Gun Control Groups Demand Action
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It’s been a rough patch in recent news for guns rights groups. Several deadly shootings have raised the cries from gun control groups to stop this spree. In the past few weeks, Americans have witnessed the killing of eleven people in a Pittsburg synagogue, two people slaughtered in a yoga studio in Tallahassee and another twelve gunned down in a San Diego bar.
It seems nowhere in America are people safe from gunmen. Gun Violence Archive lists over two dozen other shootings resulting in many killed or injured in the past month.
Guns aren’t the only—or even the most crucial—thing needing to be addressed to shop mass shootings like these. Wiser heads are calling not for tighter gun control but rather for increased funding for mental health care. Others beg for programs that counteract poverty, crime, and depression. Few have talked about how to combat anti-Semitic, misogynistic, and general hate that motivated recent gunmen to lash out.
Gun control groups cite Canada as an example of what they think will fix the problem. Canada has only 1/6 of the shootings, they point out. Canada has way tougher gun controls. Gun control groups point out that concealed carry and gun ownership are still possible in Canada so the Second Amendment rights would not be violated. But, these people are not looking at comparative data. Canada has a much smaller population. They need to look at per capita rates to make a fair comparison. The truth is: Many other developed countries have.
Tighter gun control isn’t the answer. It’s a knee-jerk reaction to the horror and fear in the face of mass killings. Here are some of the reasons why:
Mass killings are very rare. They account for less than a fifth of a percent of homicides in America each year.
In many cases, the shooter in these incidents did not buy a firearm legally. In some, he did not personally own the firearm he used.
Most mass killings are either drug or gang-related or the gunman opened fire on family.
There has been only a minuscule increase in mass public shootings. The rates have remained stable since the 1980’s.
Gun control has so far not curbed killings. Over 90% of public mass shootings occurred in “gun-free zones” where civilians were not permitted to carry firearms!
Banning “assault weapons” actually saves very few lives statistically. In over sixty percent of mass public shootings the shooter used a handguns alone. 10% used a rifle.
Also banning “high-capacity magazines” won’t have a great effect. There is no data to show that delays of two or three seconds would have had any effect on the lethality of the shooting.
There are clearly other issues which need to be addressed. Sixty percent of those involved in mass shootings have shown signs of serious mental illness or been diagnosed with a mental disorder before the attack. In literature there is a strong link between mental illness and mass public killings.
Before we look to gun control laws as a solution we need to look at how to treat mental illnesses as a prevention.
Before succumbing to public outcry to tighten gun controls, lawmakers need to know these facts. Their solutions to rampant shootings must be based on hard data—not on misguided emotions.
