In pretty much any world, 2.5 million is a huge number unless you’re talking in terms of governmental finance. The idea of 2.5 million is kind of boggling to most folks, who aren’t sure what it actually would look like. Count me in that group as well. It’s a massive number of money or people. And if the idea of 2.5 million people having anything in common is impressive, it should be.
It just happens to be the estimated number of Americans who defend themselves annually with a firearm.
Many gun control advocates have said for years that guns don’t deter crime. They’ll point out someone with a gun who was still the victim of a crime. They’ll point out police officers killed in the line as examples of how a gun won’t help you prevent a crime. It’s just a shame it’s not true.
Dr. Gary Kleck of Florida State University is the source of the estimate that 2.5 million people protect themselves with a firearm each year. Why is it an estimate? It’s because the FBI doesn’t have hard data on defensive handgun uses. Why would they? Most of the time (one estimate is 0.9%) the weapon is never even fired.
One survey of convicted felons said that 60% of them wouldn’t commit a crime if they knew the victim was armed, and only 40% would do so if they thoughttheir intended victim was armed. Criminals fear armed victims, in many cases more than the police, because civilian and law enforcement have different rules when dealing with what are often called “forcible felonies”, crime like rape and aggravated assault among other. Police must try to make an arrest. A civilian may fire without such obligations so long as there is a reasonable fear of someone being severely hurt (in states like Georgia anyways).
Of course, many argue that guns are used in crimes at an alarming rate that overwealms even the good that firearms may do. By restricting firearms with what they term as “common sense gun legislation”, we can save a great many lives. Sounds great, doesn’t it?
Here’s the thing. Somewhere in the neighborhood of 90% of all violent crimes don’t even involve a gun. In addition, two-thirds of all the people killed by firearms each year are criminals killed by their would be victims. In 1982, Kennesaw, GA passed an ordinance requiring every household to have a firearm. The next year, the residential burglary rate dropped 89%.
The statistics have shown time and time again that firearms actually save lives, rather than being the threat to domestic peace and tranquility opponents would rather you think of them as. No matter how you try and cut it, guns save lives. Even the vaunted European model doesn’t hold water.
You see, it is true that Europe has less gun crime. However, it’s important to also know that violent crime of all types is lower than here in the United States. In England, since their total ban went into effect, the violent crime rate has skyrocketed. London is now as dangerous a city as New York, Chicago, or Washington DC (all cities with tough gun laws I might add).
So why not quit blaming the guns and try and find a real solution to the epidemic of violent crime in this nation rather than trying to blame an inanimate object that can’t hurt a soul unless someone makes it. Sort of like a car, which kills more people every year now that I think about it.
