National Carry AcademyHow Can We Curb Gun Violence?
September 19, 2018
Pro-gun groups like The National Rifle Association are often seen as proponents of arming every citizen and allowing those with concealed carry permits to be armed everywhere they go. They are also linked, unfairly, to escalation in gun violence. However, what most of the general public does not know is that most pro-gun activists are also proponents of measures to curb gun violence. They stand for a safe, responsible storage and use of concealed carry weapons.
Refusing concealed carry permits is not the answer to curbing gun violence. There are, however, several measures that can be taken by individuals and groups to curb gun violence.
- Legislation
Most mass shootings occurred when assailants used military-grade rifles. Meanwhile, these types of weapons account for fewer than 5 deaths in every hundred. Research from JAMA Internal Medicine notes that stringent state firearms laws including background checks for all weapons sales and restrictions on multiple gun purchases have proven to lower rates of fatal shootings.
The National Bureau of Economic Research in its 2017 report noted a link between government-issued conceal carry permits and a rise in firearms crime. A decade after concealed carry weapons were allowed violent crimes were less than 15% higher than they had been before such policies.
Gun-violence restraining orders placed a ban on gun ownership for anyone who shared a household with person with criminal charges. Guns of such people could be seized.
Statistics show that legislation like the above saved lives. A 2017 Connecticut study estimated for every 10 to 20 gun seizures a suicide was prevented.
- Medical Interventions
Medical staff can be influential in educating families regarding gun safety. This is especially effective in the case of safe practices with gun safety and minors.
Studies of young children revealed that many three-year-olds can fire a weapon. Three out of four school-age children can fire a pistol. The American Academy of Pediatrics has recommends pediatricians ask families about firearms in the home.
Some states try to prevent doctors from discussing guns with patients. A 2011 Florida law stated that physicians could have their medical license suspended and/or be fined for inquiring about firearms. In retaliation Florida physicians sued, stating that this was a violation their First Amendment rights. Docs vs. Glocks overturned the state law as a result of the lawsuit.
Three other states—Minnesota, Missouri and Montana—limit doctors’ addressing gun issues. Doctors insist these “gag laws” inhibit their professional ability to discuss patient safety issues.
- Smart Gun Technology
If guns were set up like smart phones, locked until opened with a fingerprint, it would save lives. Yet, although this safety technology is certainly available, it has not been applied to handguns.
Granted, this digital and/or biometric technology would not stop assailants with illegally obtained weapons but it would prevent homicides and suicides with weapons legally owned by somebody else. The Centers for Disease Control estimate over 500 people are killed unintentionally by firearms every year.
Why aren’t guns with smart technology available? Gun owners fear that the technology will fail at a crucial time. Others fear government intervention.
New Jersey tried the smart gun legislation in 2002. Retailers were ordered to sell only personalized (smart guns). Opposition to smart guns was mounted by firearms lobby groups.
In 2000, Smith & Wesson, a large American handgun manufacturer developed smart-gun technology after the Columbine shootings. The National Rifle Association condemned the company. Gun owners boycotted. Smith & Wesson handgun sales plummeted. No other gun manufacturers dared introduce smart gun technology.
Support for smart guns is building. In 2016, Johns Hopkins University’s study found 60% of Americans said they would purchase a smart gun. This could be an ideal time for introducing smart guns.
- Fund Gun Violence Research
A 2017 study in the Journal of the American Medical Association contends that research into ways to curb gun violence should have received over a billion dollars in federal research money between 2004 and 2015 if considered on the basis funding for other causes of death. However, research projects to curb gun violence received not even 2% of that amount. Gun violence research projects received only 5% of the money given to projects to study motor-vehicle accidents in spite of the fact that deaths resulting in the two causes were roughly equal.
Researchers know more about most deaths as a result of medical problems than they do about of gun-related deaths. Why? Congress passed the Dickey Amendment. This law–supported by the NRA—mandated no CDC research funds could be spent to promote gun control. Thus, gun control measures were not encouraged as a research topic.
Do gun restrictions stop the ability to defend? This is an area badly in need of investigation. California initiated the Sacramento University of California state-funded firearms-violence research center. This is a great start in investigation of ways to curb gun violence.
- Stop Protecting Gun Manufacturers
Presently, American laws provide major protection for gun manufacturers. The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act shields gun manufacturers and dealers from lawsuits of those who are victims of gun violence. If manufacturers and dealers were held responsible for misuse of what they made or sold anti-gun activists contend that it would stimulate measures for making firearms safer.
