Forum Post: Without Guns, How Many More Innocent People Wouldn't be Shot Today?
Posted 10 years ago on Jan. 21, 2014, 9:31 a.m. EST by WSmith
(2698)
from Cornelius, OR
This content is user submitted and not an official statement
Joe Nocera | Gun Report | NYT
Ex-Cop's Shooting of Texting Moviegoer End in Tragedy
Florida theater shooting: Couple describes encounter with Curtis Reeves
http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/15/justice/florida-movie-theater-shooting/
Three dead after gunman opens fire inside Martin's Super Market in Elkhart
Boy, 12, opens fire at New Mexico school, wounds two students
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/01/14/us-usa-shooting-newmexico-idUSBREA0D11Q20140114
Meet John Masterson, the 'Amazing' Hero Teacher of the New Mexico School Shooting
Fox psychiatrist invents ‘data rage’ after theater shooting to blame phones instead of guns
Weekend Gun Report: January 3-5, 2014
How Many People Have Been Killed by Guns Since Newtown?
Slate partners with @GunDeaths for an interactive, crowdsourced tally of the toll firearms have taken since Dec. 14.
Maryland Mall Shooter Darion Marcus Aguilar Was 'Gentle Person,' Mom Says http://abcnews.go.com/US/maryland-mall-shooter-darion-marcus-aguilar-gentle-person/story?id=22005045
Police: Man with 'crude' explosives, ammo kills 2 at Maryland mall, then self http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/25/us/maryland-mall-shooting/index.html
Police in Maryland identify mall shooter http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/01/26/maryland-mall-shooting/4912387/
Three Dead in Shooting at Maryland Mall; Police Call the Episode Isolated
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/26/us/3-reported-dead-in-maryland-mall-shooting.html?_r=0
20 a day, and that's just the kids.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/01/27/guns-children-hospitalizations/4796999/
That's only 7,300 a year. A drop in the bucket for the 2nd amendment.
At least according to the NRA.
No data on how much that cost in health care though.
Help me list them.
The cost WE pay for their stupid out of control hobby!!!
BULL FUCKING SHIT!!!!!
#GunCrisis Monthly: January, 2014
http://guncrisis.org/
Florida theater shooting: Wife of slain husband speaks out
http://www.abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/national_world&id=9404237
Teaching assistant shot dead at Purdue University
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/01/21/purdue-shooting/4719831/
The Gun Report: February 7, 2014
http://nocera.blogs.nytimes.com/category/gun-report/
In November 2012, Michael Dunn fatally shot Jordan Davis, 17, following a spat over loud music at a Jacksonville, Fla., gas station. Davis and three friends had stopped for gum and cigarettes, and Dunn, who was sitting in his Volkswagen, asked the teens to turn down the bass-heavy music blaring from their car. A verbal back-and-forth ensued, and Dunn opened fire into the car, hitting the victim three times. He then exited his car and fired off another half-dozen rounds. Dunn claims he saw a gun in Davis’s car, but a subsequent search turned up a basketball, some clothing and a camera tripod.
“God didn’t make all men equal—Colt did,” Cory Strolla, Dunn’s attorney, said in his opening arguments on Thursday. “[Dunn] had every right under the law to not be a victim, to be judged by 12 rather than carried by six.” He insisted that Davis menacingly exited the car, and Dunn felt threatened. He also posits that the boys left the gas station and hid a weapon before returning and calling 911, something a police interrogator disputes.
The trial of Dunn, who is white, and Davis, who was black, is drawing parallels to the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, who was also 17 when he was killed. Both teens were unarmed. Even the prosecutor is the same. But after the shooting, Dunn left the scene, driving with his girlfriend to a bed and breakfast, where they had reservations. The next day, his companion saw a news report about the shooting, and rather than call police, the couple drove home to Satellite Beach, where Dunn was apprehended. He claims he wanted to alert family and friends before calling the authorities.
“Jordan Davis was sitting in his car seat with the door closed with nothing in his hands,” an attorney for the prosecution told the jury. “Michael David Dunn pointed a semiautomatic pistol at four unarmed kids.”
Dunn has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and three counts of attempted first-degree murder. Here is today’s report.
—Jennifer Mascia
A 17-month-old girl was shot by her 3-year-old brother in Cleveland County, N.C., Thursday morning. The children’s father, Justin Carper, left his 9mm handgun in a secret compartment on top of a dresser, where his son found it. Carper, a church youth leader who writes a parenting column in a local newspaper, said the bullet went through the top of his daughter’s shoulder. Authorities are deciding whether charges will be brought against either parent for failing to secure their gun.
