if gun control isn't the answer, what is?
i, like most males, think weapons are cool just because they are, probably because of the power they give. but i would not delude myself for a second thinking that in a so-called "civilized" society it is my God-given right to arm myself to the teeth. there are cold hard facts that no pro-gun person can disregard:
- In 1998, 30,708 people in the United States died from firearm-related deaths ? 12,102 (39%) of those were murdered; 17,424 (57%) were suicides; 866 (3%) were accidents; and in 316 (1%) the intent was unknown.
-In 1996, handguns were used to murder 2 people in New Zealand, 15 in Japan, 30 in Great Britain, 106 in Canada and 9,390 in the United States.
-In 1999, there were only 154 justifiable homicides by private citizens in the United States
-In 1998, gunshot wounds were the second leading cause of injury death for men and women 10-24 years of age ? second only to motor vehicle crashes
-In 1998, firearm homicide was the leading cause of death for black males ages 15-34
-The presence of a gun in the home triples the risk of homicide in the home
-The presence of a gun in the home increases the risk of suicide fivefold
it goes on. before anyone says "oh, but cars cause death, should we outlaw cars?" "doctors kill too, should we outlaw doctors?" think about those statements. do cars and doctors do anything else besides kill people? oh yeah, they take people around and save their lives. it's no coincidence that countries with the strictest gun laws (like the ones mentioned above) have the fewest gun deaths. does that mean homicides are less? maybe, i don't know. if someone wants to kill someone, they probably will. but it's a hell of a lot easier to point something the size of a phone and click it than to stab or bludgeon someone to death. and i know that guns are already so widely proliferated that it would be near impossible to collect them all, but that doesn't mean we can't reduce the amount of guns being sold now (if gun companies stop making so many guns, won't that mean there will be fewer guns available?
- In 1998 alone, licensed firearms dealers sold an estimated 4.4 million guns, 1.7 million of which were handguns
not everyone who buys a gun is a criminal, not by any means. but it's kinda hard to shoot someone if you don't own a gun. all i'm trying to do here is decrease the amount of weapons. 30,000 people a year die because the second amendment was misinterpreted. your kids are a lot less likely to play with a gun in your house if you don't have a gun. please, before you buy your next weapon, ask yourself why you really need it.
Homer: A gun is not a weapon, Marge. It's a tool. Like a butcher knife, or a harpoon, or...uh, a...an alligator. You just need more education on the subject.
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