The Top 5 Myths Anti-gunners Present as Facts

Everyone in politics bends the truth.  But some do it more than others.  Here is a list of five memes gun-control advocates continue to propagate despite their dubious validity.   

1.  40 Percent of Guns are Sold without Background Checks

From New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg to President Obama to Vice President Biden, they’ve all mentioned the “40 percent” figure with respect to the number of gun transactions that are conducted without a background check.

“The law already requires licensed gun dealers to run background checks, and over the last 14 years that’s kept 1.5 million of the wrong people from getting their hands on a gun, said President Obama during a speech on Jan. 16, 2013.

“But it’s hard to enforce that law when as many as 40 percent of all gun purchases are conducted without a background check.”

In a previous Guns.com article, I investigated this issue in-depth.  What was the conclusion?  Well, if one accepts the findings of economist John Lott Jr., then as he said in his write up on the issue, “We don’t know the precise number today, but it is hard to believe that it is above single digits.”

However, if one believes that Lott is unfairly biased, that he leans too far to the pro-gun side, then one can consider the Washington Post’s analysis of that 40 percent figure:

In other words, rather than being 30 to 40 percent (the original estimate of the range) or “up to 40 percent” (Obama’s words), gun purchases without background checks amounted to 14 to 22 percent. And since the survey sample is so small, that means the results have a survey caveat: plus or minus six percentage points.

2.  Gun ownership is on the decline in America

Almost every pro-gun control advocate contends that gun ownership in the U.S. is on the decline.  And they all point to the same research to substantiate that claim, the bi-annual General Social Survey (GSS) conducted by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago.

However, the matter is far from settled.  There’s plenty of anecdotal evidence  to suggest gun ownership is on the rise – the number of FBI background checks has skyrocketed, studies indicate that more women are embracing gun ownership, gun dealers testifying to how crazy business has been in recent years – but perhaps the most convincing evidence is the Gallup Poll, which suggests that there has been no consistent decline in gun ownership (see chart below for comparison in poll findings).

Gun Ownership: GSS vs. Gallup

Gun Ownership: GSS vs. Gallup

3.  If you own a gun, you’re more likely to have it used against you than you are to use it in a self-defense situation 

There is one very big, glaring issue with this claim.  That is, the number of Defensive Gun Uses (DGU) per year is unknown.  What’s DGU?  It’s the use of a firearm in self-defense or in defense of others.

Obviously, this happens all the time.  Law-abiding citizens use or brandish or fire a gun to protect their property or to thwart off a potential attacker, burglar, rapist, etc.  But determining how many times a year this actually happens is a subject of much debate amongst social scientists and criminologists because frequently DGUs go unreported to police, e.g. if one shows a gun to defuse a situation, does that person always file a police report?

That said, on the high end, criminologist Gary Kleck at Florida State University estimates that it’s as high as 2.5 million DGUs per year.  On the lower end of the spectrum, the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) puts that number at about 100,000 DGUs per year.

The point is simply that without knowing this key variable to the equation how can anyone argue that one is more likely to be shot or injured by his/her own weapon than they are to use that firearm in a self-defense situation?   What number of annual DGU are pro-gun control advocates factoring in to make this claim?

Read the rest by clicking on link below

http://www.guns.com/2013/03/14/editorial-top-five-myths-pro-gun-con...

Views: 152

Comment

You need to be a member of 12160 Social Network to add comments!

Join 12160 Social Network

"Destroying the New World Order"

TOP CONTENT THIS WEEK

THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING THE SITE!

mobile page

12160.info/m

12160 Administrators

 

Latest Activity

tjdavis posted a video

A Critique of the Tavistock Institute - The Mother Of All Conspiracy Theories

An examination of the Tavistock Institute, a theory which seeks to explain how Western societies have been brainwashed by a cabal of social scientists and th...
5 hours ago
tjdavis posted a video

“What’s His Motive?” - Inside The Mind of George Soros

In this short clip, Patrick Bet-David, Sebastian Gorka Adam Sosnick, and Tom Ellsworth George Soros and what motivates him to do the things he does. FaceTime...
Thursday
Doc Vega posted blog posts
Wednesday
cheeki kea favorited Bob of the Family Renner's photo
Tuesday
cheeki kea commented on Doc Vega's blog post Plausible Explanation Behind Recent Cryptid Sightings in the Wild!
"If you're ever out there Doc V and notice giant two legged birds roaming the wilderness be…"
Tuesday
Doc Vega posted blog posts
Tuesday
Burbia commented on TommyD's group The Chuckle Hut
Monday
Doc Vega posted blog posts
Aug 24
Doc Vega posted photos
Aug 23
Doc Vega posted a blog post

Ashrams and Moonies Perfect Case for Mind Control

 In the late 60’s and into the 70’s we saw a strange phenomenon emerge! That was the rise of cults…See More
Aug 22
Doc Vega posted a blog post

Modern Progress

 From some things you just can’t come backNot everyone has your backIt might just be a nuclear…See More
Aug 21
Bob of the Family Renner favorited tjdavis's photo
Aug 21
Less Prone favorited Sandy's discussion Sick sci-fi sex fantasy written by Epstein's first benefactor people say inspired his twisted island... before author's SON ended up arresting him
Aug 21
Doc Vega commented on tjdavis's photo
Thumbnail

Now Playing

"They sure as hell are! "
Aug 20
Doc Vega commented on Doc Vega's blog post Plausible Explanation Behind Recent Cryptid Sightings in the Wild!
"cheeki kea, yes they have already produced a Wooly Mammoth by crossing DNA from frozen remains in…"
Aug 20
Less Prone favorited tjdavis's photo
Aug 20
Less Prone favorited Bob of the Family Renner's photo
Aug 20
Less Prone favorited tjdavis's photo
Aug 20
Less Prone left a comment for Misteri
"Welcome back!"
Aug 20
tjdavis posted blog posts
Aug 19

© 2025   Created by truth.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service

content and site copyright 12160.info 2007-2019 - all rights reserved. unless otherwise noted