—ShelbyStar.com, Charlotte Observer
Eddie Zee, 13, was accidentally shot and killed while he and his friends played with a shotgun at a home in Puyallup, Wash., Thursday. The boy who lived there pulled out a shotgun, and when another boy grabbed it, it discharged. Any potential charges will be determined by the county prosecutor.
—MyNorthwest.com
A man and his two children were found shot to death in what appears to be a murder-suicide at a home in Temple, Ga., Thursday afternoon. Police are not sure if the shooting happened Tuesday or Wednesday. The children’s mother hadn’t been seen at the house in a couple of weeks.
—Times-Georgian
Ruthanne Lodato, 59, a well-known music teacher, was shot and killed while answering her front door in Alexandra, Va., Thursday morning. A woman who worked as a caretaker for the victim’s elderly mother was shot in the arm. Police are looking for a bearded, balding older man.
—The Washington Post
A man in his 40s was shot in the stomach and killed following an argument with a fellow tenant at a downtown Seattle, Wash., apartment building Thursday morning. The suspect, a man in his 30s, was taken into custody.
—KIROTV.com
A man was shot in the head and wounded in Carteret, N.J., Thursday afternoon. The victim was found unconscious on a sidewalk between two apartment buildings. No word on a suspect or motive.
—MyCentralJersey.com
A man was shot in the back and wounded at an apartment building in Dayton, Ohio, Thursday night. He told police he has no idea why. At least one suspect fled on foot.
—WDTN
James Mitchell, 65, was shot in the head and killed at a home in Walterboro, S.C., Thursday night. A man inside the residence heard three shots and ran outside to call 911. No suspects have been identified.
—CountOn2.com
A man was shot in the foot during a robbery in Huntsville, Ala., Thursday night. The victim was driving when he was approached by a man asking for money. When the victim pulled out his wallet, the man attempted to grab it, sparking a physical altercation that ended in gunfire. No word on an arrest.
—WAFF.com
Assad Butler, 20, was shot and wounded during a carjacking outside an apartment building in Macon, Ga., Thursday afternoon. Roderick Michael Lofton, 18, who sped off in the victim’s car, is being sought.
—Macon.com
A man was shot and wounded during an attempted carjacking in the driveway of his home in Kansas City, Kan., Thursday morning. Two men targeted the car, which was running unattended, and exchanged gunfire with the homeowner before fleeing. A neighbor’s home was riddled with bullets during the exchange. Police are unsure if the suspects were hit.
—KSHB
Elvin Jesse Johnson, 32, was shot and killed in Northeast Washington, D.C., late Tuesday. A relative transported him to the hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries. Police are asking anyone with information to come forward.
—WUSA9
A man in his 30s was shot several times and critically wounded in a home in the Elm Creek neighborhood of Owasso, Okla., Thursday night. Police have arrested 31-year-old Thomas Anthony Cooper but did not disclose the relationship between the two.
—KRMG
Adrian Maynard Jr. was shot twice while leaving for church with his grandparents in Wyoming County, W.Va., Wednesday evening. No word on suspects.
—The Register-Herald
A man died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound after allegedly robbing a bank with two others in Louisville, Ky., Thursday afternoon. Police tracked the getaway car to Cherokee Park, and after his two accomplices surrendered, the victim killed himself.
—Courier-Journal.com
Shahed Holliday, 18, was shot and killed at his uncle’s home in Clarendon County, S.C., late Wednesday. The victim was spending the night when he let in two men, who shot him. Investigators have not determined if he knew the suspects.
—WISTV.com
Amy Hopkins, 44, is fighting for her life after being shot at her grandparents’ home in Arab, Ala., Wednesday night. Police don’t have suspects or a motive.
—WAAYTV
Jerrell Jackson, 25, was shot and seriously wounded at an apartment complex in Omaha, Neb., early Thursday. He provided investigators with little information. Dispatchers received calls that up to 10 gunshots were fired in the area.
—Omaha.com
Tahj Brown, 24, was fatally shot at an apartment complex in Nashville, Tenn., Thursday afternoon. The victim was staying with his girlfriend at the complex and went to meet someone in the parking lot when he was shot. A white Dodge sedan was seen on surveillance video.
—NewsChannel5.com
A county employee was shot and killed near Boring, Ore., Thursday morning. The victim, a Clackamas County weighmaster, has not yet been identified. Dirck White, 41, is being sought.
—KPTV
A 37-year-old man was shot to death in San Jacinto, Calif., Wednesday night. No arrests have been made.
—The Press-Enterprise
Karen Esparza, 22, was shot by an off-duty security guard as she stole his S.U.V. in Garland, Tex., Thursday morning. The 67-year-old security guard got off a single shot as she forced her way into his car. She drove off but was apprehended by police shortly after.
