The fatal shooting of a firing range instructor in Nevada by a 9-year-old girl last week has lit up the ring for another round in the gun control debate.
This incident of apparent irresponsibility has recently taken the forefront position of advertising the radical argument that the American people ought to give up or downsize their personal and collective right to self-defense.
Differing from its name, gun control is really about people control and is supposedly aimed at reducing violence.
Measuring its effectiveness by that metric, it has been found to be generally unnecessary, if not actually a barrier to reducing overall crime in many cases.
The number of guns and gun owners in the United States is higher today than it has ever been , partly due to the significant easing of gun control efforts.
The federal waiting period for handguns expired in 1998 , and Congress rejected the renewal of the redundant assault weapons ban in 2004.
Forty-eight states restrict cities from imposing gun laws that are stricter than state law , and 42 states possess right-to-carry laws.
Thirty-three states and Congress alike have agreed to protect firearms industries by prohibiting frivolous lawsuits against them.
In the face of all this legislative relaxation and soaring ownership, the total violent crime rate between 1991 and 2012 plummeted 49 percent, which was a 42-year low. The murder rate followed closely with a 52-percent drop and a 49-year low.
Since 1904, the fatal gun accident rate has declined a massive 94 percent with aid from programs such as Eddie Eagle GunSafe.
Crime rates in Detroit and Chicago have apparently decreased since the loosening of gun laws in their states.
This all conclusively contradicts what the gun control lobby wants you to believe. Guns and our gun culture are not as threatening as it’s hyped.
If somebody knew absolutely nothing about firearms and turned on the news expecting to learn something about them, they might get a first impression of guns as these untamable entities that autonomously swoop around communities nationwide terrorizing and killing innocent people.
In the real world, while we point out how dangerous guns are all day, we miss blaming the root causes of violence, such as our crippling economy, mental illness and failed drug policies.
The power of gun control advocacy merely relies on unawareness, fear and emotion.
Its illegitimacy has me questioning what the agenda of organizations such as Mayors Against Illegal Guns really is.
Many Americans have forgotten that the primary duty of our government is to protect the rights and freedoms of the governed, not to provide safety via silly policies at the price of those liberties.
It is the earnest wish of criminals on the street and government that their subjects be disarmed.
edharo@indiana.edu
