Public Says More Guns Would Make Them Feel Less Safe

The NRA, and the elected officials (mostly Republicans) who carry their water, have tried to spread the argument that more guns in the hands of more people means more safety for everyone in the United States. To that end, they have blocked all sensible laws that would keep guns out of the hands of dangerous people (like a closing of the loopholes in the background checks on gun sales), and have encouraged laws allowing anyone to carry a gun anywhere (such as in a church, bar, school, or public building).

Personally, I think that's a ludicrous idea -- that more guns would mean more safety. Anyone smart enough to read and understand statistics should know by now that the more guns a nation has in the hands of its citizens, the more deaths with guns there will be (murders, suicides, accidents). That is just a fact. And furthermore, just because someone is carrying a gun doesn't mean they will always use it appropriately, or will have the presence of mind to act appropriately when an emergency situation happens.

The folks at the YouGov Poll decided to find out if the American people are buying into the NRA's ridiculous argument that more guns in the hands of more people would make them safer. The survey questioned 1,000 nationwide adults between March 22nd and 24th (with a margin of error between 3.5  and 4.0 points).

As you can see from the chart above, more than twice as many people said more guns in the hands of more people would make them feel less safe (44% to 21%). And this same feeling runs through both sexes, all races, all income levels, all age groups, and all regions of the country. Only one group disagreed -- the Republicans, who by a tiny 27% to 24% margin said it would make them feel safer.

It turns out that the American people are not as stupid as the NRA thinks they are (except for GOP right-wingers, who have had a lot of practice in denying reality). Don't get me wrong -- I'm not advocating violating the Second Amendment or confiscating any guns from law-abiding people. I just think it's time we took some reasonable steps to keep guns out of the hands of dangerous people -- and I think most Americans would agree with that.