—Dallas Morning News
A 40-year-old man was shot in the leg in front of parents and schoolchildren in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn, N.Y., Thursday morning. The shooting was sparked by an argument between the victim and another man. The victim is being uncooperative with investigators.
—NY Post
http://nocera.blogs.nytimes.com/category/gun-report/
The Gun Report: February 7, 2014
http://nocera.blogs.nytimes.com/category/gun-report/
Gun Report February 6, 2014, 2:25 pm
Curtis Reeves, the 71-year-old [POS] retired police captain who shot and killed a man who was texting in a Florida movie theater on Jan. 13, attended his bail hearing yesterday, and more details about the shooting came to light.
A witness who overheard the fight testified that after Reeves complained about the texting, the victim, 43-year-old Chad Oulson, said, “Do you mind? I’ve got a voicemail from my babysitter. I’d like to check to see that my daughter is okay.” After more requests to stop using his phone, Oulson got up and threw a small bag of popcorn at Reeves, who immediately grabbed his gun and opened fire.
Alan Hamilton, an off-duty police officer who also attended the screening, testified that after the shooting, Reeves’s wife said to her husband, “That was no cause to shoot anyone,” to which he was heard to respond, “You shut your [expletive] mouth and don’t say another word.” But when Oulson made gurgling sounds and it became apparent he might not survive, Reeves reportedly exclaimed, “I can’t believe what I’ve done.”
Reeves’s lawyer suggested that his client was defending himself from Oulson, who invaded his personal space. Hamilton told the court that Reeves approached him after the shooting and said, “I just got hit by something. Look at my eye,” but he saw no injury on Reeves’s face.
Oulson’s widow, Nicole, was present in the courtroom, and sobbed into a handkerchief. Reeves officially pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder.
Here is today’s report.
—Jennifer Mascia
A 16-year-old boy was killed and three other people were wounded when a masked gunman approached them and opened fire in a McDonald’s parking lot on the north side of Chicago Wednesday afternoon. Among the wounded were a 15-year-old girl and two 18-year-old men. Nearby residents said they heard about eight shots. No word on a suspect. Earlier that morning, a 29-year-old man was found shot to death in the Gresham neighborhood, and another 29-year-old man, who had been arguing with his girlfriend, was shot and wounded by his mother’s boyfriend.
—Los Angeles Times
Two employees at a car dealership in Perry, Fla., were wounded when a co-worker walked into the business and opened fire with a semi-automatic shotgun Wednesday morning. The gunman, Earl Edward Clague Jr., 51, was shot and killed by a sheriff’s deputy who was there getting his car fixed. No word on a motive.
—Tallahassee.com
A 15-year-old boy was wounded in a drive-by shooting in Orlando, Fla., Wednesday morning. The victim is not cooperating with the investigation. No arrests have been made.
—Orlando Sentinel
George Holland II, 17, was killed when someone shot into his girlfriend’s house in Providence, R.I., Tuesday night. The bullet entered through a kitchen window. Police believe the house was targeted but not the victim. When Holland was 13, he saw his mother stab his father to death during a heated argument. In the intervening years, the victim, an avid football player, was intent on setting a good example for his younger siblings. No word on a suspect.
—Providence Journal
A woman shot two men who followed her and another woman home from an A.T.M. and attempted to rob them in Spartanburg County, S.C., early Wednesday. The other woman sustained a gunshot wound, after which her companion pulled a gun from her purse. “She got two out of three of them with a 9mm, and then reloaded and was wanting some more,” Sheriff Chuck Wright said. “I’m going to ask her if she wants a job.”
—WYFF
Royon Price, 20, was gunned down in a home in east Camden, N.J., Tuesday night. A 30-year-old woman, who lived at the home, was shot in the arm and wounded. Price had been facing charges for allegedly carrying an illegal handgun. Anyone with information is urged to call police.
—Courier-Post
A woman was shot in the shoulder while sitting in a car in the Avondale neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio, Wednesday afternoon. Shortly after, officers found a man with a gunshot wound to the leg. They have not said whether the shootings are related.
—WCPO
Charles Williams, 39, was shot and killed at a home in Uplands Park, Mo., early Wednesday. The victim had showed up at a woman’s house, and after demanding his belongings, he kicked in the front door. He apologized, and as he fixed the door, the woman’s son showed up with a gun and shot Williams in the leg. The gunman then fired several more shots, killing Williams before running off.
—St. Louis Post-Dispatch
A 28-year-old woman committed suicide at an Independence Township, Mich., gun range Tuesday afternoon. Employees found her on the floor, dead of a gunshot wound to the head.
