There are a couple issues in the "gun debate" that I think get glossed over.
"Gun Grabbers" as the pro-gun people like to call the antis, generally tend to lump all gun owners together rather than looking at the risk factors. You are far more likely to be shot with certain classes of weapons, and generally not the ones that get legislated against.
"Gun nuts" as the anti-gun people like to call the pros, tend to not want to compromise at all. They refuse to help in any sort of legislation that will limit their right to own any firearm they want, and tend to minimize the aspect of "when things go wrong".
I've lived in both societies, very anti-gun, very pro-gun, and shades in between. I also tend to do my research, which neither side really likes to do. The facts, as I've learned them:
1. The majority of gun-crimes are perpetrated by small, easy to conceal handguns.
2. The majority of gun accidents are the result of negligence or alcohol.
3. The majority of gun legislation is written by people that don't understand firearms sufficiently to write good legislation about them.
4. The larger and more cumbersome the weapon, the less likely it is to be used in a crime.
5. When large, cumbersome weapons ARE used in a crime, they get undue media attention.
6. There are 300 million+ functioning firearms in the US. Any gun legislation needs to take this into account.
7. There are 4 major classes of firearms, and each class can be broken down into numerous subclasses. The major classes are: Handguns, shotguns, rifles, and black-powder/historic. Handguns breaks down to revolvers, automatics, single shot, and SMGs. Shotguns break down to single shot, two barrel, pump/lever/bolt action, and semi-auto. (There are full auto shotguns, but they're fairly rare, and their advantage over semi-auto is dubious.) Rifles break down to: single shot, bolt/lever/pump action, semi-auto, military grade, and full auto.
The most common firearms used in crime are revolvers and automatic handguns. Virtually anything else used is an outlier, statistically speaking. The most common firearms for accidents are also handguns, but there is much more representation of the other firearms in the accident catagory. Most accidents harm the weilder and no one else.
Most of the firearms horror stories (Sniper in a bell tower, assault rifle rampage through a mall, toddler getting hands on parent's handgun) are vanishingly rare. Some of the firearms horror stories (Sniper rifle shooting through multiple brick walls of a school, .50 sniper rifle shooting down airliners, .50 being used for ANY CRIME AT ALL) are simply wives tales. (I find the whole .50 hate offensive. As mentioned above, .50bmg rifles have never been used in a crime in the US that I've been able to find. yet they are banned by name in at least two states.)
Risk factors for firearms:
1. Size. Within reason, the smaller a firearm is, the more concealable it is, the more likely it is to be used in a crime.
2. Capacity. The more rounds a firearm can fire without reloading, the more damage it can do when it is used in a crime.
3. Ease of reloading. Capacity doesn't matter all that much if you can slap a new magazine in the gun in under a second.
4. Alcohol. Guns and alcohol don't mix.
5. Power of the cartridge. The stronger the round is, the more likely there will be collateral damage. Rifle rounds are orders of magnitude stronger than handgun rounds, and most rifle rounds can kill at huge distances.
6. Design of the bullet: Frangible/deforming rounds are far more dangerous than solids. . . however solids penetrate far more. Frangible/deforming rounds are illegal in many areas.
7. Storage. Guns should not be stored "ready" unless in safes designed specifically for the purpose. All guns should be locked up in some manner in storage. Ammunition should be stored away from firearms, and in fireproof containers (I use army surplus ammo tins. .50c for a vaccuum sealed metal box that will hold 600 rounds of .45acp or 400 of 7.62x51? yes please)
8. Training. No one should ever touch a gun if they don't know the 4 rules of firearms safety.
The rules are, for people unfamilier:
A) All guns are always loaded!
B) Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy!
C) Keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on the target!
D) Always be sure of your target! (and the area behind your target)
