Semi-Auto Gun Ban (Part 2)

The number of well-publicized public shootings during the past few years, especially the tragedy at Columbine High School, has re-energized the gun control movement. As a show of strength, a coalition of gun control groups has organized a "Million Mom March" to be held in Washington, D.C. on Mother's Day, an event designed to stir up emotions rather than promote rational thought. And when one looks at the facts about gun control, it's easy to see why the anti-gun lobby relies on emotion rather than logic to make its case.

Think you know the facts about gun control? If your only source of information is the mainstream media, what you think you know may not be correct. Take the quiz below and test your knowledge.

David Lampo is the publications director at the Cato Institute.

1. Thousands of children die annually in gun accidents.

False. Gun accidents involving children are actually at record lows, although you wouldn't know it from listening to the mainstream media. In 1997, the last year for which data are available, only 142 children under 15 years of age died in gun accidents, and the total number of gun-related deaths for this age group was 642. More children die each year in accidents involving bikes, space heaters or drownings. The often repeated claim that 12 children per day die from gun violence includes "children" up to 20 years of age, the great majority of whom are young adult males who die in gang-related violence.

2. Gun shows are responsible for a large number of firearms falling into the hands of criminals.

False. Contrary to President Clinton's claims, there is no "gun show loophole." All commercial arms dealers at gun shows must run background checks, and the only people exempt from them are the small number of non-commercial sellers. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, at most 2 percent of guns used by criminals are purchased at gun shows, and most of those were purchased legally by people who passed background checks.

3. The tragedy at Columbine High School a year ago illustrates the deficiencies of current gun control laws.

False. Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold violated close to 20 firearms laws in amassing their cache of weapons (not to mention the law against murder), so it seems rather dubious to argue that additional laws might have prevented this tragedy. The two shotguns and rifle used by Harris and Klebold were purchased by a girlfriend who would have passed a background check, and the TEC-9 handgun used by them was already illegal.

4. States that allow registered citizens to carry concealed weapons have lower crime rates than those that don't.

True. The 31 states that have "shall issue" laws allowing private citizens to carry concealed weapons have, on average, a 24 percent lower violent crime rate, a 19 percent lower murder rate and a 39 percent lower robbery rate than states that forbid concealed weapons. In fact, the nine states with the lowest violent crime rates are all right-to-carry states. Remarkably, guns are used for self-defense more than 2 million times a year, three to five times the estimated number of violent crimes committed with guns.

5. Waiting periods lower crime rates.

False. Numerous studies have been conducted on the effects of waiting periods, both before and after the federal Brady bill was passed in 1993. Those studies consistently show that there is no correlation between waiting periods and murder or robbery rates. Florida State University professor Gary Kleck analyzed data from every U.S. city with a population over 100,000 and found that waiting periods had no statistically significant effect. Even University of Maryland anti-gun researcher David McDowell found that "waiting periods have no influence on either gun homicides or gun suicides."

6. Lower murder rates in foreign countries prove that gun control works.

False. This is one of the favorite arguments of gun control proponents, and yet the facts show that there is simply no correlation between gun control laws and murder or suicide rates across a wide spectrum of nations and cultures. In Israel and Switzerland, for example, a license to possess guns is available on demand to every law-abiding adult, and guns are easily obtainable in both nations. Both countries also allow widespread carrying of concealed firearms, and yet, admits Dr. Arthur Kellerman, one of the foremost medical advocates of gun control, Switzerland and Israel "have rates of homicide that are low despite rates of home firearm ownership that are at least as high as those in the United States." A comparison of crime rates within Europe reveals no correlation between access to guns and crime.

The basic premise of the gun control movement, that easy access to guns causes higher crime, is contradicted by the facts, by history and by reason. Let's hope more people are catching on.

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[clydefrog907]

NRA for life

[perth2920]

"Our houses are protected by the good Lord and a gun

And you might meet 'em both if you show up here not welcome son" - Josh Thompson

[SSshane6d9]

Also for the changing of a semi to full auto, that's highly illegal! Also if you bam guns from law abiding citizens, only bad guys will have umm leaving us Shit Out of Lock. Your theory sucks, and if you want to live where no guns are allowed then MOVE, I don't want my rights taken away cause some jackass thinks we don't need them.

[SSshane6d9]

@gomikeygomikey There's no need for computers, cell phones, music, soda, beer, bicycles, four wheelers/atvs, dirt bikes, tvs, radios and just about everything else. Just caus you don't NEED something doesn't mean you don't wanna have it or like it. Just because you choose notto have one doesn't mean others don'!

[Malunat13]

id like to see them come to my house and take my guns, getta wall of lead in their faces

[MachShot1337]

@LT89NL Assault Rifle is a respected term, but not assault "weapon", vast majority of things prohibited by the unconstitutional AWB were not assault rifles, nor should they a concern in the first place since fully automatic weapons make up barely 1% of all illegitimate gun murders.

But yes, it does come from the third Reich's scare tactics with their weaponry, I'm not sure how using Nazi Germany propaganda as a crutch for your argument is supposed to help.

[gomikeygomikey]

Also what's wrong with just using a good old fasioned bolt action and with learning some skill?!? Follow the beast, be down wind, and kill with one shot!

[gomikeygomikey]

When I said were I live I like meant the whole place over a year out of about 6 million people so it's not that bad!

[gomikeygomikey]

Cant you change them from simi to auto!? Or get a gunsmith to do it! Plus a man eating polar bear is a man eating polar call it mikey if you like! It's still a Man Eating Polar bear Ok!

As a man with some army experince you Dont want your weapon on full auto anyway you lose all your ammo in like 2secs and miss everything your aiming at!

There's been about 5 gun related deaths last year due to guns were I live!

[LT89NL]

@MachShot1337 1) Plenty of people in the usa use semi-auto assault rifles for hunting all kinds of game species, up to big game. And although 10 shot magazines are much more commonly used than hi-cap mags, there still are idiots out there using 30 shot mags in their AR's when hunting.

2) Also, assualt rifle is indeed a recognised term by the majority of the worlds armies, beginning with the German Reich with the introduction of the "Stürmgewehr"(i.e. "storm" or assault rifle")

[MachShot1337]

@gomikeygomikey

1) No one is advocating hunting with non-approved weapons by the game and fish commission, never less fully automatic weapons.

2)"Assault Weapon" is a fake term not recognized by any military or gun manufacturer. It's just to make non-wooden guns sound evil.

3)The ban didn't work because they were arbitrary standards on aesthetics rather than functions.

4)Feel free to move to a state that has tougher gun laws. Enjoy the higher crime rate.

[gomikeygomikey]

What aload of propaganda pro gun Trash! There is No need for an assult weapon! Because that's what they are! They Not tools! The Ban only didn't work as they said cuz the guns were still there! You need a total ban on assult weapons! For it to work! If u need 40 rounds to kill a deer Take up fishing!