—Detroit Free Press
One man was killed and another was wounded near a church in Westmont, Calif., Wednesday evening. Anyone with information is asked to call police.
—Los Angeles Times
A 20-year-old man was shot during a confrontation in San Rafael, Calif., Tuesday evening. Police are investigating whether the incident is gang-related.
—Marin Independent Journal
Raphael Darnelle Roman, 28, accidentally shot himself in the leg while attempting a robbery and kidnapping in Jefferson County, Ala., Wednesday morning. Roman had asked an acquaintance for a ride to a convenience store, and on the way he demanded money and heroin, neither of which the man had. Roman hit him in the head with the pistol, forced him to take off his pants and locked him in the trunk of the car. Roman originally told police he had been shot by a man in the woods. He was charged with kidnapping and assault.
—AL.com
A man was shot in the back while he was on another man’s property without permission in rural Joshua, Tex., Tuesday morning. When deputies arrived, the suspected shooter, 33-year-old Joseph Bristow, made an incoherent statement. He was arrested.
—Joshua Star
A 20-year-old man was shot in the chest and killed in an apparent drug deal gone bad at a public housing complex in the East New York section of Brooklyn, N.Y., Wednesday evening. Cops are searching for two men ages 18 to 20.
—Daily News
A man was shot and critically wounded in a home invasion in the Woodfield area of Richland County, S.C., Tuesday morning. Deputies said drugs were found in the home. They are looking for two suspects.
—WLTX.com
Donte Garrett, 33, was shot and killed during an argument with his sister’s boyfriend in San Antonio, Tex., Tuesday night. Investigators said the two men were fighting over a woman when the victim was shot. Police are searching for John Moszee, though they have not confirmed that he is a suspect.
—KENS5
A 41-year-old woman was shot in the stomach and wounded in her home in Beech Grove, Ind., Wednesday night. Six others were at the home at the time, including two children.
—Indy Star
David Walker, 46, was killed and Susan McCoy, 37, was wounded when McCoy’s husband opened fire at their Fountain, Fla., home after discovering the victims were romantically involved. Susan McCoy had invited the victim to stay with her and her husband, Michael McCoy, 43, after Walker was released from jail following a domestic violence arrest. Michael McCoy is claiming self-defense, and told police he shot his wife by accident. No charges have yet been filed.
—Jackson County Floridian
A man arrived at a hospital with multiple gunshot wounds on the north side of Jacksonville, Fla., Wednesday night. The victim told police he was in the parking lot behind an apartment complex when a man jumped out of the bushes and opened fire. No suspects have been identified.
—WTEV
A man was shot in the chest and seriously wounded during a robbery at the Willow Creek Crossing apartments in Fort Wayne, Ind., early Wednesday. A woman at the home told police two men barged in yelling “Where’s it at?” and “Give it to us.” She curled up with a pillow and told them she was pregnant, and they left her alone. No arrests have been made.
—INC NOW
A man in his early 20s was wounded in a drive-by shooting yards from city hall in North Miami Beach, Fla., early Wednesday. A car at the scene was riddled with bullet holes. Police are soliciting tips.
—NBC Miami
A 21-year-old man was shot and wounded near Fairmount Cemetery in the West Ward of Newark, N.J., Wednesday evening. No word on a suspect or a motive.
—NJ.com
A 39-year-old man was shot in the neck and killed in the Strawberry Mansion section of Philadelphia Wednesday evening. He was found dead on the sidewalk, and narcotics were discovered in his possession. No arrests were reported.
—Philly.com
A 30-year-old man was shot outside his home in Soledad, Calif., Wednesday afternoon. Police are urging anyone with information to come forward.
—Monterey Herald
A 23-year-old man was shot and wounded in Brawley, Calif., early Wednesday. Two nearby schools were put on lockdown as precaution.
—Imperial Valley Press
Chris Walker, 24, was shot several times and killed in Ford Heights, Ill., early Wednesday. No word on a suspect.
—Chicago Tribune
Pierre Akeem Gustave, 23, was found dead in a roadway in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Wednesday morning. The victim was known to frequent the area, and had been released from prison last summer. Detectives are leaning on witnesses for tips.
—Sun Sentinel
http://nocera.blogs.nytimes.com/category/gun-report/
Fox's Ablow Dimisses Role Of Guns In Columbia Mall Shooting
http://mediamatters.org/mobile/blog/2014/01/27/foxs-ablow-dimisses-role-of-guns-in-columbia-ma/197773
Police seek motive in deadly mall shooting
Investigators are still searching for a motive this morning behind a deadly shooting at a Maryland mall on Saturday that killed two workers. Police said the shooter, Darion Marcus Aguilar, 19, then killed himself. Investigators have not been able to find a link between Aguilar and the victims.
http://www.today.com/video/today/54190393/#54190393
http://www.truth-out.org/opinion/item/21422-william-rivers-pitt-an-open-letter-to-lovers-of-the-gun
Since I'm quite sure our resident Truth-out posters will avoid this one.
