Why People Fear Guns

[2LEYS]

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Why People Fear Guns

Friday, January 02, 2004

By John R. Lott Jr.


People fear guns. Yet, while guns make it easier for bad things to happen, they also make it easier for people to protect themselves.

With the avalanche of horrific news stories about guns over the years, it's no wonder people find it hard to believe that, according to surveys (one I conducted for 2002 for my book, "The Bias Against Guns," and three earlier academic surveys by different researchers published in such journals as the Journal of Criminal Justice) there are about two million defensive gun uses (search) each year; guns are used defensively four times more frequently than they are to commit crimes.

The rebuttal to this claim always is: If these events were really happening, wouldn't we hear about them on the news? Many people tell me that they have never heard of an incident of defensive gun use. There is a good reason for their confusion. In 2001, the three major television networks -- ABC, CBS, and NBC -- ran 190,000 words' worth of gun-crime stories on their morning and evening national news broadcasts. But they ran not a single story mentioning a private citizen using a gun to stop a crime.

The print media was almost as biased: The New York Times ran 50,745 words on contemporaneous gun crimes, but only one short, 163-word story on a retired police officer who used his gun to stop a robbery. For USA Today, the tally was 5,660 words on gun crimes versus zero on defensive uses.

Just take some of the 18 defensive gun uses that I found covered by newspapers around the country during the first 10 days of December:

-- Little Rock, Ark: After the assailant attacked him and his son-in-law with a poker, a 64-year-old minister shot a man dead on church grounds. The attacker had engaged in a string of assaults in an apparent drug-induced frenzy.

-- Corpus Christi, Texas: A woman shot to death her ex-husband, who had broken into her house. The woman had a restraining order against the ex-husband.

-- Tampa Bay, Fla.: A 71-year-old man, Melvin Spaulding, shot 20-year-old James Moore in the arm as Moore and two friends were beating up his neighbor, 63-year-old George Lowe. Spaulding had a concealed weapons permit.

--Bellevue, Wash.: A man shot a pit bull that lunged to within a foot of him and his family. Police said the man's family had been repeatedly menaced in the past by the dog.

-- Jonesboro, Ga.: A father out walking with his 11-year-old daughter was attacked by an armed robber. The police say the father shot the attacker in self-defense and will not face charges.

-- Houston, Texas: Andrea McNabb shot two of the three men who tried to rob her plumbing business on the afternoon of Dec. 1.

-- Philadelphia, Pa: A pharmacy manager fatally shot one robber and wounded another after the robbers threatened to kill workers at the store. The wounded robber escaped.

Part of the reason defensive gun use isn't covered in the media may be simple news judgment. If a news editor faces two stories, one with a dead body on the ground and another where a woman brandished a gun and the attacker ran away, no shots fired, almost anyone would pick the first story as more newsworthy. In 2002, some 90 percent of the time when people used guns defensively, they stopped the criminals simply by brandishing the gun.

But that doesn't explain all the disparity in coverage. It doesn't, for example, explain why, in some heavily covered public middle and high school shootings, the media mentioned in only 1 percent or fewer of their stories that the attacks were stopped when citizens used guns to stop the attacks.

The unbalanced reporting is probably greatest in cases where children die from accidental gunshots fired by another child. Most people have seen the public-service ads showing the voices or pictures of children between the ages of four and eight, never over the age of eight, and the impression is that there is an epidemic of accidental deaths involving small children. The exaggerated media attention given these particularly tragic deaths makes these claims believable.

The debate over laws requiring that people lock up their guns in their home usually concentrates on the deaths of these younger children. The trigger and barrel locks mandated by these laws are often only considered reliable for preventing the access to guns by children under age 7.

The truth is that in 1999, for children whose ages correspond with the public service ads, 31 children under the age of 10 died from an accidental gunshot and only six of these cases appear to have involved another child under 10 as the culprit. Nor was this year unusual. Between 1995 and 1999, only five to nine cases a year involved a child wounding or killing another child with a gun. For children under 15, there were a total of 81 accidental gun deaths of all types in 1999. Any death is tragic, but it should be noted that more children under five drowned in bathtubs or plastic water buckets than from guns.

The gun deaths are covered extensively as well as prominently, with individual cases getting up to 88 separate news stories. In contrast, when children use guns to save lives, the event might at most get one brief mention in a small local paper. Yet these events do occur.

--In February, 2002, the South Bend, Indiana Tribune reported the story of an 11-year-old boy who shot and killed a man holding a box cutter to his grandmother's neck. Trained to use a firearm, the boy killed the assailant in one shot, even though the man was using his grandmother as a shield.

