Mass Shootings and Guns

The Economist took a look at the increase in mass shootings in the United States (August 1 edition, page 26)  As always they focus on data and produce some statistics to raise ones eyebrows.   

Mass shootings have occurred at an average of one per day this year (citing data from http://shootingtracker.com).

A recent FBI study looked at 160 mass shootings between 2000 and 2013.  Most ended when the assailant killed himself or fled, only one was ended by a civilian armed with a gun.  On the other hand the Violence Policy Center says that Americans who legally carry concealed weapons are far more likely to perpetrate mass shootings than to prevent them, it counts 29 such events since 2007.  

Broadly speaking Republicans think the path to stopping gun violence is to have everyone packing heat (even in church according to some Republican candidates).  Democrats think the answer is to get rid of guns.  I'm a pretty middle of the road guy so I look at data.

Statistically although in some cases having a gun saves a persons life or stops a crime, for every positive outcome there are many more cases where the guns people own kill a curious child, or go off accidently and injure someone, or are used against the owner, or where a disturbed gun owner shots someone else.  Statistically it is a bad idea to own a gun.

Some gun owners are wise and careful about their weapons.  For those individuals the statistics perhaps don't reflect the likelihood of actual outcomes.  However from the statistics one has to conclude there are many people who are neither wise nor careful with their weapons.  So how do we know who is who?  If you are a wise and careful gun owner does having the right to own guns make you safer?  Or are you and your family more at risk from the neighbor you don't even know has guns who is neither wise nor careful than you are from remote possibility of an actual armed intruder?  

The data I really can't get past is the fact the United States has much higher levels of violent crime and gun violence than any other mature democracy in the world.   Our levels of gun violence per 100,000 persons are about the same as Mexico and Argentina, 2 to 5 times higher than any European Country or Japan and 10 times higher than Australia.  If we have gun policy right why are we so much less safe from gun violence than folks in Australia? Or Bulgaria?  Sure we come from a relatively recent frontier past where a gun was necessary for survival for many.  But we seem to be getting more violent, not less.  The wild west really came to an end when people stopped packing a six-shooter - largely because towns began regulating guns in public.  Is our goal now to go back to the wild west?

I can't help but conclude the notion that greater peace will be won by having more people carrying guns is ideological nonsense that ignores data and history, and is driven in large part by lobbying groups representing folks who make lots of money off guns.