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From: faustus@ucbcad.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.politics
Subject: Re: Re: Re: handgun control
Message-ID: <69@ucbcad.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 20-Jan-85 05:00:34 EST
Article-I.D.: ucbcad.69
Posted: Sun Jan 20 05:00:34 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 22-Jan-85 06:23:17 EST
References: <1745@zehntel.UUCP>
Organization: UC Berkeley CAD Group, Berkeley, CA
Lines: 21

> Why not ban handguns?
> 	Self defense :
> 		con: I will be left defenseless if I am attacked.
> 		pro: If you own a handgun AND it is used to shoot a
> 			person there is an 80% chance it will be used to
> 			shoot you or someone you know.  (source Congressional
> 			Committee reports circa 1978)
> 			Think about this - do you think that the odds are 
> 			a good bet?

Probably most of the people whose ownership of guns caused something
bad to happen either had bad tempers, didn't know what they were doing
(like the guy who shot himself in the head while answering the phone),
or led lifestyles (like drug pushers) that things pretty dangerous for
them in any case. If you look at how much of that 80% were people who
were responsible, intelligent, and "law-abiding" people (like everybody
reading this, of course...), I think it will give you better odds. In
any case, people don't tend to be convinced by arguments that imply
that they aren't any better than everybody else...

	Wayne