After a shooting in Charleston, South Carolina claimed nine lives, President Barack Obama called for the nation to come to terms with the fact that no other advanced country in the world suffers mass shootings as frequently as the U.S. It won’t be until we acknowledge this basic truth, he said, that we’ll realize we have the power to put an end to gun violence.
But that won’t happen until we learn more about the culture that drives gun ownership in the first place, according to Dr. Bindu Kalesan, a gun violence researcher at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health. In a first step toward understanding who the typical American gun owner is, as well as the role guns play in their lives, she conducted a nationally representative online survey of 4,000 U.S. adults in 2013. The findings, published Monday in the journal Injury Prevention, reveal a wide range of gun ownership rates across the country as well as the profile of an average gun owner in America.
He’s white, married or divorced, high income, and over 55 years old. Unsurprisingly, he’s also more than twice as likely to be a member of “social gun culture” than those who don't own firearms. In all, almost one in three Americans owns at least one gun, but gun ownership rates vary widely across states. At 61.7 percent, Alaska has the highest rate of gun ownership, while Delaware has the lowest, at 5.2 percent.
HuffPo goes on to define “social gun culture” as a phenomenon in which friends or family would think less of you if you didn’t own a gun, and if your social life with friends and family involved guns.
Which to me sounds pretty accurate. And I certainly know people like that up here.
I have to admit that I am a little wigged out by a study about gun ownership that describes me so accurately.
Yes, I am white, 55 years old, and living in the state with the highest gun ownership in the country.
However I would not characterize myself as having a high income, and more importantly I DO NOT OWN ANY GUNS!
The article goes on to offer this chart which demonstrates that more gun ownership equals more gun deaths.
Look I don't have any idea what it is about holding onto a piece of metal that we are conditioned to equate with male dominance and power that men find so appealing.
But I guess that might be due to the fact that the source of my own self confidence is more internal and not something that I can buy at the local Wal-Mart while I am out shopping for a new toilet plunger.
There are THAT many gun owners in D.C.?!? Circa 35%?? It wasn't even legal until George W. Bush made it so!
ReplyDeleteDon't let the door hit you where The Lord split you, W. I was never so happy to see anything as when he left town!
I am an Alaskan female. I own guns. Have done so for 45 years.
ReplyDeleteMy door was kicked in by hoodlums at 3 a.m. a couple of years ago. I shot at them, tho there was no chance of hitting them through 2 walls. That was the first time I ever aimed a gun toward a homo sapien.
I might not be here writing this if I had been unarmed. Who knows what they else they might have done other than rob me? There is a major heroin problem in AK, as in most other states. Strung out junkies are capable of extreme violence when they don't get what they want.
Do you have deadbolts to keep your door from being kicked in? Look up 'bump key' on a search engine. Then get the hardware to install with the deadbolt to keep one from working at your home.
BTW I believe in much stricter background checks for buying guns. And a ban on assault rifles.
Even though so called assault rifles and rifles period don't even register a blip on over all gun violence stats? Most gun deaths are from pistols. It's just not as dramatic because they are so small and look comparatively more harmless.
DeleteI keep a loaded shotgun by my door, there are too many desperate druggies and thieves in the Valley now to not have some form of protection. If our neighborhood watch and in home security systems fail, well, I've got backup.
DeleteMaybe you should remind yourself of this study along with remembering a certain former AK governor the next time you criticize ALL citizens of certain US states or regions, such as the Deep South.
ReplyDeleteJust because we have gun nuts and lunatics up here, which I criticize quite regularly, does not mean I cannot criticize the gun nuts and lunatics from other states.
DeleteEspecially in the deep south.
Gryphen: I own a gun and do not see myself as a lunatic. I'm schooled in using it and do keep it safely in my home just in case someone tries to rob me (high crime rate in Anchorage, AK!), etc.
DeleteFeel it is better to be safe than sorry!
I also do not own any guns. Looking back on my 60 years here on earth, I cannot think of a single instance where having gun would have improved the outcome of a situation. However, I can think of dozens of times where having a gun would have made the situation worse.
ReplyDeleteGolly, golly - I've lived in Alaska for eons, am a senior, white, but a female and I own a gun! Plus, took lessons and know how to use it!