--In May, 2001 in Louisianna, a 12-year-old girl shot and killed her mother's abusive ex-boyfriend after he broke into their home and began choking her mother. The story appeared in the New Orleans Advocate.

--In January, 2001, in Angie, Louisianna, a 13 year-old boy stopped for burglars from entering his home by firing the family's shotgun, wounding one robber and scaring off the other three. The four men were planning on attacking the boy's mother--an 85-pound terminal cancer patient--in order to steal her pain medication.

As a couple of reporters told me, journalists are uncomfortable printing such positive gun stories because they worry that it will encourage children to get access to guns. The whole process snowballs, however, because the exaggeration of the risks--along with lack of coverage of the benefits--cements the perceived risks more and more firmly in newspaper editors and reporters minds. This makes them ever more reluctant to publish such stories.

While all this coverage affects the overall gun-control debate, it also directly shapes perceptions of proposed legislation. Take the upcoming debate over renewing the so-called assault-weapons ban. This past summer CNN repeatedly showed a news segment that starts off with a machine gun firing and claims that the guns covered by the ban do much more damage than other guns. CNN later attempted to clarify the segment by saying that the real problem was with the ammunition used in these guns. But neither of these points is true. The law does not deal at all with machine guns (though the pictures of machine guns sure are compelling)--and the "assault weapons" fire the same bullets at the same rate, and accomplish the exact same thing, as other semi-automatic guns not covered by the ban.

The unbalanced presentation dominates not just the media but also government reports and polling. Studies by the Justice and Treasury Departments have long evaluated just the cost guns impose on society. Every year, Treasury puts out a report on the top 10 guns used in crime, and each report serves as the basis for dozens of news stories. But why not also provide a report--at least once--on the top 10 guns used defensively? Similarly, numerous government reports estimate the cost of injuries from guns, but none measures the number of injuries prevented when guns are used defensively.

National polls further reinforce these biased perceptions. Not one of the national polls (as far as I was able to find) gave respondents an option to mention that gun control might actually be harmful. Probably the least biased polls still give respondents just two choices: supporting "tougher gun-control legislation to help in the fight against gun crime" or "better enforcement of current laws." Yet, both options ultimately imply that gun control is good.

But if we really want to save lives, we need to address the whole truth about guns--including the costs of not owning guns. We never, for example, hear about the families who couldn't defend themselves and were harmed because they didn't have guns.

Discussing only the costs of guns and not their benefits poses the real threat to public safety as people make mistakes on how best to defend themselves and their families.

[DAB]

2LEYS... That is a great post, but as you pointed out the Negitive reports FAR, FAR out number the positive Reports. I have a concealed weapons permit, and yes I do carry it 99% of the time, Even to church.----Thanks for the excelent post. NOW get ready to catch Hell from the uninformed side. ------ I consider gun owners that shoot road signs part of the ANTI GUN CROWD.
DAB

[Thumper]

The interesting thing is that John Lott started out as an anti-gun researcher. The more he studied the dynamics of firearms in our society, the more pro-gun he became. Reading his book is most educational.

http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/493636.html

[ 01-03-2004, 09:26 AM: Message edited by: Thumper ]

[Fish_N_Russ]

nice post, very informative

[lost_sailor]

I don't know anyone who has ever defended themselves with a gun. I do have a dead relative from a bonehead accident.

I don't fear guns, I grew up with guns. They are just deadly tools that need to be properly handled.

I think the "self-protection" thing is vastly overblown, but then I don't live in a trailer park full of ********. (Nor will I.)

And my point is ... hmmm ... more coffee. You know, my fishing license is expired :shocked:

[2LEYS]

They are just deadly tools that need to be properly handled.

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica">Same with:

Draino
Kitchen cleaner
Garden fertilizer
Medicine
Gasonline
Chainsaws
String Trimers
Toilet bowl cleaner
Ect.

[DanS]

You can't kill somebody from 40 feet away with toilet cleaner though. :grin:

[2LEYS]

My point is that a lot of things can be deadly. You just have to keep them away from children and you shouldn't have any problems.

[DanS]

Sorry........I was just having a little chuckle to myself. You know.......a guy standing on a street corner menacing a crowd of innocent people with a toilet brush and bottle of C.L.R. cleaner. :grin:

I knew what you meant.

The only problem I see with guns is some of the clowns that get ahold of them.

