Tuesday, May 24, 2016

The Gun Nut

Donald Trump’s appearance before the NRA last week was a perfectly predictable olio of bloviation, narcissism, incivility and misrepresentation. It also revealed, although you probably knew this already, that the guy is a little nuts.

Trump told the NRA faithful assembled in Louisville exactly what they wanted to hear: that he was in favor of more guns everywhere. In schools. In high crime neighborhoods. In Paris night clubs. Everywhere.  Gun-free zones would become a thing of the past.

The reason for this frenzy is, of course, “self defense.” For Trump, and for the NRA, we live in a dangerous world surrounded by people who are out to get us. And the only way we can stop them in their tracks is to have guns; either, one hopes, to deter attacks in the first place or, if worse comes to worst, to shoot back. And for Trump, Hilary Clinton becomes “Heartless Hilary” because she would take people’s guns away from them and deprive them of their one opportunity to defend themselves. This is Trump at his adolescent best, lying and name calling in one fell swoop.

Of course it doesn’t bother Trump in the slightest that there is no evidence that having lots of guns around will deter gun violence. On the contrary: anyone paying attention knows that gun ownership is much higher in the United States than it is in other high income countries. And so is the probability that somebody will shoot you to death. The extent to which the United States is an outlier in both these regards is truly stunning. Take a look at this chart.*



What you’re seeing here is that in 2007, there were about 15 guns present for every 100 members of the population in 21 high income countries other than the United States. For the US, the comparable number was 113. In 2010 in those same 21 countries, there were a little more than .1 gun homicides per 100,000 members of the population; in the US there were 3.6. The probability of being murdered with a gun in the United States was 25.2 times as high as in other high income countries. Is it really possible to look at that number and conclude that having lots and lots of guns around is making us safer?**

Here’s where the question of Trump’s sanity rears its ugly head. In the face of overwhelming evidence that the accumulation of guns has not made us a whit safer in the past, Trump believes that more guns will make us safer in the future. And that, as a wise man once told us, albeit in more polite terms, is nuts.




* To prepare this chart I used data from two sources: the Small Arms Survey 2007 and “Violent Death Rates: The US Compared with Other High-income OECD Countries, 2010,” in the American Journal of Medicine, 2015.

** Don't be thinking that "Well sure, as long as we've got these guns around, we''ll use them when we want to kill somebody. Folks in all those other countries are going to use knives, or poison, or cricket bats or something." It doesn't work that way. Regardless of method, people in other countries murder each other at much lower rates. It's harder to get the job done if you don't have a gun to do it with.

5 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  2. When you were at my house today you wouldn't even talk about gun control, acted like you didn't even know what it is. In fact once you heard my position you even slanted a tad towards pro gun. Then I read your articulate diatribe which shows a totally different position. That is exactly why I told you I don't trust politicians. They simply don't tell the truth. I would have much more respect for you if you had just told me your honest position on guns. Well good luck, this independent voter will not be casting his for you.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. As I told you, and you agreed, I believe people have the right to own guns for a variety of reasons (that's simply a matter of law) but that guns need to be kept out of the hands of people who will misuse them. That's what background checks are for, although they need improvement. Trump does not appear to believe that. He favors more guns and apparently no limits on who should have them.

      Delete
  3. Dick, thanks for your response. I'll let people read your post, "The Gun Nut" and your recollection of our discussion to try to determine where you really stand on this issue. I have my own opinion. Ironically, my concern with you has nothing to do with guns, it has to do with my feeling that you did not take the opportunity, in my view, to express your true view on an issue. Heck, in my own immediate family, we have division on many issues, and are comprised of Democrats, Republicans and Independents. I love them all and respect their opinions, though I don't always agree with their positions. What I covet is the fact that I always know where they stand......I only wish I could say the same for most politicians. Regards, Rick

    ReplyDelete
  4. After reading your article I felt compelled to respond. Here I have a blog best car gun safe for hunters.

    ReplyDelete