I Don't Think Guns Make Us Safer

I think it is a double edge sword. One on end, you would think having guns means security and therefor protection, which equals safety. On the other end, the gun you have to protect yourself with, will the others will have them as well so the likely hood of resolving matters peaceful has a good chance to escalate to violence.

This page is a permanent link to the reply below and its nested replies. See all post replies »

BizSuitStacy · M

Consider this...since 1993, gun violence in the US has been declining steadily year over year. It's down more than 50% since then, and you can verify that via the FBI Uniform Crime Report. There were roughly 180 millions legally owned firearms at that time. Today, it's estimated that Americans legally own approximately 400 million firearms. So...gun crime is down significantly, yet gun ownership is up significantly. These facts are undeniable.

Now...I'm not going to say that reduction in violence is the direct result of increased gun ownership...but it's clear that more guns DO NOT make us less safe.

walabby · 61-69, M

It is certainly true that gun violence has been declining for the last 25 years or so in the USA. The reasons for this are not so clear. I heard of a theory that put forward the possibility that the introduction of unleaded gasoline in the early 70's has had a lot to do with the reduction of violence. There was quite a lot of evidence to support this theory, but I suppose we'll never know for sure...