quote your article directly, "Every time a gun is fired, negative, more often than positive, effects follow."

While there are approx. 30,000 deaths a year from firearms (including homicide, suicide, and accidents), intervention by armed citizens stops millions of crimes each year, often without the need for actually needing to fire a weapon. This fact consistently goes unreported by traditional media outlets, which consistenly show a bias in favor of gun control legislation versus responsible ownership of firearms.

2) Given that there are over 20,000 gun control laws on the books in this country, why is there no example of one of these laws which has successfully led to a reduction in violent crime? Gun control laws are praised based on their level of severity, such as those in Massachusetts, rather on their effectiveness. In fact, violent crime rates in Massachusetts have gone up since the new laws have been passed. In addition, according to recent BATF statistics, Boston ranks as one of the most likely cities for a juvenile to be in posession of a weapon when arrested.

Research by John Lott at the University of Chicago has shown the opposite to be true. In the 34 states where "right to carry" laws have been passed, violent crime has shown a general reduction, including multiple-victim shootings.

3) The United States no longer ranks among nations with the highest murder rates. It has been surpassed by nations which have introduced universal bans on private firearms ownership, including, but not limited to Australia and England. While firearm fatalities in the United States went up from 1960 to 1980, they have gone down consistently since then to where they are now at the lowest point in the last thirty years. These rates in the United States have gone down while, at the same time, the number of firearms owned by American citizens has gone up.

4) According to the 1998 National Vital Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control, firearms are the preferred method of suicide among males. Of the 17,242 suicides using firearms, only 1,241 were individuals of age 19 or below. This is less than half the number cited. There are till more non-firearm suicides (13,151) in this country that there are homicides by firearms (12,102), reflecting that this is more of a mental health issue than a gun-control issue.

5) Accidental deaths by firearms have consistently been below 1000 per year, less than 1% of all accidental deaths in the United States. The CDC numbers for 1998 list only 832. Of these, only 262 were individuals under the age of 19. A large number of these deaths are not due to children having access to guns, but accidental discharges of firearms in the hands of white males in their 20s, usually with alcohol involved.

6) The NRA has over 4 million members.

7) The inclusion of the Second Amendment in the Constitution of the United States has nothing to do with hunting. It's purpose in guaranteeing the right to "the people" is political, to prevent all power by force from being concentrated in the hands of the governement. According to the definition by Thomas Jefferson, when the people fear the government, it's tyranny and when the government fears the people, it's democracy.