William Rivers Pitt | An Open Letter to Lovers of the Gun
Friday, 24 January 2014 10:00
Wakefield Elementary School in Turlock, California, was put on temporary lockdown on Tuesday - amazing, isn't it, how terms like "temporary lockdown" have snuggled up next to terms like "elementary school" in our common-usage lexicon without anyone batting an eye - because a man was shot across the street.
Two students were shot by a student at the Delaware Valley Charter School in Philadelphia on Monday. According to reports, an 18-year-old graduate of the school gave a 17-year-old student the gun that was used.
A 16-year-old student at Albany High School in Georgia was shot at approximately the same time as the student at Delaware Valley Charter was shot. The victim is expected to survive.
A student at Widener University was shot on Tuesday while sitting in his car. As of this writing, he is in critical but stable condition.
A student at Berrendo Middle School in New Mexico opened fire in a crowded gymnasium with a sawed-off shotgun several days ago, seriously injuring two students. Parents are frightened to let their children go back.
A student at Liberty Technology Magnet High School in Tennessee was shot the week before last. He was 17 years old. A police dog found the gun, and the shooter is in custody.
A student was shot and killed on the campus of Purdue University on Tuesday. The killer surrendered immediately.
A piece of construction equipment on the campus of the University of Oklahoma backfired twice on Wednesday, sending the student body into a "shelter in place" panic before the police determined there was no threat.
Seven school shootings in 24 days? I can't imagine what they were worried about.
I said this on New Year's Day: "In 2010, by comparison, there were nine school shootings in America that killed seven people. In 2011, there were eleven school shootings that killed nine people. In 2012, there were fourteen school shootings - including the massacres at Sandy Hook Elementary and Oikos University - that killed 43 people. In 2013, there were twenty-three school shootings that killed nineteen people. Nine, then eleven, then fourteen, then twenty-three. If the trend holds, we can look forward to maybe thirty or forty school shootings in 2014."
I was wrong. Seven school shootings in the first month of the year means we are on pace, if this keeps up, to have no less than 84 school shootings by the end of December.
You.
Yes, you, who love your guns.
You.
I would ask what is wrong with you, but I already know: you love your guns more than you love your child, or his child, or her child, or my child. You love your guns, period.
Prove me wrong, because you haven't yet.
You.
I am puking sick of reading every single day about how your baby, your toddler, your brother, your sister, your cousin, your niece, your nephew, blew their brains into their lap with a gun you left lying around, because freedom, or something.
I am sick of mourning the gun dead day after day, every day, because every day someone wins the Someone Gets To Be Dead Today lottery, because of you, and a whole lot of those winners are children.
I am sick of how you hide behind gun money, gobs and gobs of political gun money, while complaining about the influence of money in politics. If any other item in common use in America - like aspirin, or a car - was wasting people with the dreary regularity of guns, that item would be banned by congressional fiat...but it's guns, so the slaughter slogs on, even as you tell your friends you hate the influence of "special interests" in politics, because you're a fraud in Technicolor.
I see you. And I am sick and tired of you.
I hope - I pray - that you are sick of yourself as you watch the bodies pile up around you like cordwood, as you see the shootings at this school, and that school, and this school, and that school, and someday your school, which will be on the TV news from a helicopter's view, with a voice guessing at the latest body count, while you are waiting for the word.
I would spare you that experience. Please spare me that experience.
It is not the anti-gun people who are going to make this right. It is the pro-gun people who know better, who see this slaughter for what it is, who will make this right.
Seven school shootings in 24 days.
See. Be disgusted. Do something. Copyright, Truthout. May not be reprinted without permission. William Rivers Pitt
William Rivers Pitt is Truthout's senior editor and lead columnist. He is also a New York Times and internationally bestselling author of three books: "War on Iraq: What Team Bush Doesn't Want You to Know," "The Greatest Sedition Is Silence" and "House of Ill Repute: Reflections on War, Lies, and America's Ravaged Reputation." He lives and works in New Hampshire.
thanks. I was wondering if Leo was going to post this.
I need to tell you though, that he has permission and coping whole articles without that can constitute copyright infringement.
Give a taste with a link next time.
