http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/19991118/od/handguns_1.html

Handguns Dramatically Increase Suicide Risk

BOSTON (Reuters) - In the week after buying a handgun, the purchaser was 57 times more likely than the general population to commit suicide, according to a study of California handgun buyers published in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine.

The study, which followed 238,292 people who bought a handgun in California in 1991, found that men were four times more likely to commit suicide in the year after they purchased a handgun than men in general.

Women, who bought just 12 percent of guns in California, faced a suicide risk 16 times higher than the rest of the female population during the first year of gun ownership, the study found.

The report found that higher suicide risk persists for at least six years after a gun is bought.

``The purchase of a handgun is associated with substantial changes in the risk of violent death,'' said the research team, led by Dr. Garen J. Wintemute of the University of California at Davis.

Among legal handgun buyers, suicide by any means was the leading cause of death during the first year of ownership, accounting for 24.5 percent of deaths, compared with 1.7 percent of all deaths among adult Californians in 1991 and 1992.

-- CD (not@here.com), November 18, 1999

Answers

"In the week after buying a handgun, the purchaser was 57 times more likely than the general population to commit suicide."

In the minutes after jumping off a bridge, the jumper was 99 percent more likely than the general population to commit suicide.

In the hours after ingesting a full bottle of barbiturates and a half gallon of cheap wine, the ingester was 99 percent more likely than the general population to commit suicide.

-- there are lies, damnable (lies@and.statistics), November 18, 1999.

If you chew bubble gum , you'll die.

-- Sam (Gunmkr52@aol.com), November 18, 1999.

Notice that it DOES NOT say that they actually USED the guns to commit suicide. Gee, if most people who commit suicide also drink Orange Juice, would they print 'Orange Juice Drinkers are 16 times more likely to commit suicide??'. I doubt it...

-TECH32-

-- TECH32 (TECH32@NOMAIL.COM), November 18, 1999.

Ask any knowlegeable cop about how many people commit suicide WITH THEIR AUTOS each year.

And I'm not talking about the ones who asphyxiate themselves, either!

Same NWO, WHINY, LIBERAL, ANTI-GUN CRAP we keep getting fed by the wonderful, "independent,questioning " press corpse in a formerly-great country.

So, the final big question, is this number BIGGER than the the number of visiting interns that have sought "refuge" under Bill's desk in the Oral Office?

-- profit of doom (doom@helltopay.ca), November 18, 1999.

WARNING
Squeeze catchup bottles increasing suicides among hot dog addicts.

Don't laugh, it could be a headline some day.
John 9.5

-- John 9.5 Galt (jgaltfla@hotmail.com), November 18, 1999.

Just remember, the part where the bullet comes out should be pointed AWAY when you pull the trigger. And NEVER play russian roulet with 6 bullets. Otherwise, you should be OK....

-- so (so@what.if), November 19, 1999.

"Males born to smoking mothers are more likely to wind up in prison."

"Two hours per day, spent with your children, is ample quality time to raise healthy, happy kids."

"Oral sex is an acceptable alternative to sexual intercourse."

It's legal to abort a baby, but spanking will not be tolerated.

Every child WILL be educated in the public school systems (so they can graduate with a 6th grade reading level), including disruptive, violent, abusive kids who could care less about learning anything, however, if YOUR child carries mace to protect herself from 'punks with rights'.....she'll be expelled.

Religious-based morals will not be allowed in our school systems, say Judges who place teenage girls in lesbian foster homes against their will.

Save rodents and protect pornography as 'free speech'.

Liberals..........they're pushing for a Civil War. With or without Y2K.

-- Will continue (farming@home.com), November 19, 1999.

Bridges increase suicide risk.

Post-WWII bridges reinforced to sustain loads up to 70 tonnes increase the risk of 70 tonnes worth of people committing mass suicide all at once.

-- SH (Squirrl@Huntr.com), November 19, 1999.

Also remember NEVER play Russian roulet with an automatic weapon. Look both ways when crossing a train track. Base jump with your own parachute. Don't work on a running car with the garage door shut....

-- Bill (y2khippo@yahoo.com), November 19, 1999.

