From an economist’s point of
view, one could argue that gun ownership is a positive externality. That
is to say that by me owning a firearm I make others better off. I make
them better off because a criminal does not know who does and doesn’t own
a gun, thus he/she will be less likely to break into anyone's house or mug a
person.
If all guns were taken up--the criminals will still have access to guns because they would not have given up their guns. There would also be a black market for guns to be purchased. With honest citizens now disarmed, people will commit more criminal acts because they (the criminals) have less to fear.
The following is from: NRA-ILA Grassroots Alert Vol. 11,
No. 20 05/21/04
CRIME IN ENGLAND: THE PRICE
OF GUN CONTROL
In March of 1996, a deranged man walked into a school in Dunblane,
Scotland and killed sixteen children and one teacher. In the aftermath of
this heinous tragedy, British politicians sought to reduce violent crime
by enacting an injudicious ban on all handguns. Handgun owners were given
a February 1998 deadline to turn in their firearms--and they did. The UK
was supposed to become a much safer place--but it didn't. Not by a long
shot.
As reported in a May 14 article in the Edmonton Journal, England's
recently released gun-crime statistics for the first five years following
the gun-ban indicate a very different outcome than that which was
forecast. According to the article, "the incidence of gun crime in
England and Wales nearly doubled from 13,874 in 1998 to 24,070 in 2003.
And the incidence of firearms murder, while thankfully still very small,
has risen 65 per cent," .
The article details statistics from another report issued last year by
Britain's Home Office, which reveal that there has also been a dramatic
increase in robberies in recent years. They report that robberies, "rose
by 28 per cent in 2002 alone and, since 1998, there has been an increase
in the annual average of muggings of more than 100,000. England alone has
nearly 400,000 robberies each year, a rate nearly one-quarter higher per
capita than that of the United States,".
Do gun bans serve to reduce violent crime? When law-abiding citizens are
disarmed, is their society a safer one? England's plight is just the
latest example to show us, yet again, that the answer is "NO."
THE BRADY-KERRY CONNECTION
More rock-solid proof that Presidential hopeful Senator John Kerry
(D-Mass.) is a bitter enemy of the Second Amendment surfaced in today's
USAToday. An article therein reported on a meeting of the recently formed
liberal political strategy group "America Votes." The article disclosed
that, during the meeting, the group discussed the latest polling data
gathered by gun-ban groups. Pollster John Martilla, an adviser to NRA-PVF
"F" rated Kerry, presented the results of a national survey that he
conducted on behalf of the Brady Campaign!
The Brady Campaign, of course, steadfastly maintains that you have no
individual right to own any firearm.
Kerry can't hide from his past. His abysmal voting record on
firearm-related issues, and his support of the Clinton gun ban, clearly
show where he stands on our issue. Take some free advice from us, Mr.
Kerry, and don't try to pretend you support the Second Amendment.