Quote Originally Posted by StephL View Post
The following numbers paint a quite different picture, when it comes to gun ownership - problems far outweigh "benefits" for the public:
Surgeon general nomination: Vivek Murthy on guns and public health | New Republic

As Olga Khazan pointed out at The Atlantic, suicide rates are higher in states where gun ownership is more common.

In 2010, 19,392 people took their own lives with guns, while “justifiable homicides”—self-defence shootings that may have saved a life—numbered only 230.

Over two-thirds of homicides and over half of successful suicides involve the use of a gun, and accidental gun deaths average about two a day.

Then there are the less obvious health effects of gun violence: Lead in the ground from ammunition. Loss of hearing from gunshots. Widespread PTSD that effects everyone from shooters, to victims, to bystanders. “Gun violence traumatizes whole communities,” Hemenway told me. This creates a cycle: “People with PTSD in inner cities often don’t have good access to mental health care, and it makes them more likely to be aggressive.”
The article says nothing about the deterrent factor. There mere knowledge of common gun ownership keeps a lot of communities safe. That is something the gun prohibition advocates never acknowledge.

What is your explanation for why mandatory gun ownership always lowers crime rates substantially?

The prevalence of guns does not cause suicide. A person determined to commit suicide does it. There are many ways to do it, and guns are not necessary at all for it. I have been suicidal, and whether or not I could find a gun had zero to do with whether or not I was going to go through with it. A gun is just a convenient instrument to use. If one can't be found, it changes nothing but the means. Correlation does not prove causation, though sometimes it results from it. Common gun ownership could result from the same factors that are making people more suicidal.

Plus, people would have a right to at least have a chance at defending themselves even if the deterrence factor and the occurrence of self-defense with a gun were extremely low, which they are not.

I want to stress again that gun prohibition would make bad guys with guns much more dangerous. We can't give them the advantage.

Quote Originally Posted by DeadDollKitty View Post
When was the last time a hammer got up off the table on its own accord and came over and killed a person without anyone making it do so?
Exactly. And it's good to see you again.