Gun control people talk a good game about reducing gun deaths but their approach is clumsy and, in the United States, ultimately doomed. They don't actually do anything useful. Their only suggestion is "more gun control". Well, we've already got a lot of useless gun control laws and most of it only impacts good folks.
The gun community is smart. Its leadership knows that the suicides, homicides and accidents are very different phenomena and can only be attacked successfully by attacking the distinct root causes of each.
Firearms Accidents Reduced By Voluntary Education
This was successfully done with firearms accidents and mostly without enacting onerous training requirements (although universal firearms safety training in school could be worthwhile). I remember being impressed when I got active in firearms politics that the firearms accidental death rate had dropped by nearly 40 percent between 1970 and 1990. I was even more pleasantly surprised to find that the rate had dropped to 600/year in 2010.
In the past few years, gun rights leaders have been turning their attention to the problem of suicide by firearm. Gun control advocates like to conflate murders and suicides but in reality, 2/3 of firearms intentional deaths are suicides. In Washington state, the number is more like 80%, as our firearms murder rate is below the national average.
One of the organizations driving these efforts is the Second Amendment Foundation (link), an organization founded and led by Second Amendment supporting powerhouse Alan Gottlieb. A couple years ago, his organization joined with Washington state health professionals, the Seattle Police Department, the Washington State Department of Veteran Affairs, the Washington Arms Collectors organization and others to form a unique coalition (link). They lobbied the state legislature and obtained official support for this life saving coalition.
This weekend, I attended the Washington Arms Collectors show in Monroe and spoke with some amazing members of the Safer Homes Suicide Awareness coalition. The lady I spoke with was a great representative for the group...the stereotype is that people trying to prevent suicides are anti-firearms. This lady, however, said that she herself owns firearms and that her only interest is in convincing others to secure their firearms. The discussion also highlighted that the group distinguishes between firearms whose use is not anticipated and firearms kept more ready for the self defense possibility that none of us like to think about.
Not only was this a great thing to hear but the group is also giving away free firearms storage devices and other safety devices, such as the lockable pill bottle included in this picture. I just may have to volunteer with some of these efforts, now...
This business card sized information sheet teaches how to spot people having problems (sometimes a challenge in this stressed out age) and how to help.
To the Second Amendment Foundation, Washington Arms Collectors and their allies in the law enforcement and health care communities: well done!
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