Re: GUNS: Accidental Deaths

Michael S. Lorrey (retroman@together.net)
Thu, 04 Mar 1999 11:17:13 -0500

Eric Ruud wrote:

> >Eric Ruud [ejruud@ucdavis.edu] wrote:
> >>It seems to me that there are certainly a LOT more cars and bathrooms than
> >>there are guns.
> >
> >The generally accepted estimate for the number of guns in America is over
> 200,000,000, and growing rapidly as more and more anti-gun laws are
> >passed. You can do the math.
> >
> Give me a few statistics and I'll do the math.
>
> 1) Average time spent handling gun

While the stats for the two below are rather easy to establish, the one above is not, and I doubt you will get many people agreeing on the criteria to measure it. For example:

in 'handling' a gun, do you mean the amount of time it is actually in hand being fired? If that is the only criterion you accept then you are obviously trying to skew the stats.

Since a gun is a deterrent weapon, (esp. seeing as how the FBI estimates that guns are used in defense against criminals 2 million times a year without firing, merely being brandished) merely carrying a gun on one's person or having one close at hand ( in the glove box, in your desk, in your night stand, etc.) should count as 'time handling a gun'. If you accept this, I think you will find that time handling a gun is actually much higher than either of the two below. I personally spend an hour or so in the bathroom a day, and maybe two hours a day on the road. I am carrying or have my gun close at hand 24/7. I spend 2-4 hours a week firing guns on the practice range (mostly skeet, though I try to pop off a few mags on my 9mm at least once a week or so). I think that you will find that most gun owners who aren't just collectors have similar habits. Most at least keep one close at hand in the bedroom for night time security, which would make their 'handling' rate about 6-10 hours a day.

>
> 2) Average time spent in bathroom
> 3) Average time spent in car
>
> I'm not trying to manipulate data... I'm trying to use some meaningful
> statistics. For example, people might say that bees are more dangerous than
> great white sharks, simply because there are a greater number of bee deaths
> than great white deaths... you get where I'm going with this.

Yes I do. Try it out and see where you get. Counting 'handling' as having a gun on one's person or close at hand is exactly like time spent in an idling car at a stoplight (one of the higher risk situations to be in, in a car, as a matter of fact.) or stuck in traffic.

Mike Lorrey