Greg’s Corner April 2008
By Greg Petty
What Do We Do About The Guns?
I think all of us in the Triangle are still in shock at the unnecessary and violent death of UNC Student Body President Eve Carson. Our society has lost an intelligent, joyful and energetic contributor to making America and the world a better place in which to live. We are perhaps in the same shock that is most likely still haunting the parents of those students who were victims at Virginia Tech, Northern Illinois Universities and Columbine.
On March 18th the U. S. Supreme Court heard verbal arguments about the constitutionality of Washington, D.C.'s ban on handgun ownership. The argument will revolve around the current efforts by the gun-rights lobby to reverse the current judicial interpretation (a long established judicial precedent, 1939 U.S. vs Miller) that the right to bear arms is a collective right for a "well-regulated militia" and not an individual right to bear arms. [Thus the D.C. ban is constitutional]
 Much is at stake with this Supreme Court decision. Whichever side of the argument you favor, our collective society has some choices to make about what we will continue to allow to occur in our society and whether we are able to enforce the laws that are already on the books. Existing laws attempt to keep these weapons out of the hands of juveniles, felons and mentally disturbed individuals. The enforcement of these laws however, and the lack of strict laws in many states, make it far too easy for national gun trafficking to occur. Handguns, legal and illegal, wreak a horrible toll on Americans. Here are some statistics to ponder:
Gun homicide rates by country: (per 100,000 people each year)
Japan - 0.03
Germany - 0.33
Canada - 0.69
Switzerland - 0.93
United States - 3.92
Columbia - 49.52
(Source: WHO, UN Office of Drugs and Crime)
2004 small arms transfers: (in US $ millions)
Columbia
Import - $19
Export - $0.5 or less
Canada
Import - $81
Export - $91
Germany
Import - $147
Export - $307
Switzerland
Import - $33
Export - $69
United States
Import - $732
Export - $618
(Source: Small Arms Survey Yearbook 2007, UN Comtrade database)
Estimate of the number of guns in the United States: 200,000,000, 67% of populace, 50% of the world's privately owned total.
Estimated United States population: 298,000,000
(Sources: Annals of Emergency Medicine, US Census Bureau, The Economist)
The firearm death rate in U.S. for children 14 and younger: 12 times higher than the combined rate in 25 other modern industrialized nations.
(Source: National Center for Injury Control & Preventions, 2003)
Annual gun violence cost to America: $100,000,000,000
(Source: Cook and Ludwig, Gun Violence: The Real Costs, 2000)
U.S. products exempt from federal safety oversight: Guns and Tobacco. Toy guns and teddy bears are regulated.
(Source: Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, 2003)
Rank of North Carolina as source of crime handguns recovered in other states: 5th
(Source: Columbia School of Public Health, 2003) Recent data suggest we may have moved into 2nd place for crimes committed in New York and New Jersey (North Carolinians Against Gun Violence).
Number of states allowing private citizens to carry concealed weapons: 48
(Source: NRA, The Economist, March 15, 2007)
Number of federal gun laws NOT enforced and % of actual prosecutions: 20 out 22, 2% prosecution rate.
(Sources: Americans for Gun Safety, 2003, Department of Justice data FY 2000-2002)
Federal crimes NOT being enforced/prosecuted: (See above) Gun trafficking, firearm theft, lying on a criminal background check form, obliterating firearm serial numbers, selling guns to minors, possessing a gun in a school zone.
Is there a federal or state law requiring background checks on people buying guns from unlicensed dealers at Virginia gun shows? No.
Date Virginia State Senate voted down background checks for buyers at gun shows: January 23, 2008
(Source: New York Times, January 25, 2008)
Support among Americans for stricter regulation of firearms is widespread:
% for Prohibiting Gun Use When Under the Influence of Alcohol
% for Limiting Sales of High Power/50-caliber Rifles
% for Limiting Sales of Semi-automatic Assault Weapons
% for Criminal Background Checks for Private Gun Sales
% for Police Permits to Purchase Guns
|
91%
85%
82%
80%
79% |
(Source: Public Attitudes towards the Regulation of Firearms, Tom W. Smith, NORC/University of Chicago, March, 2007)
Proportion of Americans holding hunting licenses: 1985 - 10%, 2007 - 6%
(Source: The Economist, March 15, 2007)
Rank of National Rifle Association (NRA) on Fortune Magazine's 2002 "Power 25" lobbying groups: 1st
NRA PAC contributions to Congress since 1990: $16,311,519
NRA spending on issue ads during 2000 election cycle: $20,000,000
(NRA sources: Center for Responsive Politics, Federal Election Commission, Fortune Magazine, 2002, Annenberg Public Policy Center)
|
March 2008: A review of America’s Conscience: Facing Threats to Democracy, the Middle Class and Our World
December 2007: Inside the Subprime Mortgage Meltdown, Part II
November 2007: Inside the Subprime Mortgage Meltdown, Part I
September 2007: Wellness: First Things First
May 2007: The State of our Health Care System: Part II
April 2007: The State of our Health Care System: Part I
February 2007: The American Dream vs. The Gospel of Weath: The Fight for a Productive Middle-Class Economy
November 2006: Iraq: What Should America Do? Part II
November 2006: Iraq: What Should America Do? Part II
October 2006: Iraq: What Should America Do? Part I
August 2006: Global Warming–We Can Make a Difference
July 2006: I am a BAD American
June 2006: What’s Wrong with America’s Dialogue? The Three Ds
April 2006: One American’s Response to the State of the Union Address, Part II
March 2006: One American’s Response to The State of the Union Address, Part I
December 2005: An indictment of American public
school education and federal initiatives and "The Shame of the Nation: The Restoration of Apartheid Schooling in
America"
September 2005: The
Wilson-Plame-Rove Sideshow, Part II
August 2005: The
Wilson-Plame-Rove Sideshow, Part I
June 2005: Paying
Your Fair Share: American Tax Relief
April 2005: Core
Values, Part II
March 2005: Core
Values, Part I
February 2005: "Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas" by Elaine Pagels
|