ONLY YOU can prevent forest fires. And judging from the news this past summer you are doing a lousy job. I'd help you if I could, but the government clearly states it's YOUR job, not mine.

-- Nikoli Krushev (doomsday@y2000.com), November 19, 1999.

Handguns Dramatically Increase Suicide Risk

That's like saying driving a car greatly increases your risk of dying in a car wreck. Statistics can be interpreted to indicate anything you want, especially an indefensible topic like gun ownership...those in favor have their stats, those against it have theirs...so the art of persuading a majority becomes the deciding factor...those with the most horsepower to create and sustain THEIR spin will influence the undecided. These days, if you support a position, you better be enthusiastically proactive about it or your opponents will surely be eating your lunch a year later!

-- Jay Urban (Jayho99@aol.com), November 19, 1999.

When attacked by a rapist, a woman without a handgun is 100% more likely to be raped and/or murdered than a woman with a handgun.

-- cody (cody@y2ksurvive.com), November 19, 1999.

Gun deaths and injuries reduced since 1993.

Fatal
1993 - 39,595
1997 - 32,436

Nonfatal
1993 - 104,390
1997 - 64,207

Source: CDC Emegency room reports

-- spider (spider0@usa.net), November 19, 1999.

AP story in my morning paper today: "Gun-related death rate falls 21 percent in four years." CDC says gun deaths have dropped to their lowest levels in 30 years -- 21 percent decline in deaths, 41 percent decline in injuries. "Experts" cite tougher gun control laws, booming economy, better police work and (last, of course -- this *is* AP) gun safety courses. The study, 1993-97, looked at all ER gunshot wounds, whether accidental, intentional, or self-inflicted. Bet you won't see *that* story in the New England Journal of Medicine.

-- Cash (cash@andcarry.com), November 19, 1999.

The Lessons Of History The Soviet Union established gun control in 1929. From 1929 to 1953, 20 million political dissidents, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated. Turkey established gun control in 1911. From 1915 to 1917, 1.5 million Armenians, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated. Germany established gun control in 1938. From 1939 to 1945, 13 million Jews, Gypsies, homosexuals, mentally ill people, and other "mongrelized peoples," unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated. China established gun control in 1935. From 1948 to 1952, 20 million political dissidents, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated. Guatemala established gun control in 1964. From 1964 to 1981, 100,000 Mayan Indians, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated. Uganda established gun control in 1970. From 1971 to 1979, 300,000 Christians, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated. Cambodia established gun control in 1956. From 1975 to 1977, 1 million "educated people", unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.

-- zoobie (zoobiezoob@yahoo.com), November 19, 1999.

Wouldn't We All Be Safer If There Were Fewer Guns? Department of Justice data show those areas of the country where firearms are more readily available have a lower violent crime rate than areas of minimal firearm ownership.

University of Chicago Professors John Lott and David Mustard examined the correlation between guns and crime in over 3,000 U.S. counties from 1977 to 1992 in their landmark 1996 study, "Crime, Deterrence and Right-to-Carry Concealed Handguns." They discovered liberalized concealed-carry laws reduced murders by 8.5 percent, rapes by 5 percent and aggravated assaults by 7 percent.

New York City and Washington, D.C., have very restrictive laws regarding gun ownership, yet they have higher violent crime rates than neighboring areas where it is easier to obtain firearms.

Nationwide, firearm ownership increased between 1993 and 1997. According to the U.S. News & World Report [May 25, 1998, citing FBI statistics], the homicide rate decreased 29 percent during that same period. This conclusively shows firearms do not lead to higher homicide rates.

-- zoobie (zoobiezoob@yahoo.com), November 19, 1999.

myth:Handguns should be illegal because studies have shown they are 43 times more likely to be used against your own family than a criminal. truth:This "fact" is simply wrong. Guns of any type, including handguns, do not make it 43 times more likely you or your family will be injured. In fact, the opposite is true. Guns make us all safer. Here's why:

This so-called study was conducted by Arthur L. Kellermann, an anti- self defense lobbyist with an axe to grind. The "study" was designed to produce a pre-determined result. The "study" is pure "junk science."