[pathetic novice]

Pro-gun and pro-common sense here. My oldest is able, trained, smart and qualified to have a gun; He's less endangered by his deer rifle than he is by the speeding maggots in our neighborhood when he's riding his bike. My other kids are not qualified, which is why they have no access to firearms/ammo. Guns are a great mysterious lure to kids; take the mystery out of it and train them in the use of these tools. Don't stick your head in the sand and hope to hell they're never around guns. Are guns for everybody? Obviously not. It would, however, be nice to see a more balanced trend in the media (not likely). If anyone's interested, Ted Nugent's book "God, Guns and Rock&Roll" addresses this topic incredibly well, also gives good inspiration for a family outdoors lifestyle.

[TonTo]

I have only pulled a gun once in my life and although I eas not in imediate danger I believe I was justified.
In 94 or 95,while heading out to do some late night coon hunting w/my trusty ol'plott hound, I was fueling my bronco at an AM/PM at the Kelso I-5 exit,when I went in to pay for my fuel the lady said the guy in the only other car setting at the pump had been setting there waiting for people to leave for a while and kept pulling a mask on and off.She was noticeably shaken and said she had already called the police.When I returned to my vehicle I raised the .45 I had laying on the seat next to me and informed him not to do anything stupid and the police were on their way.A short time later the police showed and said they were tracking the guy down I-5, I guess he had pulled the same crap further south somewhere.They thanked me and told me to be on my way.

[Thumper]

The key, I believe, to safety with kids around guns is to "gun-proof" them.

When I raised my sons we had a simple rule. At any time, and I mean at any time, any one of the kids could ask to handle a firearm or go shoot it. My committment was to immediately accomodate their wishes. Many were the times that we took off to the range or got the guns out for a good cleaning.

I also raised all three in duck blinds and at weekly registered PITA and ATA trapshoots. We kept 2 MEC 650s going at all times to accomodate the need for about 1,200 loaded rounds a week for the three events we each shot every week. Their responsibility was to keep those empties loaded at all times.

The result --- two state shooting champions (one in trap and one in competitive pistol shooting) and three kids who find guns actually a bit of a bore.

The way to keep your kids safe around guns is to saturate them in guns and shooting.

[ORoutdoorsman]

Lost sailor, It is not about where you live that has to do with having a gun to defend yourself. Crime is everywhere, whether you see it, or want to believe it, it is everywhere. It is in your neighborhood, your kids school, everywhere you are. And while most people never have to use a gun to defend themselves, there are people that do ,and there are people that have been in situations where I know they wish they had had a gun in the house. A police officer friend of mine told me this, "Crime is everywhere. You would'nt believe the stuff that goes on in yours and everyone elses neighborhood that you have no idea about. Thats why I don't work my neighborhood. If I knew half of what went on here, I wouldn't want to live here." And as far as living in a "undesirable neighborhood" just remember, someone is alot more likely to break into your nice house with your nice things, and steal your nice car, then they are to break into a beat down house or steal someones crappy barely running old monaco. SO its not just people in bad neighborhoods that need to defend themselves. And just because you don't know anyone who has defended themself with a gun doesn't mean it isn't real and doesn't mean you cannot be in the same situation.

[kayakfisher]

Have any of the readers of this thread ever pulled out a gun in defense of self or family, or wish that they had done so and suffered an adverse event that would have been prevented by their own weapon?

I have had two occassions in the last 15 years when I think my having a weapon could have become necessary..but in the end it was not. One of these situations was enough of a threat that I considered getting a concealed weapons permit but decided against buying a handgun. There are many ways to keep your family safe...and owning a handgun is not the gold standard for doing that.

I am not pro or anti-gun, but after doing some homework on the epidemiology of gun ownership I found a study that indicated that children are about 30 times more likely to get seriously injured or killed by their father's gun than by anyone elses. I have been through a gun safety course with my oldest boy (of three children) in order to add to his real world education and safety.

In adolescent males the three most common causes of death are motor vehicle accidents, suicide, and murder(often with special circumstances like gangs, drugs, parental abuse, etc) and since males who commit suicide do it most often with a gun, I have come to the conclusion that in my unique situation my owning a gun is not likely to increase the odds of my kids' growing to adulthood.

If I had no children I would possibly own a handgun. But the evidence is that with my relatively safe lifestyle my kids would not likely be safer by my owning a handgun, so I do not. I do not own a swimming pool nor do I live on riverfront for the same reasons...because I have children that recently were young enough that I didn't feel the risk benefit ratio was justifiable. (And I have dreamed of living on a river for decades.)


