-----Original Message-----
From: mark@unicorn.com <mark@unicorn.com>
To: extropians@extropy.com <extropians@extropy.com>
Date: Thursday, March 04, 1999 8:24 AM
Subject: Re: GUNS: Accidental Deaths
>Eric Ruud [ejruud@ucdavis.edu] wrote:
>>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.
>
>Uh, for the average American, bees *are* more dangerous than great white
>sharks. For the average American, their bathroom *is* more dangerous than
>a gun. For someone swimming with a great white shark it's more dangerous
>than a bee. For someone facing a jackbooted government thug, the thug's
>gun is more dangerous than their bathroom.
>
>Why should we be concerned about these special cases when we're talking
>about the effect on the average American's life? The average American is
>far more likely to die in a bathroom accident than a gun accident. That's
>it. You're trying to turn the discussion to some special case which is
>irrelevant to what we're talking about.
>
> Mark
>
I believe what I'm trying to do is keep you honest with your statistics. My
point is that if we used guns as much as we used bathrooms, there would be
more gun deaths. I believe you're the one trying to manipulate the
statistics in this case by saying that guns are safer than bathrooms. One of
the main reasons I'm not at high risk of being eaten by a shark is that I
don't live by the ocean, and the main reason I'm not at high rick of having
a gun accident is that I've never used one. If I carried a gun, as you seem
to be suggesting I should as a law abiding citizen, my risk of dying by my
own gun would probably be higher than me dying in the bathroom.
-Eric