A flawed study: At the end of his report, Kellermann acknowledged his study did "not include cases in which burglars or intruders are wounded or frightened away by the use or display of a firearm." He also admitted his study did not look at situations in which intruders "purposely avoided a home known to be armed."

In other words, Kellermann ignored the vast majority of situations in which legally armed citizens frightened away intruders simply by displaying a firearm! What Kellermann did was like conducting a study on the percentage of drunk drivers on the road by counting the number of drunks locked up in jail at 2 a.m. on a Saturday morning. Obviously, you would incorrectly think that everyone on the road was drunk.

Further, Kellermann also acknowledged that of the 43 deaths for every intruder killed, 37 were suicides. This is significant since ample research, and the situation in Japan, shows that merely removing firearms from a society does not reduce the suicide rate..

The facts: By carefully examining facts and statistics from the Department of Justice, the F.B.I. and other law enforcement agencies, Prof. Gary Kleck from the School of Criminology, Florida State University, discovered Americans use firearms to prevent crimes approximately 1 to 1.5 million times per year. These are the very cases Kellermann chose to ignore. Had Kellermann considered these facts, he would have had to conclude a firearm in the home makes a family safer.

More importantly, Prof. Kleck also discovered that robbery victims who defended themselves with a gun suffered lower rates of injury than did those who resisted without a gun, or even those who did not resist at all and instead complied with the violent criminal's demands. In short, Prof. Kleck concluded the private ownership of firearms deters criminal behavior.

-- zoobie (zoobiezoob@yahoo.com), November 19, 1999.

myth:The family gun is more likely to kill you or someone you know than to kill in self-defense.

Truth:The studies yielding such numbers never actually inquired as to whose gun was used in the killing. Instead, if a household owned a gun and if a person in that household or someone they knew was shot to death while in the home, the gun in the household was blamed. In fact, virtually all the killings in these studies were committed by guns brought in by an intruder. No more than four percent of the gun deaths can be attributed to the homeowner's gun. The very fact that most people were killed by intruders also surely raises questions about why they owned guns in the first place and whether they had sufficient protection.

How many attacks have been deterred from ever occurring by the potential victims owning a gun? My own research finds that more concealed handguns, and increased gun ownership generally, unambiguously deter murders, robbery, and aggravated assaults. This is also in line with the well-known fact that criminals prefer attacking victims that they consider weak.

These are only some of the myths about guns and crime that drive the public policy debate. We must not lose sight of the ultimate question: Will allowing law-abiding citizens to own guns save lives? The evidence strongly indicates that it does.

Answer by Prof. John R. Lott, Jr.

-- zoobie (zoobiezoob@yahoo.com), November 19, 1999.

myth:Guns should be banned because they kill thousands of people each year.

truth:That is like arguing for not using automobiles because almost 50,000 people died in car accidents last year. Not to mention the criminal gangs killing each other's members while shooting from their vehicles. Or that we should ban doctors because millions die each year at the hands of inept doctors.

Actually, FBI crime statistics show that fully two-thirds of the people who die each year from gunfire are criminals shooting other criminals. Locking up the criminals would dramatically reduce the number of people killed each year and would make our neighborhoods and communities safer.

Two recent studies have shown that firearm ownership actually reduces crime. Survey research shows there are over two million protective uses of firearms each year, far more than the number of criminal gun uses reported by the FBI. Gary Kleck and Marc Gertz, "Armed Resistance to Crime: The Prevalence Nature of Self-Defense with a Gun," Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology Vol. 86 (1995).

The survey results showed that most often, the mere brandishing of a firearm to a criminal was enough to thwart the crime. Another study, by Prof. John Lott of the University of Chicago, showed that by adopting "shall issue" concealed carry handgun laws, 31 states have reduced murders, on average, by 7.7 %, rapes by 5 %, aggravated assaults by 7 % and robbery by 3%. If those states that did not permit concealed handguns in 1992 had permitted them back then, citizens would have been spared approximately 1,570 murders, 4,177 rapes, 60,000 aggravated assaults and 12,000 robberies.

As Prof. Lott characterized his findings: "Criminals, we found, respond rationally to deterrence threats." "More Guns, Less Violent Crime," The Wall Street Journal, p. A13, August 28, 1996.