Under no circumstances would I use the New York Times, or Fox News as the ultimate word on the epidemiology of fire arms or crime control. This is a very intersting post, but I think we should be cautious not to overinterpret the article and what it really means. This article is not an attempt to determine if owning a gun really makes an individual safer or not. If owning a gun makes a person feel safer, and that person takes all the necessary precautions, great...own a gun and learn how own it safely. Also consider learning how to minimize your risks of violence in a dangerous world.

By the way...I would be interested in helping my spouse and some of her lady friends find a good self defense class. Does anyone out there have a clue as the the best place for women to take such a class?

[kayakfisher]

Having a great dog is one very nice way to greet an untruder. I have a very good dog that will gladly convince an intruder to go to someone else's place. This very protective and controllable dog will gladly make mincemeat of anyone who threatens us, but is very controllable by my directions. Not attack trained...just has good jugement, and won't let anyone touch the family without permission from us and her.

The added side benefit is that the dog worns you when something is not right with a person even before you know they are around...and an intruder cannot take your dog away from your wife and hurt her with it.

[ORoutdoorsman]

Only problem is when the intruder shoots the dog, and is ****ed he tried to take a chunk out of him. And a dog doesn't do you much good if you are at teh ATM or the grocery store. Dogs are great, but I prefer my old buddy Remington.

[Sea Nymph]

Originally posted by 2LEYS:
</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="verdana,arial,helvetica">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica"> They are just deadly tools that need to be properly handled.

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica">Same with:

Draino
Kitchen cleaner
Garden fertilizer
Medicine
Gasonline
Chainsaws
String Trimers
Toilet bowl cleaner
Ect. </font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica">and cars, boats, alcohol etc, etc..

lived on a ranch in MT. for a while. i was up late gettin' a snack and noticed a car stop by a stack of our hey, a few people jump out and run behind it and proceed toward one of our barns. i grabed the closest shotgun and fired a few times in safe direction. the people decided real quick like to exit the barn and property.

guns cause killing like pencils cause bad spelling.

SN

[Sea Nymph]

Originally posted by kayakfisher:
Having a great dog is one very nice way to greet an untruder. I have a very good dog that will gladly convince an intruder to go to someone else's place. This very protective and controllable dog will gladly make mincemeat of anyone who threatens us, but is very controllable by my directions. Not attack trained...just has good jugement, and won't let anyone touch the family without permission from us and her.

The added side benefit is that the dog worns you when something is not right with a person even before you know they are around...and an intruder cannot take your dog away from your wife and hurt her with it.

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica">a dog and gun makes a great combo. the dog wakes you up when there's trouble which lets you prepare with the gun (unlock and load) if the bad guy still wants in.

i have both :smile:

SN

[ORoutdoorsman]

Sea Nymph, I like the pencil analogy. And I agree with you completely! These anti gunners try sellingthe fact that none of these crimes would be possible to commit if we didn't have guns. But the fact of the matter, most crimes are not commited to guns, guns are not even close to the leading cause of death, and if you twy to outlaw guns, only outlaws will have guns! The people who have guns and are using them for crime currently arnt suppose to have guns as it is! And if you think outlawing guns will eliminate them, just look at out drug problem!

Oroutdoorsman

[Mello-Yello]

Archie Bunker - "If criminals started throwing people out of 2nd story windows, should we ban 2nd story windows?"

[nitroduk]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by 2LEYS:
quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
They are just deadly tools that need to be properly handled.

ditto, you always hear about guns killing kids or guns doing this or that, guns are just a tool, i've never, ever in my life seen a gun hiding around a corner just waitin' to shoot somebody.... it's the idiot with the tool that's dangerous.

I wear a gun to work everyday, and i never feel threatened by other deputies or balanced citizens with a license to carry, only the people that should not have been allowed to breed....--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Same with:

Draino
Kitchen cleaner
Garden fertilizer
Medicine
Gasonline
Chainsaws
String Trimers
Toilet bowl cleaner
Ect.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
and cars, boats, alcohol etc, etc..

[nitroduk]

besides, most cleaners have better childproof locks than a lot of guns, i figure that if you had to be at the learning level of a 10 year to work a gun, there would be a lot less criminals and idiots hurting and killing others........

[kayakfisher]

Originally posted by ORoutdoorsman:
Only problem is when the intruder shoots the dog, and is ****ed he tried to take a chunk out of him. And a dog doesn't do you much good if you are at teh ATM or the grocery store. Dogs are great, but I prefer my old buddy Remington.

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica">My threshold for shooting someone may be a little higher than some...but if someone shoots my dog, my willingness to go ballistic is activated immediately, and and even if the dog gets shot, at least it slowed down someone with bad intents...better the dog than my kids. And after that I can claim insanity for what I would do to the creep....