You covered it above. As a former journalist, I'm very good about attribution, it's funny you should single me out.
http://www.iheart.com/live/1401/?autoplay=true
http://www.examiner.com/article/30-days-of-guns-saving-lives-a-collection-of-true-stories-of-self-defense
Florida man mistakenly shoots himself during road rage incident
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/01/20/florida-man-mistakenly-shoots-himself-during-road-rage-incident/
Welcome to Lowe's! How may I shoot you? (P.S. 23 kids accidentally shot last week) GunFAIL LI
We have an extraordinarily long list this time around, and it took extra time to compile it and sort through it, which accounts for its late publication. New Year's Eve, like July 4th, is like Black Friday for GunFAIL. Brand-new guns are given as gifts for Christmas (at least one of which went off and shot the gift giver this week), a little extra drinking is going on, the kids are home from school for days or even weeks at a stretch, hunting season is in full swing, and of course, there's the "traditional" New Year's celebratory gunfire. (Respect the culture, please.) As a result, we saw a whopping 23 kids accidentally shot last week, including eight preteens. Just two of them were hit by New Year's Eve random gunfire, however. It was a busy week for the kids, even without that.
New Year's Eve, of course, is in a class all by itself. As near as I could tell from available reports, five people were shot by random, celebratory gunfire in Los Angeles, CA; San Antonio, TX; Hebbronville, TX; Newport News, VA; and Gadsden, AL. New Year's Eve revelers also blasted into at least 15 homes this week and two cars (not including four more homes fired into under other circumstances), in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Michigan, Indiana, Missouri, Nevada, Ohio, and Virginia. Three people involved in celebratory gunfire incidents accidentally shot themselves, and two were accidentally shot at parties. (CONTINUED:)
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/01/08/1265789/-Welcome-to-Lowe-s-How-may-I-shoot-you-P-S-23-kids-accidentally-shot-last-week-GunFAIL-LI#
The SCOTUS has twice ruled the 2nd Amendment allows private citizens to own guns; and there is nothing indicating that will change. Even with all the media hype, political jockeying and hundreds of gun bills submitted about guns, change has been minimal. In a few States (four I think) gun laws have become more restrictive. But even in those more restrictive States the restrictions have been minimal (ten round magazine limit, and such). But in more States gun laws have become less restrictive. For instance, Chicagoans can now get a concealed carry license. In Colorado, where the ten round limit was instituted, the two politicians who passed the law were recalled. It now appears the law will be repealed.
There are an estimated 320+ million privately owned guns in the US; and an estimated 85 million gun owners. That number increases significantly every time the anti-gun nuts call for more restrictive gun laws. I say “estimated” because we have no way of knowing who owns guns or how many they own. No records are kept. The required FFL background check when buy a gun from a licensed dealer doesn’t indicate the number or type of guns in the transaction. Also, the internet has created an cottage industry where individuals can sell\buy guns without doing background check. My last two gun purchases were from individuals selling their guns on a gun forum. All perfectly legal.
It’s a good idea to never say never. But I don’t see more restrictive gun laws in the foreseeable future. It’s trending toward less controls. I know that’s a hard pill to swallow for some anti-gun nuts, but that’s the reality of the situation. Guns are here to stay.
Keep telling/chanting/hoping to yourself and fellow gun nuts.
You holdbacks on progress said that about every great improvement we have made to this nation!
Young Guns: A Diane Sawyer Special
Diane Sawyer and David Muir take a sharp look at kids and guns in a special report airing Jan. 31 at 10pmET. http://abcnews.go.com/US/video/young-guns-diane-sawyer-special-21694484
America's gun hobby is unsustainable and UNCONSCIONABLE!!!
I'd like to see the demographic statistics for celebratory gunfire accidents, those people are just irresponsible jackasses who make up a small minority of gun owners.
2014 Kicks Off With Gun Crimes Across The Country
http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2014/01/01/3109721/year-starts-gun-violence/
Gun Industry Already Looking Forward To 2016 Election Paranoia For Even Bigger Profit
By Rebecca Leber on January 17, 2014 at 9:00 am
"Gun Industry Already Looking Forward To 2016 Election Paranoia For Even Bigger Profit"
The gun industry has had a great two years of record sales, based on FBI data on background checks. According to former National Rifle Association lawyer and Independent Firearm Owners Association head and Richard Feldman, many manufacturers and retailers secretly hope for a repeat performance in the next presidential cycle.