-- zoobie (zoobiezoob@yahoo.com), November 19, 1999.

myth:The United States has such a high murder rate because Americans own so many guns.

truth:There is no international evidence backing this up. The Swiss, New Zealanders and Finns all own guns as frequently as Americans, yet in 1995 Switzerland had a murder rate 40 percent lower than Germany's, and New Zealand had one lower than Australia's. Finland and Sweden have very different gun ownership rates, but very similar murder rates. Israel, with a higher gun ownership rate than the U.S., has a murder rate 40 percent below Canada's. When one studies all countries rather than just a select few as is usually done, there is absolutely no relationship between gun ownership and murder.

-- zoobie (zoobiezoob@yahoo.com), November 19, 1999.

myth:We live in a civilized society- we don't need guns

truth:In a civilized society, you'd have no qualms about your wife or mother walking alone in a parking lot at night. We live in a society which is populated by both civilized and uncivilized individuals. In many areas, the veneer of civilization wears thin. To a woman being assaulted by a man with a fist or a knife, a gun restores civilization. The same is true for a homeowner responding to an intruder, or a shopkeeper deterring a violent robber.

Should the civilized be rendered defenseless against those who are not? Just how stable is our "civilization" ? An unpopular jury verdict resulted in sections of Los Angeles being thrown into anarchy for days on end- entire communities were ceded by the "authorities" to the lawless. A like scenario occurred in Florida, in the wake of Hurricane Andrew. The only thing which kept these areas from being completely overrun was an armed citizenry.

It is clear that guns, when morally deployed, preserve civilization on both an individual and a social scale. To ban guns would be to remove our last, and in many cases, only civilizing influence.

-- zoobie (zoobiezoob@yahoo.com), November 19, 1999.

myth:We need to do something about the increasing access to firearms.

truth:The opposite is true. It used to be that any boy or girl could go to a gun store and buy any shotgun, rifle or pistol he wanted and nothing was thought of it. But over the last six decades the federal government has infringed steadily on the Second Amendment and access to firearms has continually decreased in terms of what firearms are available to the public, who may own them, how they may transport them, and and when they may take possession of them.

A brief history:

1934 National Firearms Act--effectively outlawed free civilian ownership of machine guns and short-barrelled shoulder arms

1968 Gun Control Act--limited the type of guns which can be imported into the U.S and banned mail-order sales of guns

1993 Brady Bill--imposes seven day waiting period beofre purchased gun may be transferred to buyer

1994 Crime Bill--outlawed importation and ownership of various semi- automatic firearms, banned the manufacture of magazines holding more than ten rounds of ammunition, banned possession of firearm by minors

1997 Lautenberg Act--bans possession of firearms by those convicted of domestic violence misdemeanors

Included in the above are hundreds of state laws restricting the rights of citizens to buy, possess, or carry firearms. As is evident, NONE of these laws has made it more difficult for criminals to obtain guns, nor will any new laws do so, since criminals don't obey the law. They have only made it more difficult for good citizens to protect themselves.

-- zoobie (zoobiezoob@yahoo.com), November 19, 1999.

myth:The police are there to protect us. It's too dangerous for the average citizen to try to apprehend criminals.

truth:If the police did a good job of protecting us there would be no murders, no rapes, no assaults, no robberies or any other personal crimes. We would not need alarms on our cars or in our homes and offices. We would be able to walk and drive anywhere we wanted at any time of day. But that is not the case.

The truth is police respond to crimes that have already taken place. There are only a few police officers compared to the millions of citizens spread out over millions of square miles of this nation. Of course they cannot possibly protect us, and one look at the evening news or the daily newspaper gives proof.

It is the duty of every mature, responsible, respectable adult human to protect himself or herself and his or her children. To lay this responsibility on another person, to have other men and women do what one will not do for oneself is immature, irresponsible, hypocritical, and cowardly.

The fact is, citizens use guns as many as 2.5 million times a year to thwart criminal assaults against themselves and other citizens, often by merely letting the criminal know that they are armed.

