Number are important
Powerful data. I have heard from a number of people that mass shootings isn’t a real problem. It’s amplified by the media but incredibly rare.
131 mass shooting (5 or more victims) since August of 1966. That is 2.5 events per year. But the average over 51 years hides the fact that these events are increasing in frequency. We saw a 300% increase in the number of mass shooting since 2011.
How does this compare? The US is about 4.4% of the worlds population. The US experiences 31% of the known mass shootings.
Digging in gun violence data is disturbing. Over my life I’ve made a total 180 on my beliefs concerning firearms. I’ve gone from an angry Conservative second amendment gun nut to a bleeding heart first amendment Liberal. What happened?
I like researching things and learning. At some point I realized I kept have to argue my case around the data and available research. This started with economic policies and has ended up spreading to just about every other area of my set of beliefs.
The fact that I no longer need to try to reconcile my beliefs in personal freedom and the Republic parties voting records concerning LGTBQ rights and women’s rights to bodily autonomy is super relieving too. I never found an argument for that, so I used to pretend that politicians on the right didn’t really l believe those things.
Long story made short: this is NOT a zero sum game. We are all ahead if we save lives. If we fail to stop ALL gun violence, that isn’t losing. If we cut the number in half? That is winning. If we can do that with control and access and still give people like me the ability to own a pistol or rifle? Yeah, I’m down for that.
How does this compare? The US is about 4.4% of the worlds population. The US experiences 31% of the known mass shootings.
Digging in gun violence data is disturbing. Over my life I’ve made a total 180 on my beliefs concerning firearms. I’ve gone from an angry Conservative second amendment gun nut to a bleeding heart first amendment Liberal. What happened?
I like researching things and learning. At some point I realized I kept have to argue my case around the data and available research. This started with economic policies and has ended up spreading to just about every other area of my set of beliefs.
The fact that I no longer need to try to reconcile my beliefs in personal freedom and the Republic parties voting records concerning LGTBQ rights and women’s rights to bodily autonomy is super relieving too. I never found an argument for that, so I used to pretend that politicians on the right didn’t really l believe those things.
Long story made short: this is NOT a zero sum game. We are all ahead if we save lives. If we fail to stop ALL gun violence, that isn’t losing. If we cut the number in half? That is winning. If we can do that with control and access and still give people like me the ability to own a pistol or rifle? Yeah, I’m down for that.