Common sense approaches to gun violence

[SecularMotion]

Unlike some other states, Massachusetts didn’t rush to pass new gun laws in the aftermath of the horrific shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in late 2012. Instead, the state’s leaders embarked on a serious study of gun laws and gun violence in the Bay State, and with good reason. We already have some of the nation’s toughest gun laws, but there’s disagreement over how well they function. Moreover, there are unintended consequences lawmakers should avoid, especially where mental illness and gun rights intersect.

One product of that study, a thoughtful report released this week by a committee appointed by House Speaker Robert DeLeo, puts gun violence in Massachusetts in a national perspective. Among its findings:

Massachusetts gun laws have been ranked the sixth strongest in the nation as of last December by the Brady Center. They had been third strongest until some other states jumped ahead.

Massachusetts has the third lowest rate of household gun ownership in the country.

http://www.enterprisenews.com/article/20140209/OPINION/140206588/12325/OPINION

[msongs]

1. gun owners should stop shooting other people. problem solved nt

[clffrdjk]

2. Done, I promise to never shoot anyone except in self defense.

Will you stop trying to restrict my rights now?

[ileus]

6. No you still have a gun, and are a threat to innocent criminals.

Once you no longer can protect yourself then they'll stop.

[clffrdjk]

7. But, but he just asked for me not to shoot anyone and said it was that simple.

It would be an nice change of pace to debate someone who is honest about what they want and why they want it. I grow tired of the lies half truths and name calling.

[gejohnston]

3. Wyoming has the lowest robbery rate

and 6th lowest murder rate. Wyoming also has the highest gun ownership rate in the US. Connection? No. Same with this nonsense.
I missed the common sense part. Since when did common sense mean a superficial logical fallacy laden screed?

From 2001 to 2010, the state had the second lowest rate of gun deaths in the U.S. We have the lowest rate of firearms suicides (nationally, suicides by gun are more numerous than homicides by gun), and a very low rate of gun homicides and fatal gun injuries. - See more at:

this is where I stopped reading. South Korea's and Japan's gun suicide rate is almost nonexistent, yet their suicide rates are first and second in the world respectively.

The op ed talks about suicide by gun, not suicide. It also doesn't talk about majority of violence in the US, gang warfare. Firearms are used in 52 percent of US suicides.

[hack89]

4. I would suspect that higher levels of educations and income had more to do with lower crime

than anything else.

[friendly_iconoclast]

5. It seems that strong gun laws had little, if anything to do with it

I'm not claiming that correlation=causation here, but two neighboring states
had notably lower rates of violent crime and murder than did Massachusetts.

Source: the FBI's Crime in The United States 2012

http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2012/crime-in-the-u.s.-2012/tables/4tabledatadecoverviewpdf


State rates per 100,000 population

(The first number is violent crime, the second is murder and nonnegligent manslaughter)




Massachusetts 405.5 1.8

New Hampshire 187.9 1.1

Vermont 142.6 1.3


In closing, two things:
1) Guess which state has the most restrictive gun laws, and which two the laxest

2) The method of murder makes no difference whatsoever to the victim.
They're just as dead regardless.