In the wake of the tragedy in Tucson, as with any gun-related tragedy, there’s been a chorus of voices opining as to how more guns would have prevented this. It’s an appealing view for many, couched as it in the mythology of responsible heroes carefully wielding their weapons to selflessly preserve public safety and protect their fellow man from Evil. It’s an appealing view…but it’s an absolute fantasy. What gun proponents won’t tell you is that once bullets start flying, they don’t discriminate. If someone mistakes an armed individual for a criminal and shoots them, there’s no mulligan, no “Sorry, my bad….” moment where they get to clean up their mess and start over. Just the creation of another widow or fatherless child.
In reality, the states with the most gun deaths are the states with the highest percentage of gun ownership. Conversely, the states with the lowest percentage of gun deaths are the states with the lowest percentage of gun ownership. It might be trendy for gun lovers to think that more guns ipso facto translate to more safety and security…BUT IT’S JUST NOT TRUE. Believing wholeheartedly in a fantasy does not convert that fantasy into reality. No matter how much gun lovers choose to flog the canard that more guns equal more safety and security, there’s simply no credible evidence to back them up. In fact, the evidence supports a position not popular with gun aficionados: that more guns simply result in more deaths.
Don’t blame me…look at the evidence. Speak to and deal with the truth, NOT with what you choose to believe reality to be.
I don’t hate guns; I was raised in a home that had an NRA sticker prominently displayed on the front door. Like most rural Minnesota boys, the state-mandated gun safety class I took when I was 12 was a rite of passage. I grew up firing weapons of all sorts, and I’m pretty comfortable with firearms. That being said, that comfort and familiarity has given me a healthy respect for (and fear of) the lethality of guns. When I was in high school, the oldest son of my fifth-grade teacher was accidentally shot and killed by his younger brother while they were deer hunting. I’m not naive, nor am I merely some clueless bleeding-heart Liberal on this issue. I can see both sides of the issue…but I can also recognize the truth.
If we’re going to have a debate on guns in this country, I’m all for it. As much as I would like to ban firearms, I know that this isn’t even remotely possible. What I’d really like to ban is the misconception/propaganda that guns are a panacea that will protect Americans against random, senseless violence. I’d like to be able to force everyone- myself included- to deal with the truth as it is. Unfortunately, as long as there are groups like the NRA and people like Ted Nugent out there who think that the answers to our problems invariably involve more guns, nothing will change. This sad reality leaves me wondering how many more people will have to die before we stop reloading and begin reconsidering the truth: more guns DO NOT equality more safety and security.
Wanting to believe something to be true does not mean that it IS true. Or are those who love guns willing to accept the loss of innocent lives in order to protect their fantasy?