On Thursday, Businessweek’s Paul Barrett declared it the “the year of the woman,” at the 2014 Shooting Hunting Outdoor Trade show, as the industry turns its attention on marketing to women. Reporting from the annual gun show, Feldman told Barrett that gun retailers look forward to reaping profits from “fear-buying” ahead of the 2016 presidential election:
The mood is upbeat, but the crazed buying frenzy of last year is over. Demand for ammunition is still unbelievably strong, but the gun makers know it’s time to market and sell product, not simply write orders that can’t possibly be filled. The next ramp-up in sales may not occur until the 2016 presidential campaign gets going in earnest. The more likely a Hillary Clinton victory looks, the more advance ‘fear buying’ will recur. While most may vote Republican, manufacturers and retailers secretly hope for a repeat of the ‘Obama surge’ that has boosted sales since 2009.
The gun lobby’s use of paranoid theories to boost gun sales has been a common tactic during the Obama administration. In both 2008 and 2012, the National Rifle Association told its members that Obama secretly planned to confiscate firearms, despite Obama’s conspicuous silence on the issue of gun violence throughout the election.
In the lull between elections, manufacturers hope to expand its consumer base by attracting women. Rather than adjust its policies to appeal to women — like supporting background checks favored by a majority of women — the gun industry now sells pink guns and bras.
It's simple math really.
The more guns there are around, the more bullets will be flying around and killing stuff that's alive.
That's precisely what they are made to do.
http://www.who.int/violence_injury_prevention/violence/4th_milestones_meeting/marmot.pdf
http://www.usnews.com/opinion/blogs/letters-to-the-editor/2012/07/18/with-income-inequality-comes-violence
http://politicalviolenceataglance.org/2012/09/19/income-inequalitys-strange-relationship-to-violence/
Was your "study" funded by the NRA?
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http://www.policymic.com/articles/24124/7-gun-control-facts-that-are-actually-myths
So that was compiled by the NRA too?
The stuff above comes from many sources.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/30/us/strict-chicago-gun-laws-cant-stem-fatal-shots.html?_r=0
Dude, you turned your guns in places like Dodge City and Tombstone.
That is ridiculous to say, just because the findings of a study contradict you're own beliefs.
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-bart-officer-fatally-shot-20140122,0,2685908.story#axzz2r7wsEzi7
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/22/us/a-movie-date-a-text-message-and-a-fatal-shot.html
You'd think so, but really?
What's ridiculous is YOU posting that crap on a web site for a movement that protested the death of Travon Martin.
AND......
You and your links completely ignoring the relationship between inequality and violence in general. Something the NRA is also notorious for ignoring while they support the kinds of policies that make inequality even worse.
You also ignored the simple math.
DEATH, is not a question of belief, unless you believe in reincarnation.
is that what you're saying you believe?
One question, has strict gun control curbed violence in cities like Chicago and DC?
If Chicago and DC had a big ass wall around it and you could only enter and leave through checkpoints-----you would have a case. But, they don't.
That's a meaningless question.
You know that.
Here's reality.
http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2014/01/23/3192911/normal-school-shootings/
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Easy Access to Guns Tied to Higher Risk of Suicide, Homicide
Firearms in the home can lead to rash decisions with fatal outcomes
By Dennis Thompson | HealthDay Reporter
MONDAY, Jan. 20, 2014 (HealthDay News) -- You're more likely to kill yourself or be killed if you have access to a gun, a new study contends.
People with access to a gun are three times more likely to commit suicide and almost twice as likely to be the victim of a homicide as people without a firearm available, according to the report published Jan. 20 in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine.
"If you have a firearm readily available and something bad has happened to you, you might make a rash, impulsive decision that will have a bad outcome," said study lead author Andrew Anglemyer. He is a specialist in study design and data analytics in clinical pharmacy and global health sciences at the University of California, San Francisco.
The issue of firearm accessibility garnered lots of attention following the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre in Newtown, Conn., when 20-year-old Adam Lanza shot and killed 20 children and six adults.
Lanza's mother has been described as a gun enthusiast who owned at least a dozen firearms and often took her son to a local shooting range for target practice, according to published reports. Lanza shot his mother dead before going to the elementary school, where he went on his killing spree before committing suicide, authorities said.
The new report analyzed the results of 15 previous gun studies, 13 of which were done in the United States. Gun ownership is higher in the United States than anywhere else in the world, and 31,000 U.S. deaths each year are attributable to firearms, according to background information included in the study.
The review specifically looked at intentional acts of violence rather than incidents of accidental death due to firearms. The researchers also adjusted the earlier studies' results to account for the likelihood that mental illness could be the cause of violence.
"These are just normal gun owners, and we are seeing that gun owners are making very bad, impulsive decisions," said Anglemyer, who is a U.S. Army veteran.
Based on these results, people should try to limit access to firearms for a friend or loved one who is going through a rough patch in their life and experiencing emotional turmoil, said David Hemenway, a professor of health policy at Harvard University.
