Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Often, the only way a bad guy gets a gun is from a good guy

As easy as 1-2-3, it would seem, we should be able to see that having so many guns is causing (or at least facilitating) a lot of crime. 

One, with only 5 percent of the population, America has 50 percent of all the guns in the world. We do have a proliferation, undeniably.

Two, one estimate has it that 600,000 guns are stolen every year. Even if that estimate were wrong, and only half that number were stolen, it would still represent a whopping lot. By definition, anyone stealing a gun is a criminal, and that means hundreds of thousands of guns are falling into the hands of criminals every year. While the NRA's Wayne LaPierre might be correct in saying the only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun, it also is true that often the only way a bad guy gets a gun is from a good guy.

Three, a large share of our violent crimes are committed with stolen weapons, perhaps even most of them.

It has been said guns don't kill, people do, but with the number of guns that have flooded across America, the very availability of them is a factor. Guns themselves -- or at least the proliferation of them -- do kill. Without so many guns, it does seem violent crime should decrease.


http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2012-12-19/opinions/35929057_1_gun-violence-gun-ownership-tough-gun-laws
http://www.midlandsconnect.com/news/story.aspx?id=592758#.UNq3lW80WSo
http://www.midlandsconnect.com/news/story.aspx?id=592758#.UNq3lW80WSo

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