Script Flipped: 97.8% of Mass Shootings Happen in Gun-Free Zones
If the far-left had a magical genie that could grant them three wishes, after wishing Trump away, the second wish would unquestionably be to turn all of American in a gun-free zone.
After all, the far-left’s fascination with demolishing the Second Amendment is one of their calling cards.
The problem is, the vast majority of anti-gun sentiment is based purely on emotion and not facts. That’s a genuine problem, and more than a little ironic considering the far-left’s propensity to cling to “facts” and “science” when it best suits them.
According to the Washington Times, the Crime Prevention Research Center’s John Lott has produced a study that offers some “facts” that the far-left will probably despise.
97.8 percent of mass shootings happen in gun-free zones, Lott’s latest report finds.
Lott uses the FBI definition of “mass public shootings” as an incident in which four or more people are killed (excluding the shooter) by gunfire in a non-gang or non-drug related capacity. Lott also defines a “gun-free zone” as areas where the average citizen can’t typically carry guns.
97.8 percent is a startling figure. Another way to look at it is that only 2.2 percent of mass shootings happen where people can carry firearms.
Yes, 97.8 is likely somewhat inflated due in no small part to the spate of school shootings that occur in America. Schools are almost always weapon-free zones.
But the fact remains that the overwhelming majority of mass shootings happen in gun-free zones.
The simple numbers speak to several truths that far-left gun detractors must come to grips with.
First and foremost, you cannot regulate evil. Mass murderers are evil, sick and twisted people. No amount of paperwork will prevent them from seeking to act out on their abominable impulses.
That’s not to say guns should just be given out willy-nilly. Most Second Amendment enthusiasts will agree that there’s nothing wrong with reasonable vetting.
But making things harder for normal, everyday gun enthusiasts will not stymie evil people from finding ways to procure weaponry. If anything, making things significantly more difficult to legally acquire guns would likely only proliferate the illegal distribution of them.
Second, both pro- and anti-gun advocates can likely agree that mass murderers are beyond cowardly.
Cowards are far less likely to wade into territory where their attempted rampage can be stopped by self-defending citizens. That’s just simply psychology and Lott’s numbers back this up.
Third, and perhaps most importantly, gun-free zones work on law-abiding citizens.
By definition, a mass murderer is a lawbreaker. If laws meant to protect the sanctity of everyday life mean nothing to these murderers, why would they care one iota about something as arbitrary as a gun-free zone?
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