"If someone's going through a bad period, you should at least lock the gun up -- or, even better, get the gun out of the house -- until things get better," said Hemenway, who wrote an editorial that accompanied the study.
Men and women had striking differences in their personal risk when guns are around, the researchers found.
Men were nearly four times more likely to commit suicide when firearms were accessible than when they were not accessible. (Women are more likely to use poison as a means of suicide, according to previous research.)
At the same time, women were almost three times more likely to be victims of homicide, most likely due to a fatal shooting prompted by a domestic argument, the researchers said.
"The evidence is strong that a gun in the home increases the risk that a woman will die during a domestic dispute," said Hemenway, who is also director of the Harvard Injury Control Research Center.
http://consumer.healthday.com/public-health-information-30/domestic-violence-news-207/firearms-study-684000.html
Harvard Publication On Gun Laws Resurfaces As Talks About Firearms Continue A study comparing international gun laws shows that getting rid of firearms might not be the solution to reducing overall violence.
As Boston—and the country as a whole—looks for ways to reduce gun-related deaths and violence, a study from 2007 published in a Harvard University journal is suddenly regaining increased attention for its claims that more control over firearms doesn’t necessarily mean their will be a dip in serious crimes.
In an independent research paper titled “Would Banning Firearms Reduce Murder and Suicide?,” first published in Harvard’s Journal of Public Law and Policy, Don B. Kates, a criminologist and constitutional lawyer, and Gary Mauser, Ph.D., a Canadian criminologist and professor at Simon Fraser University, examined the correlation between gun laws and death rates. While not new, as gun debates nationwide heat up, the paper has resurfaced in recent days, specifically with firearm advocates.“International evidence and comparisons have long been offered as proof of the mantra that more guns mean more deaths and that fewer guns, therefore, mean fewer deaths. Unfortunately, such discussions [have] all too often been afflicted by misconceptions and factual error and focus on comparisons that are unrepresentative,” the researchers wrote in their introduction of their findings.
In the 46-page study, which can be read in its entirety here, Kates and Mauser looked at and compared data from the U.S. and parts of Europe to show that stricter laws don’t mean there is less crime. As an example, when looking at “intentional deaths,” or murder, on an international scope, the U.S. falls behind Russia, Estonia, and four other countries, ranking it seventh. More specifically, data shows that in Russia, where guns are banned, the murder rate is significantly higher than in the U.S in comparison. “There is a compound assertion that guns are uniquely available in the United States compared with other modern developed nations, which is why the United States has by far the highest murder rate. Though these assertions have been endlessly repeated, [the latter] is, in fact, false and [the former] is substantially so,” the authors point out, based on their research.
Kates and Mauser clarify that they are not suggesting that gun control causes nations to have higher murder rates, rather, they “observed correlations that nations with stringent gun controls tend to have much higher murder rates than nations that allow guns.”
The study goes on to say:
…the burden of proof rests on the proponents of the more guns equal more death and fewer guns equal less death mantra, especially since they argue public policy ought to be based on that mantra. To bear that burden would at the very least require showing that a large number of nations with more guns have more death and that nations that have imposed stringent gun controls have achieved substantial reductions in criminal violence (or suicide). But those correlations are not observed when a large number of nations are compared across the world.
The paper resurfaced at a time when Boston itself has been looking for ways to combat gun violence, and gun-related deaths, after a sharp uptick in shootings in the city this year.
As of July, more than 100 people had been impacted by shootings in Boston in some way, and more than 17 people had been killed in the city by someone with a firearm. The increase in incidents showed a nearly 30 percent increase in gun-related deaths compared with the same time period in 2012. That number has gone up slightly since then.
In order to quell the violence, officials have been mulling a gun buyback program, and increasing community outreach, but based on Harvard’s latest findings, that may not be the answer.
While the research published by Harvard may show a direct correlation between lower gun-related incidents and less stringent laws, and Boston, specifically, is experiencing an alleged gun crisis, overall, stricter rules on firearms in Massachusetts has seemingly led to fewer deaths, according to the latest data available, putting the state in the second to last slot for the lowest number of reported fatalities nationwide.
But when it comes to examining nations as a whole, the Harvard study suggests otherwise. “If more guns equal more death and fewer guns equal less death, areas within nations with higher gun ownership should in general have more murders than those with less gun ownership in a similar area. But, in fact, the reverse pattern prevails,” the authors wrote.
Correction: August 30, 6:00 p.m.: A previous version of this story labeled this study as "new," when in fact, it was first published in 2007. The study has regained the attention of gun advocates in recent days and is being used as an argument for less stringent laws in the U.S.
http://www.bostonmagazine.com/news/blog/2013/08/30/harvard-gun-study-no-decrease-in-violence-with-ban/