ReplyDeleteI bought mine because of so many Republicans living in Alaska and thinking I just might need protection one of these days! Is that my culture? Haha!
Hillary sends a message of support to gay 6 yr old on HONY Facebook page.
ReplyDeleteLike a six year old knows they are gay without an adult telling them.
DeleteHow in the world can a person even know if they are gay or straight until puberty hormones kick in? That's just odd.
DeleteWho knows? Help us straight folks out, LGBTQIA friends
DeleteHaven't you heard of six year old boys who want nothing to do with sports, violent games, or guns? I have. Doesn't make them gay, but it does make them subject to bullying.
DeleteI certainly knew at age 6 that I liked boys and wanted to grow up and marry one ( and I am straight).
Delete@anon 11:33 am
DeleteI know many gay men that like sports, hunting, fishing, and guns. What you like to do has nothing to do with your sexual orientation.
@10:47AM -- "How in the world can a person even know if they are gay or straight until puberty hormones kick in?"
DeleteI think some know, some don't. It really depends upon their environment, but I'm not saying their environment causes it. I do know better than that.
I have a friend who is a lesbian and she told me she knew at age 5.
DeleteShe is African-American and the community she grew up in was very religious and conservative, so it took her a very long time to come out and tell her family the truth, but she knew at a very young age.
I'm sure their count was based on population! Don't ya think?
ReplyDeleteRemember, we have a small population.
Alaska ranks first in so many things, it is sickening! Crime, rape, gun ownership, highest cost of medical care in the USA, etc. I'm so friggin' proud to be an Alaskan but am too old to relocate!
You're never too old to relocate from AK. I know a 90 y/o who will be leaving next year.
DeleteI was happy to see that Wickersham, from the blogroll on the left, was leaving. He's definitely put in his time here and with the economy crashing it's a good time to get out. I know we are considering selling our properties before they begin to lose value, I don't want to go through another crash up here like the one in the 1980's...too old for that shit!
DeleteI'm also an Alaskan that would like to relocate. It takes money, research and planning for a better location. It sounds overwhelming, but doable. Being retired helps too as no job needs to be found in a new location.
DeleteI agree 10:43 AM. I lived in Alaska through the 80's and it is not an experience I'd like to repeat! All I can say is WOW! To think that we are on that horizon again!
DeleteAlaska's politicians have so much to do with our pending repeated mess! Pay attention for whom you vote, Alaskans!
You've got a bunch in the Alaska Legislature that are doing you NO good! And, they are Republican led! some will be up for reelection in 2016.
Research the records of folks that want your vote again - see how they voted on various subjects throughout their term - review how they discussed subjects publically and you'll find that some voted completed the opposite of what they originally project - determine who supports their candidacy - does the oil industry support them, how wealthy have they become since being in office - do they hold public meetings and answer questions publically - do they support women's issues (i.e. allow contraception and abortions) - are they anti the gay issues, etc.
Most especially watch the actions of Lisa Murkowski, Republican, U.S. Congress. She speaks out of both sides of her mouth and is on record for having done so! She will have a LOT of outside money when running for reelection with little coming from folks in Alaska. Is that right?
First of all, you have to look at the fact that a gun is only a tool. It is only as good or as bad as the person who owns it.
ReplyDeleteWhat this idiotic study doesn't take into account are the other things in this country that account for violence against others. The drug culture mixed with the war on drugs is a biggy. But then there is the glamorization of guns and violence that is perpetrated by liberal Hollywood and in popular music. The militarization of police. the intolerance of other cultures and beliefs in a melting pot country.
And lastly, how can the citizenry be peaceful if the government is a war mongering bully? And it's not just the Right wing republicans that share the blame. Under your so called peace loving President Obama, people are assassinated every day by drones and unintended targets are written off as collateral damage. Killing people doesn't beget peace and co-operation, it begets more violence, no matter how you try to sanitize it. The reason there is so much death and violence in the US is that the culture is permeated with it from the top to the bottom.
Yea, but if we have another Bush elected POTUS or if McCain had won, we'd have been in all out war in the middle east and various other places throughout the world, more Americans (and other folks!) would have died and we'd be broke as a country!
DeletePresident Obama had to do certain things due to agreements Bush had already made!
