Sunday’s letters: Gun owners have a right to own them and a duty to own them responsibly

There are more guns than people in the United States | Floridian, June 24 Be responsible gun owners Big numbers get attention, and these are some big ones! Gun ownership statistics show that the United States has the highest gun ownership rate in the world. Not by a little bit, but by a huge margin. It’s interesting to note that Americans own approximately 120 guns for every 100 residents, but that only 42 percent of households report owning guns. This means that gun ownership is highly concentrated in a group where owning multiple weapons is the norm. The Second Amendment issue is contentious with loud and inflammatory rhetoric at both extremes crowding out reasonable debate. In my mind, there are a couple of key points that can serve to pull the conversation (if it can be called a conversation) to a more productive middle ground. Let’s start with a fact: Guns are dangerous, and every time a gun is fired it has the potential for grievous harm or death. This is indisputable. One may play with the wording claiming that guns do not discharge themselves, and that only irresponsible people discharge their guns irresponsibly. Okay, but the fact remains that every time a gun is discharged, there is a possibility of significant harm. It follows that the more guns in the picture, the greater the opportunity for harm. It also follows that it’s the responsibility of the gun owner to ensure the safe use of their firearms. Every right […]

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