Gun deaths last year in the UK at 51 were down by 18 percent , yet private gun ownership continues to grow with 1.8 million legally held. Obviously there's no way of telling how many illegal guns are in circulation. But, before you begin yelling for even tighter gun laws, compare this to the annual American bloodbath.http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/2011/mar/25/gun-ownership-firearms-certificates?INTCMP=SRCH
In 2010 there were 12,996 murders in the US. Of those, 8,775 were caused by firearms. But, that figure is small compared to accidental shooting deaths which brings the annual total to more than 30,000.http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/2011/jan/10/gun-crime-us-state
The fact is gun ownership to millions of Americans has become sort of an obsessive-compulsive disorder, almost a reason to be alive...or dead.
The offensive defensive posture of the gun lobby and right wing politicians in the wake of the Tucson bloodbath, in which six people died, points out how sensitive and militant these hardy frontier characters are in their pick-ups and RVs. Just give them a gun rack and a "proud to be an American" sticker for the rear bumper of their Japanese car and its almost like being in heaven...a destination some may annually reach.
Now, I have nothing against people owning guns for sport or self-defense. I once owned one. What I find about as hard to swallow as a slug from a Colt .45 is their almost sensuous love for these weapons and the need to buy more and more of them, from automatic hand guns to assault rifles. To me, some of these people seem less than civilized morons...morons who feel they have a God given right to buy guns. They feel these weapons will act as a safeguard against tyranny and protector of liberty. Or perhaps they are just powers symbols, similar to owning a pit bull in council flat.
They apparently haven't been paying too much attention to national and world events to not notice that the liberties they so cherish are gradually being eroded, and without a shot from their guns being fired in their defense.
The US Constitutions guarantees citizens the right to bear arms. But bearing arms doesn't specifically mean owning arms. It means we have the right to carry guns. So, the mere mention of gun control after incidents such as Tucson and its panic stations for the gun lobby.
Yet, I have to ask myself are more than 32,000 gun deaths, 9,000 by criminal acts, the mark of a civilized society? Because, as an American I would like to think I'm part of an advanced civilized nation that puts the welfare of its citizens above all other concerns.
Firearm injury in the United States averaged 32,300 deaths annually between 1980 and 2006. It's the second leading cause of death from injury after motor vehicle crashes.
Firearms are involved in 68% of homicides, 52% of suicides, 43% of robberies, and 21% of aggravated assaults. In the last twenty-four years, an average of 32,300 Americans died each year from firearm
Injuries.
Firearm death rates in the United States vary by state and may show a correlation between urban wealth and education vs. rural poverty and unsophistication. The states with the highest firearm death rates are California, Louisiana, Alaska, Nevada, Mississippi and Alabama. The states with the lowest rates include Hawaii, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut and New York.
Compared to high-income Asian countries (Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan), the firearm mortality rate in the U.S. is more than 70 times higher (14.24 per 100,000 in the U.S. compared to 0.1925 per 100,000 in Asia).
The correlation between firearm availability and rates of homicide is consistent across high-income industrialized nations: where there are more firearms, there are higher rates of homicide overall. The U.S. has among the highest rates of both firearm homicide and private firearm ownership. In 2001 an estimated 35% of U.S. households.
Compared to other developed countries, no one can come near the US. The following are gun deaths for 2008: Germany - 381, France - 255, Canada - 165, UK - 68, Australia - 65 and Japan - 39. On the other hand, even the US figures are dwarfed by South Africa where gun murders annually often total more than 30,000 in a nation with one-sixth the US population.
Aside from that, you can't escape the conclusion: There's something terribly wrong with America...because these aren't one-off stats...they happen every year. And as economic conditions continue to be depressed and the impoverished numbers grow, so will gun violence. Granted, we are not the most violent nation in the world, but as I said, for developed and so-called civilized societies, we seem to be way out in front.
What to do about it? Look to London, as an example, where yobs mainly knife, not shoot, people. http://knifecrime.blogspot.com/search/label/Knife%20crime%20statistics%20map%20of%20UK%20for%202008
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See the Second Amendment and D.C. vs. Heller.
DC v. Heller
Held:
1. The Second Amendment protects an individual right to possess a
firearm unconnected with service in a militia, and to use that arm for
traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-defense within the home.
Pp. 2–53.
(a) The Amendment’s prefatory clause announces a purpose, but
does not limit or expand the scope of the second part, the operative
clause. The operative clause’s text and history demonstrate that it
connotes an individual right to keep and bear arms. Pp. 2–22.
http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/07-290.ZS.html
“Yet, I have to ask myself are more than 32,000 gun deaths, 9,000 by criminal acts, the mark of a civilized society?”
