No one can 'prove' what hasn't happened yet, which is what you're asking. And you're right, by the way; a lot of people want a lot less guns in the closets of Americans, however it can be managed. Outlaw violent shoot-em-up video games and movies as if they were child pornography. Make it illegal to manufacture or sell certain assault rifles in the United States. Violate everyone's right to privacy and hunt out illegally held guns, or buy them off the streets. Any zany shit you can think of, I'm ready for. There are way too many guns in this country, allowing too many folks to grab a gun and kill anyone they want from a safe distance, like the cowards they are. And there are too many people who think that's ultra cool. It's sick. Guns kill. Period. Get rid of 'em.
Make it illegal to manufacture or sell certain assault rifles in the United States.
Why…….the rifles you mention murder and injure fewer people than knives, blunt objects or bare hands. There are over 3 million of them in private hands and at most 2-3 are used each year for crime……..so what is the problem with them?
You realize there are over 357 million guns in private hands….and that fewer than 8,124 of them are used to murder people…the rest over 356,991,876 million are used for lawful purposes and are never, ever used to commit one crime…right?
And it is a fact that mass murder, genocide and ethnic cleansing only happen to people who do not have guns to stop it.
Guns save lives. Guns have allowed the weak to free themselves from the strong…..without guns the weak would be the slaves of the strong…just like they were all throughout human history before the first gun was ever invented.
You need to actually think about this topic….it is obvious that you haven't.
I've thought about it a lot. You and I have had this discussion and others before and I have actually given it a great deal of thought, done some research, etc. I acknowledge your points, and I guess I can't disagree with statistics. But darn it, putting more and more guns in the hands of Americans is NOT the answer to out of control gun violence and death in this country. I'm pretty sure we'll never know if I'm right, because I'm on the losing side of this and I know it. I was just honestly answering the OP's question.
But darn it, putting more and more guns in the hands of Americans is NOT the answer to out of control gun violence and death in this country.
Then how do you explain the fact that as more Americans now own and actually carry guns…the gun murder rate has continuously gone down, and not up. That there are 357 million guns in private hands and that the majority of actual gun murder is committed by people who cannot legally own guns…..so of the 8,124 gun murders, the majority are committed by violent criminals who cannot own or carry a gun murdering other violent criminals who cannot own or carry a gun.
So normal, law abiding gun owners can own and carry guns all day long and they will not shoot people or commit crimes with those guns. So do you see how your sentence makes little sense….when the reality shows that the act of owning guns is not the problem……violent criminals are the problem, and that none of the proposed gun restrictions actually address criminals. That all the proposed gun control laws target people who are not the problem…who will not use guns to commit crime?
So the answer to out of control gun violence is not arming everyone, it is just that arming normal gun owners isn't a part of the problem or the equation.
The answer is to target criminals…with long sentences and prosecutions for gun crime….which we do not have.
In my dream world, going down hard on the criminals and on the suppliers who sell them the guns, is part of the plan; the first step before making it harder for Average Joe to purchase a hunting rifle. I'd be all for it.
I agree it would be insane to take guns from law abiding citizens before making serious progress in taking guns from criminals. But then assault type weapons and large capacity magazines would go bye-bye. No need for them in the law abiding world you present.
You see, a lot of the crimes commited with guns aren't done by gang members or mafia types. They're done by nut jobs who were quietly crazy and flew beneath the radar and have guns in the house legally. Or by abusers who flip when girlfriend tries to break up. Or by kids in the 'hood carrying for self protection that get into a situation where they act like, well, kids. The less guns in circulation, the less risk of one being used. Does that make sense to you at all?
The problem with your argument is that if a good percentage of violent criminals haven't got a gun in the house to begin with, during that moment of crisis when they want to kill someone, a lot of shootings won't occur. Kids in gangs carry guns for self protection from other kids carrying guns. If guns hadn't been in the house, Newtown wouldn't have occurred. If the Aurora shooter hadn't been able to legally purchase all his guns and ammunition, there would be more innocent theater goers alive today.
The problem with your argument is that if a good percentage of violent criminals haven't got a gun in the house to begin with, during that moment of crisis when they want to kill someone, a lot of shootings won't occur. Kids in gangs carry guns for self protection from other kids carrying guns. If guns hadn't been in the house, Newtown wouldn't have occurred. If the Aurora shooter hadn't been able to legally purchase all his guns and ammunition, there would be more innocent theater goers alive today.