Gun Ownership Data Shows Some Interesting Results UPDATED

A commenter alludes to a study done via an executive order of President Obama in the wake of Newton, As reported by Slate, a liberal-leaning supporter of gun restrictions, this new report provides a mixed bag of findings. In my opinion, reading the findings will be far less enjoyable for those seeking to restrict gun-rights than those supporting them. 

Slate says:  

http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/human_nature/2013/06/handguns_suicides_mass_shootings_deaths_and_self_defense_findings_from_a.html

The gun control debate is certainly worth reopening. But if we’re going to reopen it, let’s not just rethink the politics. Let’s take another look at the facts. Earlier this year, President Obama ordered the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to assess the existing research on gun violence and recommend future studies. That report, prepared by the Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council, is now complete. Its findings won’t entirely please the Obama administration or the NRA, but all of us should consider them.

Of the reports ten key findings as outlined by Slate, I find these two of great interest vis-a-vis other comments below

7. Guns are used for self-defense often and effectively. “Almost all national survey estimates indicate that defensive gun uses by victims are at least as common as offensive uses by criminals, with estimates of annual uses ranging from about 500,000 to more than 3 million per year … in the context of about 300,000 violent crimes involving firearms in 2008,” says the report. The three million figure is probably high, “based on an extrapolation from a small number of responses taken from more than 19 national surveys.” But a much lower estimate of 108,000 also seems fishy, “because respondents were not asked specifically about defensive gun use.” Furthermore, “Studies that directly assessed the effect of actual defensive uses of guns (i.e., incidents in which a gun was 'used' by the crime victim in the sense of attacking or threatening an offender) have found consistently lower injury rates among gun-using crime victims compared with victims who used other self-protective strategies.”

8. Carrying guns for self-defense is an arms race. The prevalence of firearm violence near “drug markets … could be a consequence of drug dealers carrying guns for self-defense against thieves or other adversaries who are likely to be armed,” says the report. In these communities, “individuals not involved in the drug markets have similar incentives for possessing guns.” According to a Pew Foundation report, “the vast majority of gun owners say that having a gun RIT makes them feel safer. And far more today than in 1999 cite protection—rather than hunting or other activities—as the major reason for why they own guns.”

From time to time, the NSSF releases reports about various aspects of the gun industry. These surveys give us an interesting glimpse into what’s driving the firearms industry, and what kinds of guns people are purchasing. Not only is it nifty information to have, it gives people like us (who review guns) an idea about what types of heaters to focus our efforts on. And this year, home defense handguns are all the rage . . .

You’ll notice from the chart data that the combined categories for handguns make up well over 50% of the purchases of new gun owners. Semi-auto guns are the most popular, followed, naturally enough, by revolvers. It follows what we’ve been seeing in the industry, that companies are focusing their efforts on churning out handguns instead of producing the next great rifle.

What’s really interesting is that the “modern sporting rifle” isn’t particularly popular among new gun owners. While there was a massive buying spree after the gun control push started in Washington, new shooters weren’t at the tip of that spear. The charge seems to have been led by existing gun owners buying up the available stock. This could be a “chicken and egg” situation though, as demand may have been high among new shooters for the Evil Black Rifle (TM) but handguns were the only thing readily available, so they bought those instead.

The reason over 50% of new shooters listed for wanting a new boomstick was some form of self defense, whether in the home or for concealed carry. Again, that’s in line with the industry’s concealed carry/self defense marketing kick they’ve been on for the last couple years. 

The majority of new shooters — well over 50%, in fact — shoot regularly on privately owned land such as a family ranch. Under Chuck Schumer’s “universal background check” proposal, these brand new shooters would unknowingly be committing a felony if they handed their new gun to a friend to try out while at one of their range days on the ranch. “Approved” and chartered shooting ranges aren’t the only place people shoot, but gun control advocates can’t seem to grasp that concept. Or maybe they do.