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> The places with the highest gun crimes are also the places with the toughest gun laws Only in America. Other western nations have tough gun laws and also low

by muglug 5y ago

> The places with the highest gun crimes are also the places with the toughest gun laws Only in America. Other western nations have tough gun laws and also low gun crime, because you can't hop in your car and pick up a gun in a neighbouring state. And actually the correlation is only seen in parts of America. New York City has tough gun laws, comparatively low gun crime and a lower homicide rate per capita than the rest of the country. Time and time again people say "tough gun laws lead to more gun crime" but really they mean "in a country where it's really really easy to buy guns, we mostly see the negative impact of gun ownership in high-density poor neighbourhoods".

zepto 5y ago
> because you can't hop in your car and pick up a gun in a neighbouring state. You can’t do this in America either. You can only buy guns legally in your state of residence.
- germinalphrase 5y ago
  There’s no paperwork or background check on a private sale, so it’s almost a meaningless distinction.
  - zepto 5y ago
    > There’s no paperwork or background check on a private sale, so it’s almost a meaningless distinction. If someone is willing to buy a gun illegally, they don’t need to go out of state.
    - germinalphrase 5y ago
      Private sales aren’t illegal, but - yes - guns are easily available (legal or not) in the United States.
      - zepto 5y ago
        Guns are widely available to anyone who wants to break the law. The claim that this is because people can drive to others states is false. For everyone else, how available they are depends on where you live.
        germinalphrase 5y ago
        Yes, I agree with everything your are saying. On a practical level, guns are available to anyone who wants one. Regional and city level restrictions only create a mild level of friction.
        zepto 5y ago
        > On a practical level, guns are available to anyone who wants one. For the law abiding, that’s not true in places where you need a license just to buy one such as NYC, or in CA where most handguns and many rifles are not available.

by muglug 5y ago

zepto 5y ago

> because you can't hop in your car and pick up a gun in a neighbouring state. You can’t do this in America either. You can only buy guns legally in your state of residence.

germinalphrase 5y ago
There’s no paperwork or background check on a private sale, so it’s almost a meaningless distinction.
- zepto 5y ago
  > There’s no paperwork or background check on a private sale, so it’s almost a meaningless distinction. If someone is willing to buy a gun illegally, they don’t need to go out of state.
  - germinalphrase 5y ago
    Private sales aren’t illegal, but - yes - guns are easily available (legal or not) in the United States.
    - zepto 5y ago
      Guns are widely available to anyone who wants to break the law. The claim that this is because people can drive to others states is false. For everyone else, how available they are depends on where you live.
      - germinalphrase 5y ago
        Yes, I agree with everything your are saying. On a practical level, guns are available to anyone who wants one. Regional and city level restrictions only create a mild level of friction.
        zepto 5y ago
        > On a practical level, guns are available to anyone who wants one. For the law abiding, that’s not true in places where you need a license just to buy one such as NYC, or in CA where most handguns and many rifles are not available.