I would take President Obama's presidency any day over a Republican!!! And, I'm very thankful I voted for him for both of his terms as did the majority of our country!
Way to deflect. People, other than returning soldiers, are not made violent by their governments. I doubt there was an uptick in violence here during WWII or Vietnam. There is NOW because the RW and the NRA, aided by that helpful media, is scaring people to death. "beware. Watch your neighbor. Buy more guns to protect yourselves from the government! Obama is coming after the guns! Be afraid of anyone who doesn't look just like you..the police are!" And on and on. THAT is the cause of this, not our President.
DeleteAnonymous10:26 AM, sure, "a gun is only a tool". Like a hammer? Chainsaws, hammers are used for cutting wood and pounding nails, and pros that use them are protected by licensing, bonding, insurance. Cars are used for transportation, and owners/others are protected by licensing, registration, and insurance. And so on. Guns are used for killing. Period. Don't blame Hollywood for the resistance to registration, licensing and insurance for gun owners.
DeleteAnd who started that stupid "war on drugs"? Yeah, that idol of gun worshippers everywhere, Ronald Reagan, and his lovely wife ("just say no"). That profited the private prison system, and no one else.
Your bleeding heart for "people ...assassinated every day by drones"? There are so many people worthy of your concern in THIS COUNTRY that are being assassinated. Like the 9 in that SC church, by a white supremacist bigot, for instance.
But you gave away your lack of concern, with that sneering "your so called peace loving President Obama". Either you aren't a real American, or you're a secessionist.
The study was based on per capita gun ownership.
ReplyDeleteNOT YOUR AVERAGE AK GUN OWNER.
ReplyDeletehttps://scontent.cdninstagram.com/hphotos-xaf1/t51.2885-15/s640x640/e35/sh0.08/11427448_498847880271480_886424300_n.jpg
#chefMarina 4 Jul 2015
https://twitter.com/ExotixLLC/status/617539836476542976
Ak gun poser
https://scontent.cdninstagram.com/hphotos-xfa1/t51.2885-15/e15/11379182_448451685323108_47388523_n.jpg
Now we see where she get that "well fed" look from ;-)
Delete️ bsmp2. She can laugh at the days to come b/c she posted this old #throwback from her celebration with Dakota, their first week of living together in Kentucky?
Deletehttp://websta.me/p/1018462797229185496_1395504853
Are these the same shorts?
1. At the celebration with Dakota.
https://malialitman.files.wordpress.com/2015/04/bristol-and-dakota-shooting.png
2. Bristol Palin, 24, has responded to critics of her second pregnancy in an unpredictable way - by posting a photo of herself firing a gun while donning shorts and a hooded top on Instagram - http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2015/06/30/22/2A1F092200000578-3145139-image-m-9_1435700841513.jpg
The lighting is different in each pic. She covers up the Never Outgunned t-shirt she wore when Dakota was in the pic.
Woot woot !!! In less than 48 hrs Willow Palin can celebrate her bday with her first alcoholic drink evah and probably a 21 gun salute too...woot woot
ReplyDeleteHer first LEGAL alcoholic drink ever...
DeleteShe is fat and homely. Apparently there are those who get off on fat and homely.
ReplyDeleteThere's been another shooting..this time at an Omni (read: expensive) Hotel in downtown Austin, Texas, which just relaxed the few restrictions they had on Open Carry. Good work, NRA. Another two people shot to death. In America.
ReplyDeleteI guess I am not the usual weapons owner raised in a blue state, now living in a red one.
ReplyDeleteI am a biracial woman on the north side of 50 ( that's as close to saying my age as I'll get) who has hunted, has competed biathalon and target shooting competitions since my youth.
I still hunt and do target shooting, I NEVER have a loaded gun in my home. My weapons are locked up in their gun safes, my ammo in another, both are kept in a locked "safe" room.
Now I do carry a weapon when out checking cattle, mostly because of rattlesnakes.
I do have an alarm system in my home, but more importantly I have 2 trained GSDs, a pittie, and our catahoula, for our main home/ranch safety. My dogs are also taught ( and yes we practice) to go to the "safe room" door if I cal them in which I keep an extra cell phone on a charger to call the sheriffs dept
I own no assault rifles, just weapons for hunting and for target shooting, and my 22 long pistol for snakes.
