Pew Study Debunks Obama’s Myth of Typical Gun Owner

It is very interesting to see the results of a well-done study on firearms, most are either politically biased or the results are purposefully skewed by anti-gun researchers. The Pew Center in 2017 conducted a comprehensive study of the current state of gun ownership. The study dispels some long-held beliefs by the anti-gun crowd, particularly among residents of rural states.

The results also show strong support for banning military-style rifles and high-capacity magazines among Democrats and Republicans, which likely foreshadows future federal legislation if Democrats gain control of the White House and maintain their hold on at least the House of Representatives.

The study shows there were about 40,000 deaths in 2017 in the United States due to gun violence. About two-thirds of that total includes suicides. Murders also make up a significant percentage, although much less than suicides. The study says the 40,000 deaths in 2017 is the highest total in decades. Which spurred the Pew Center to conduct the study.

With deaths at a decades-long high and Democrats making headlines with gun-grabbing policies, current gun owners can expect to see their Second Amendment rights likely eroded as early as next year. That will come via ineffective bans on military-style rifles, bans on high-capacity magazines, and increased background checks – which have proven to be highly faulty when the FBI and local police do not perform due diligence and enable bad guys to buy guns, despite current laws banning sales to violent felons.

The study shows about four in 10 adults live in households that own firearms, with about three in 10 adults saying they own firearms. Another 57 percent of those responding to the study reported they live in households that have no guns.

Nearly half of the people, 48 percent, said they grew up in a household that had guns, 59 percent say at least some of their friends own guns, and 72 percent have shot a firearm at some point in their lives.

Of those who own firearms, about two-thirds say they own more than one, and 29 percent own five or more. The vast majority of gun owners said they own a pistol or a handgun – 72 percent – versus 62 percent owning a rifles, and 54 percent a shotgun. Of those who own only a handgun, they most likely live in big cities and urban areas, and cite personal safety as their primary reason for owning a firearm.

Those who own only a rifle or shotgun most identified as living in less populated, rural areas and cite hunting and target shooting as their primary reasons for owning firearms.

City dwellers mostly cited fear of their fellow man as the main reason for owning a gun.

Those reasons, though, are far removed from the liberal narrative of rural gun owners primarily clinging to their Bible and guns out of fear of societal change, as former President Barack Obama once callously claimed. The Pew Center study on gun ownership shows comments like those by the former President are made out of ignorance and due to a highly biased and prejudicial viewpoint of gun owners in general.

As might be expected, those who do not own firearms and fear their fellow man are those who most want to disarm the American public. The study shows about 57 percent of those cited want stricter gun laws, versus 31 percent who say current gun laws are sufficient, and 11 percent who say current gun laws are too restrictive and should be eased. Political party differences greatly impact support for more restrictive gun laws.

Among Democrats or independents who lean Democrat, 80 percent say they want more restrictive gun laws. About 15 percent say they are fine with the current gun laws, and 4 percent say they want less restrictive gun laws. So, among Democrats, there is overwhelming support for making it harder to buy firearms.

The numbers decrease greatly among those who identify as Republican or independents who lean Republican. About 28 percent of those respondents say gun laws should me more restrictive, while 52 percent say they are about right. Some 20 percent of conservative adults say the current gun laws should be less restrictive. With such great variation from one political ideology to another, it is very easy to see the near future if Democrats gain the White House in 2020.