If we lived in a civilized society there would be no murders, rapes, assaults, and other violent crime. Therefore, we must have the means to defend ourselves.
FALSE!
According to the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control there were 613 deaths from accidental gunshot wounds in 2007 from firearms which was less than two per day nationwide and down 29 from 2006. This is the most recent data from the CDC.
Compare these numbers to accidental deaths by Burns 3,375, Drowning 3,443, Falls 22,631, Poisoning 29,864, and Traffic Accident 42.031.
Homicides are not even in the fifteen causes of death in the U.S.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/9008791/Murder-no-longer-among-top-causes-of-death-in-US.html
http://webappa.cdc.gov/sasweb/ncipc/mortrate10_sy.html
2008 non-fatal injuries from firearms 17,215, Burns 400,032, Drowning/Near Drown 5,127, Falls 8,551,037, Poisoning 732,316, and All Transportation 4,156,759.
http://webappa.cdc.gov/sasweb/ncipc/nfirates2001.html
You left out Vermont the Brady Campaign views Vermont as the worst case scenario, and they give Vermont a score of 6 out of 100 for its firearms laws. Even though citizens in Vermont are free to carry firearms both openly or concealed without a permit, and despite the fact that they are free to carry their firearms in restaurants that serve alcohol and even while consuming alcohol, the homicide rate in Vermont was 1.3 per 100,000 in 2009 and 1.1 per 100,000 in 2010. Of the eight homicides that were committed in Vermont in 2009 none of them were committed using firearms, and of the seven homicides committed in 2010, only two were committed with firearms.
http://www2.fbi.gov/ucr/cius2009/data/table_04.html
It is also important to note that the Brady Campaign gives California its highest rating for gun control laws.
“The correlation between firearm availability and rates of homicide is consistent across high-income industrialized nations: where there are more firearms, there are higher rates of homicide overall.”
Again FALSE!
It has also been found that there is no correlation between firearms ownership and homicide and suicide rates, and many of the countries with the strictest firearms prohibitions have higher homicide and suicide rates than nations without such restrictions.
http://www.law.harvard.edu/students/orgs/jlpp/Vol30_No2_KatesMauseronline.pdf
Not the case!
Firearms rights have been expanded over last several years, and more citizens are now free to carry firearms in more places. Yet, homicides, including homicides with firearms, as well as all other violent crime have been decreasing since 2006. Moreover, after a dramatic increase in firearms sales and ownership after the last Presidential election including an increase in first time firearms purchases and an increase in firearms carry permits, gun ban groups and zealot predicted that there would be a corresponding increase in murders. However, the U.S. homicide rate decreased from 5.0 per 100,000 in 2009 to 4.8 per 100,000 in 2010.
http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2010/crime-in-the-u.s.-2010/tables/10shrtbl08.xls
http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2010/crime-in-the-u.s.-2010/tables/10tbl01.xls
http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2010/crime-in-the-u.s.-2010/tables/10tbl01a.xls
“Look to London, as an example, where yobs mainly knife, not shoot, people.”
Gun Crime in the U.K. has double in a decade. In Fact, Alan Green, assistant chief constable of Greater Manchester Police stated that gun crime has spread across Britain “Like a cancer.”
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/law-and-order/6438601/Gun-crime-doubles-in-a-decade.html
You know suicides are not accidents, right? The balance is almost entirely suicides, not accidents. Accidents resulting in death happen, but are relatively rare. This link gives the number as 642.in 2006.
http://www.numberof.net/number-of-accidental-gun-deaths/
Perhaps I missed something? My copy of the US Constitution says "...keep and bear arms..."
Doesnt "keep" mean own?
“In 2010 there were 12,996 murders in the US. Of those, 8,775 were caused by firearms. But, that figure is small compared to accidental shooting deaths which brings the annual total to more than 30,000.”
Intentional suicides make up the majority of the 30k. Suicide ≠ accident.
“The US Constitutions guarantees citizens the right to bear arms. But bearing arms doesn't specifically mean owning arms.”
False and laughable.
“And as economic conditions continue to be depressed and the impoverished numbers grow, so will gun violence.”
A prediction made by many that hasn’t proven to be true. Recent stats are available. They indicate that the author has lied again.
Note also that the author repeatedly uses 24-26 year averages so he doesn’t have to report the following facts: Murder and violent crime rates have decreased by about 50% in the past few decades WHILE gun laws have loosened.
“What to do about it? Look to London, as an example, where yobs mainly knife, not shoot, people.”
Yes, let’s look at London where violent crime rates have been rising in recent years as opposed to falling like our are.
U.S. = violent crime AND murder declining.
U.K. = murder declining and violent crime rising.
Apples and kiwis.