I think we need every weapon to be registered, an assault weapons ban, and I have no issue with requiring a comprehensive mental health check/background check. I also think if you are ever convicted of a violent crime you should have all your weapons removed for life.
Good for you 12:04pm. You sound like a very wise lady!
DeleteIt doesn't surprise that Alaska has such a high rate of gun ownership. Isn't hunting a way of life for a lot of people up there? I have no problem with hunters, here in Iowa, they are necessary to keep the deer population down.
ReplyDeleteI was surprised that Hawaii has such a high rate of gun ownership. I wonder why that is?
Well the men in Alaska need to protect themselves from Sarah and Todd coming with a shotgun to find a husband, willing or not, for Mini Sno Ho Bristle
ReplyDeleteThis noon I had a conversation with one of the lifeguards at our local community public swimming pool about gun incidents, accidents, training and ownership.
ReplyDeleteHe's a tall nerdy-looking guy, but looks are deceiving. He said his family is into gun culture, as his grandfather is a Vietnam vet, trained in special forces, and his father served in the Middle East, also with specialized training. This is in coastal Oregon, a non-open-carry state -- but yes, we have a gun culture here too.
He said he's learned everything he knows about guns from his dad and granddad, evidently especially the parts about "don't ever point a gun at anything you don't want to kill" and "double and triple check to make sure the gun is not loaded".
He agreed with me about the number of gun incidents being out of all proportion, and like me, blamed it on lack of training and common sense. He told me of a friend that'd just bought a gun to whom he gave his dad's and granddad's advice. Only 12 hours later, he said, the friend said to someone else, "don't worry, it's not loaded" -- the someone else squeezed the trigger and shot a hole in the floor.
Oops!
Here's an interesting article from the Seattle Times last year. The victim described in the article says it was only "bad luck" that resulted in his permanent paralysis, caused by his experienced-in-gun-handling roommate's poorly dissembled gun.
http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/shooting-accidents-soar-state-gun-laws-remain-unchanged/
Alaskans are always telling you they need guns because any moment they could be eaten by a barrr.
ReplyDeleteBut nobody ever is.
I am very surprised that South Dakota isn't higher on that list:
ReplyDeleteeverybody I know owns at least one gun (including me).
Jeepers creepers you guys must have a LOT of guns!
This article doesn't describe you by your own description. Yet your narcissistic personality has you claiming it does. Classic case of Gryphen's desire to be the center of attention. Go buy a gun and find something that pays more than a teachers aide salary, then you can make that claim truthfully
ReplyDeleteMontana has a population of approx. 1,026,713. So for it to have more gun owners than my Minnesota means there must be babies carrying guns there. Same with some other states. Wyoming? Wow.
ReplyDeleteMy father was a hunter and I always felt safe growing up. He and my uncle decided one house would hold the unloaded, checked and double checked then locked guns, and the other house a half hour away would have the bullets, also locked up. They hunted deer and pheasants and wild boar on their own property in upstate New York.
ReplyDeleteI'm ok with responsible, educated gun ownership, but how many gun deaths have we seen called "accidents", or people with poor impulse control and no conflict resolution skills with access to guns? It's too easy to hurt or kill someone in the "heat of the moment" if the gun's available. Someone who is depressed would find it easier to kill themselves if a gun were in reach. How many guns are stolen or taken from gun owners, then used against them?
I know there are legitimate reasons for owning a gun, and I respect that right, but I see no reason for average citizens to have rapid fire assault weapons and clips. If one hunts with one, then there's no "sport" and in most cases, the meat is wasted.
What I do know is we need more than stricter background checks, we need stronger gun laws. When the constitution was written, muskets and bayonets were common and we needed militias.
That first chart is a joke. It has Hawaii as one of the highest states for having guns. NOT. We have very strict gun laws here with a tiny amount of ammosexuals who get hammered when they occasionally speak up. Our criminals very rarely use a gun, they prefer knives & baseball bats. There hasn't been anyone killed "accidentally" by a gun since I've lived here - 15 years. Some of the other states are vastly under-rated, especially the Southern ones. They have huge numbers of gun related accidents. The second chart is much more accurate.
ReplyDelete