Saturday, December 15, 2012
Gun Control Rises Again!
There is another side to the story!
The stories are horrific. The miseries of loss are devastating to the survivors. The inexplicable mind-quirk that sent some person on a killing rage is simply not capable of being understood, especially for this latest killing rage of twenty five, six, and seven year olds and six adults. The outrage stokes the fire of the gun control advocates that would love to make guns disappear from earth, and their fervor is certainly understandable.
However, the question is raised whether there is a tradeoff in the nation between allowing guns to be owned and used for sport and self-protection, versus a series of gun controls that all but deny guns to the public with stringent regulations vehemently enforced.
Here are a few facts bearing on the issue:
1. There are about 80 million gun owners in the US today.
2. The number of registered guns is about 200 million.
3. The Constitutional Amendment II states that gun ownership is permitted, and this has been affirmed again by the Supreme Court.
4. Gun owners have thwarted about 3 million criminals from carrying out their plans for robbery, rape and murder every year.
5. Of those 3 million crimes spoiled, easily 2% of them would be classified as leading to murder or rape or both. Thus about 60,000 murders/rapes are avoided each and every year because the victims had a preventative weapon nearby.
6. The number of gun-related crimes is decreasing each year, because of the increasing prevalence of guns in homes.
7. The two examples of extreme gun control laws and their results are found in the UK and Australia. In each of these nations, crimes have ballooned terribly since guns were confiscated.
8, The two examples of nations that allow guns in every home are Switzerland and Israel, and they both report yearly gun-related crimes to be minimal in the extreme. Excepting, of course, the conflicts with Arab nations, which is an external factor.
The conclusion I reach from the above is simple. I want the US to be able to handle guns as both the Swiss and Isrealis do, let them be posessed and used for sport, self-defense and recreation. The benefits outweigh by far the negatives, despite the awful specter of deaths in schools.
The stories are horrific. The miseries of loss are devastating to the survivors. The inexplicable mind-quirk that sent some person on a killing rage is simply not capable of being understood, especially for this latest killing rage of twenty five, six, and seven year olds and six adults. The outrage stokes the fire of the gun control advocates that would love to make guns disappear from earth, and their fervor is certainly understandable.
However, the question is raised whether there is a tradeoff in the nation between allowing guns to be owned and used for sport and self-protection, versus a series of gun controls that all but deny guns to the public with stringent regulations vehemently enforced.
Here are a few facts bearing on the issue:
1. There are about 80 million gun owners in the US today.
2. The number of registered guns is about 200 million.
3. The Constitutional Amendment II states that gun ownership is permitted, and this has been affirmed again by the Supreme Court.
4. Gun owners have thwarted about 3 million criminals from carrying out their plans for robbery, rape and murder every year.
5. Of those 3 million crimes spoiled, easily 2% of them would be classified as leading to murder or rape or both. Thus about 60,000 murders/rapes are avoided each and every year because the victims had a preventative weapon nearby.
6. The number of gun-related crimes is decreasing each year, because of the increasing prevalence of guns in homes.
7. The two examples of extreme gun control laws and their results are found in the UK and Australia. In each of these nations, crimes have ballooned terribly since guns were confiscated.
8, The two examples of nations that allow guns in every home are Switzerland and Israel, and they both report yearly gun-related crimes to be minimal in the extreme. Excepting, of course, the conflicts with Arab nations, which is an external factor.
The conclusion I reach from the above is simple. I want the US to be able to handle guns as both the Swiss and Isrealis do, let them be posessed and used for sport, self-defense and recreation. The benefits outweigh by far the negatives, despite the awful specter of deaths in schools.
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