How Can We Curb Gun Violence?
September 19, 2018
Pro-gun groups like The National Rifle Association are often seen as proponents of arming every citizen and allowing those with concealed carry permits to be armed everywhere they go. They are also linked, unfairly, to escalation in gun violence. However, what most of the general public does not know is that most pro-gun activists are also proponents of measures to curb gun violence. They stand for a safe, responsible storage and use of concealed carry weapons.
Refusing concealed carry permits is not the answer to curbing gun violence. There are, however, several measures that can be taken by individuals and groups to curb gun violence.
- Legislation
Most mass shootings occurred when assailants used military-grade rifles. Meanwhile, these types of weapons account for fewer than 5 deaths in every hundred. Research from JAMA Internal Medicine notes that stringent state firearms laws including background checks for all weapons sales and restrictions on multiple gun purchases have proven to lower rates of fatal shootings.
The National Bureau of Economic Research in its 2017 report noted a link between government-issued conceal carry permits and a rise in firearms crime. A decade after concealed carry weapons were allowed violent crimes were less than 15% higher than they had been before such policies.
Gun-violence restraining orders placed a ban on gun ownership for anyone who shared a household with person with criminal charges. Guns of such people could be seized.
Statistics show that legislation like the above saved lives. A 2017 Connecticut study estimated for every 10 to 20 gun seizures a suicide was prevented.
- Medical Interventions
Medical staff can be influential in educating families regarding gun safety. This is especially effective in the case of safe practices with gun safety and minors.
Studies of young children revealed that many three-year-olds can fire a weapon. Three out of four school-age children can fire a pistol. The American Academy of Pediatrics has recommends pediatricians ask families about firearms in the home.
Some states try to prevent doctors from discussing guns with patients. A 2011 Florida law stated that physicians could have their medical license suspended and/or be fined for inquiring about firearms. In retaliation Florida physicians sued, stating that this was a violation their First Amendment rights. Docs vs. Glocks overturned the state law as a result of the lawsuit.
Three other states—Minnesota, Missouri and Montana—limit doctors’ addressing gun issues. Doctors insist these “gag laws” inhibit their professional ability to discuss patient safety issues.
- Smart Gun Technology
If guns were set up like smart phones, locked until opened with a fingerprint, it would save lives. Yet, although this safety technology is certainly available, it has not been applied to handguns.
Granted, this digital and/or biometric technology would not stop assailants with illegally obtained weapons but it would prevent homicides and suicides with weapons legally owned by somebody else. The Centers for Disease Control estimate over 500 people are killed unintentionally by firearms every year.
Why aren’t guns with smart technology available? Gun owners fear that the technology will fail at a crucial time. Others fear government intervention.
New Jersey tried the smart gun legislation in 2002. Retailers were ordered to sell only personalized (smart guns). Opposition to smart guns was mounted by firearms lobby groups.
In 2000, Smith & Wesson, a large American handgun manufacturer developed smart-gun technology after the Columbine shootings. The National Rifle Association condemned the company. Gun owners boycotted. Smith & Wesson handgun sales plummeted. No other gun manufacturers dared introduce smart gun technology.
Support for smart guns is building. In 2016, Johns Hopkins University’s study found 60% of Americans said they would purchase a smart gun. This could be an ideal time for introducing smart guns.
- Fund Gun Violence Research
A 2017 study in the Journal of the American Medical Association contends that research into ways to curb gun violence should have received over a billion dollars in federal research money between 2004 and 2015 if considered on the basis funding for other causes of death. However, research projects to curb gun violence received not even 2% of that amount. Gun violence research projects received only 5% of the money given to projects to study motor-vehicle accidents in spite of the fact that deaths resulting in the two causes were roughly equal.
Researchers know more about most deaths as a result of medical problems than they do about of gun-related deaths. Why? Congress passed the Dickey Amendment. This law–supported by the NRA—mandated no CDC research funds could be spent to promote gun control. Thus, gun control measures were not encouraged as a research topic.
Do gun restrictions stop the ability to defend? This is an area badly in need of investigation. California initiated the Sacramento University of California state-funded firearms-violence research center. This is a great start in investigation of ways to curb gun violence.
- Stop Protecting Gun Manufacturers
Presently, American laws provide major protection for gun manufacturers. The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act shields gun manufacturers and dealers from lawsuits of those who are victims of gun violence. If manufacturers and dealers were held responsible for misuse of what they made or sold anti-gun activists contend that it would stimulate measures for making firearms safer.