Will abolishing guns in America reduce violent crimes?

Hi Sahayog -

Second amendment supporters will argue no. Many such people, and some others, believe guns dont kill people, people kill people.

I personally believe it can reduce if not eliminate violent crimes because when you don't have easy access to a weapon that allows you to kill with ease, then it becomes all the more cumbersome to kill someone. It is logistically harder to kill 10 people with a knife than it is to shoot them if you ask me.

Sure there will be some determined people who will still find a way to purchase what would then be illegal guns, but getting it off the hands of many more people prone to such violence will surely reduce the chances of the type of shootouts we have seen of late.

That said, I don't see it happening anytime soon in the US. The gun lobby is too strong and unless we have a couple of repeated shootings in several influential and affluent neighborhoods and a few high-profile victims, it might be hard to see stricter gun laws.

Just my thoughts.

:)

You can buy Guns in WalMart, what does it say??

As long as there's NRA, there will always be guns with ordinray people.

There's one thing you might not have noticed in the US,  it's something you don't really hear any debate about. Guns, so called the the 2nd amm right, are for their protection. 100% true. But how many time have you heard guns really been used for REAL protection (let's say to PROTECT from wild animals in the rural places ( exclude HUNTING), OR  defending youself at your home when some tried to kill/rape you in the city. You dont' hear many stories that guns being in REAL use to defend ("I have the right" motive). It's all politics and the gun lobbiest are so strong, they can change the direction of the votes during election.

Thanks for your thoughts Captain.

I am in the same page as you are on this issue. I also think that if there were to be a vote to see how people think about this issue it would in my opinion be in favor of stricter gun regulations or total abolition.

When the 2nd amendment was passed, it was a different America than the one that we see today. It was a necessity for the government back then to pass this law as the Americans were in constant threat of being attacked by Indians and people from other nations. But guns are now used by commoners more for crimes than self-defense.

But the sorry fact is that despite popular support for outlawing guns US will not see proper regulations. This is primarily due to some high profiled pro-gun organizations namely National Rifle Association who spends quite a lot in lobbying and easily outnumbers firms that are in favor for gun-control.

If the Virginia Tech Massacre could not ignite enuff spark against the use of guns, I do not know what could!!!

I don't think it is about the gun culture.
It is about the media glory that is engraved in the American society.  It's to achieve this glory kids do this things to show their anti social behavior or to get back at  'em.
Columbine and other events like this have been made into  dramas, melo dramas movies and have taken the high ratings that have matched  OPRAH;S AND LARRY KING.  And there are lot of kids out there glorifying these  episodes in movies  and televisions  to get back at the society ; sometimes kids hate how they have been treated in schools. This will go on.
But Irony is that  Americans are too arrogant to admit that  this is the part of their culture and say that it can be avoided by placing metal detectors and guards in the schools which is outright nonsense.
Gun culture assists this pehenomenon but i don't think it is the cause. It's the media glory  and media has similar impact in other aspects of life aswell ; sports , politics , celebrities and love for war in this country.

Will abolishing guns in America reduce violent crimes?

I don't think abolishing guns in America is possible now because American society is completely floded with guns and in addition to that huge number of "illegal" guns are already in the hands of  "bad guys" which is nearly impossible for the government to control. On the other hand; NRA is strongly advocating for the right to have guns for self-defence.

Besides this; I have an impression that many people in America enjoy hunting or killing innocent animals/birds for "FUN" which reflects their insensitiveness to killing. I have even seen some parents braging about their small children for being able to use a gun.   How can such society be violence free?

like the person above said, theres already too many guns in the hands of bad people and people probably also know how to make/get guns and theres obviously still gonna be sell of illegal guns within people, its like too late now so i dont think that would really make a BIG difference in reducing the crimes but it could still help reduce the crimes...but then again like usually adults and good guys buy ammunition legally at stores, some underage kids buy illegal guns and a lot of them have connections with people that can provide them guns. Maybe a change in their(gun users') psychology would only help reduce gun crimes. but hey the idea of aboilishing guns could make guns unreachable to people..

oh isnt US' gun laws different than Canada's..? Canada's is MUCH BETTER than States'. dont they like sell guns to ANYONE once they turn 21 there in States? they should have gun licenses and background checkin stuff there in US, thats not cool.

Today, America exists because of gun. These Americans know how to make use of gun. They have been able to keep away enemies or any kind of danger only because of gun. Here, the people in America can have peace of mind only because they have gun in thier home. And the very important thing is that, the founding fathers of America recognized gun as an important element in the growth of a new nation.

If guns are taken away from Americans, the crime rate will grow drastically. I heard this thing happened in Australia(not pretty sure). I believe Amercans can't go back form the present condition.

Americans don't do anything at the time of being robbed. But, they shoot the robbers as soon as they leave the house. This is the thing which all the robbers know. This creates balance and peace in the society.

Indra 1985 ji, I think American society is compley submerged in the floods of guns and they are immensely terrified and feel insecure. A loaded guns by their pillow give them a false impression of security and peace of mind which turn into violent crime. I agree; gun is a part of American society and that's  the reason why Amarica has a "GUN CULTURE" and it will remain for a long long time!

The current news

Cincinnati ...teenager shoot 4 people

Pensylvania (???)...this kid who says he's bullied, is busted with arsenol of weapon. I think he had weapons to start a war in Nepal, atleast more than 20 different types of guns. His mother bought one for him. That tell a lot about America and the use of guns. I personally think if he's going to jail, then his parents should be the first one. Pareting, parenting and parenting.

Bob Marley ji, you gave a good example of mentally sick people in American society!  Sick mentally is the root cause of the problem, not the guns!