-- zoobie (zoobiezoob@yahoo.com), November 19, 1999.

myth:Allowing people to carry concealed weapons in public will mean automobile accidents turn into shootouts. GunTruths responds:

truth:The reality is just the opposite. Some 32 states have liberalized their concealed carry laws. Most of them have discovered that people who are licensed to carry concealed weapons have a much lower than average arrest rate. Incidents in which people legally carrying concealed weapons have turned automobile accidents into shootouts are virtually nonexistent.

In addition, the crime rate in most states which have liberalized their concealed carry laws has dropped. Further, Vermont permits any citizen to carry a concealed weapon so long as that person is not doing so for an illegal purpose. Not surprisingly, Vermont has among the lowest crime rates in the nation.

In short, allowing citizens to legally carry concealed weapons makes our communities safer.

myth:Realistically, if you are robbed, carjacked, or attacked, you wont have enough time to pull your gun out, anyway. truth:The vast majority of the over 200 million firearms in this country are never used to kill anything or anyone. Even so, it is true that many firearms are designed to kill. However, as unpleasant as it is to think about, such things are necessary because violent criminals are out loose on the streets. If it were safe for women and children to walk alone at night, then perhaps there would be no need for firearms. But that is not the case.

Obviously, the best defense is to avoid placing yourself in a dangerous situation. However, everyone occasionally finds themselves in situations which pose unexpected dangers.

When confronted by a violent criminal, research has shown that the safest response is for the victim to display his own firearm. In fact, a study by Prof. Gary Kleck from the School of Criminology, Florida State University, showed robbery victims who defended themselves with a gun suffered lower rates of injury than did those who resisted without a gun, or even those who did not resist at all and instead complied with the violent criminal's demands.

What this means is, you run the greatest risk of being injured when confronted by a violent criminal if you are unarmed.

-- zoobie (zoobiezoob@yahoo.com), November 19, 1999.

myth:I Don't Want My Children to Glorify Violence

truth:To keep children from "glorifying violence," teach them proper values of discipline, self-restraint, respect for others, and resolving disputes through common sense and communication.

Then - when they have shown the proper maturity and responsibility - introduce them to the shooting sports! Kids who learn to shoot under proper adult supervision will neither fear nor be mystified by guns. They'll learn to respect guns and handle them safely. They'll practice and compete. They'll gain confidence and they will be good citizens.

Violence should not be glorified. But sometimes it is unavoidable. Violent, criminal nations like Nazi Germany must be deterred by force. Violent criminal individuals must sometimes be stopped the same way. To eschew violence under any circumstances is to allow ruthless predators to have their way. It leads to the triumph of injustice: Might Makes Right.

Guns do not create the glorification of violence any more than a golden calf creates the desire to worship it. And mere exposure to firearms does not create criminals who glorify violence. If it did, Kim Rhodes - who started shooting regularly before the age of 10 - would be a poster-child for gun control. Instead, she won an Olympic gold medal in shotgunning at the age of 17.

-- zoobie (zoobiezoob@yahoo.com), November 19, 1999.

" ... the world's great civilizations averaged a cycle of 200 years. Those societies progressed through this sequence: " From bondage to spiritual faith. " From spiritual faith to great courage. " From great courage to liberty. " From liberty to abundance. " From abundance to selfishness. " From selfishness to complacency. " From complacency to apathy. " From apathy to dependency. " From dependency back again into bondage.

-- zoobie (zoobiezoob@yahoo.com), November 19, 1999.

The study is the usually propaganda tactic of offering something else up to hide the real issue. Now, who thinks we'll see the stats on deaths due to malpractice in the nation's hospitals in that magazine? Last time I recall (long time ago) it was over 100,000 people a year. Hrm, "In the week following entering a hospital, people were 57 times more likely to die from malpractice." Naaa...

-- James Collins (jacollins@thegrid.net), November 19, 1999.

Headline should read: Those contemplating suicide 57 times more likely to buy handguns.

-- wondering (wondering@nottoo.far), November 19, 1999.

Arsonists frequently use gasoline to start fires. My car has a full tank of gas. Funny, I don't feel 57 times more likely to commit arson.

-- Nathan (nospam@all.com), November 19, 1999.