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Handguns and the economics of safety
Marketplace Money host Tess Vigeland heads to the shooting range for this weekend's show to learn about the cost of gun ownership and home safety (and takes on a zombie while she's at it).
The cost of keeping yourself safe varies, of course, depending on what you feel is necessary to secure yourself and your property. So let us know, what does peace of mind cost you? How much do you spend on safety? Leave a comment.
Enjoy the video!
Thanks a lot for bringing up this very serious subject to a national audience. Hopefully this brings about the opportunity for discussion amongst people. Some of us may have an emotional reaction to guns, biased information and/or misguided optimism about them. I look forward to seeing more forums of discussions on the subject.
I wish that more attention had been paid to security measures that do not carry the same risks as gun ownership -- the greatest risk being shot by one's own gun. I am amazed by the number of instances where good common sense would have trumped gun ownership -- locked doors, secure windows, not advertising one's absence from home, etc. In my city, a member of the police force will come out to inspect a home to suggest how to make it safer. Yes, there are times when only guns suffice to protect, but too often, people delude themselves that a gun is effective protection. Too often, it is not possible to draw a gun quickly enough, too often does a child get to a gun, and too often a gun is used to commit suicide.
People who are going to commit suicide are going to do it whether they have a gun or not. They've been doing it with relative ease since the beginning of time. Nobody wants to blame the mere presence of a bottle of sleeping pills for anyone's decision to kill themselves.
So factor out suicide and an incredibly small number of people manage to accidentally shoot themselves with their own firearm. About 800 actually. Compare that to the 12,000 people a year that accidentally poison themselves. Whatever is under your sink is vastly more dangerous than what's in your nightstand.
Dear Sharp Shooter,
I enjoyed your report this morning and want to congratulate on a job well done. Having said that, I'd like to add that it might have gone from 'great' to 'spectacular' if you had emphasized the level of restraint that gets built into good handgun training regarding self defense. The concept of using a hadgun in personal self defense is reserved for situations that qualify as 'in the gravest extreme.' I think it is especially important that your listeners realize the overwhelming responsibility one undertakes when owning and especially when using, a handgun. I certainly hope that point was made to you in your foray into handgun use.
