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Carrying a gun increases risk of getting shot and killed
New Scientist ^ | October 6, 2009 | Ewen Calloway

Posted on 10/07/2009 3:44:32 PM PDT by genetic homophobe

Packing heat may backfire. People who carry guns are far likelier to get shot – and killed – than those who are unarmed, a study of shooting victims in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, has found.

(Excerpt) Read more at newscientist.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society
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To: genetic homophobe
what a load of $h*T

Why didn't they consider how many cops there are in this country vs. how many cops have been shot/killed in the line of duty?

This is equivalent to surveying all drowning victims and seeing how many own swimming pools and then reporting that people who own pools are more likely to drown without ever considering how many pool owner don't drown.

61 posted on 10/07/2009 4:24:28 PM PDT by txroadkill ( 9/12/2009 another win for the Gipper!)
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To: stockpirate

My first thought as well: they didn’t bother to differentiate between legal carriers and criminals or it would have disproved their assumptions!


62 posted on 10/07/2009 4:33:04 PM PDT by FormerLib (Sacrificing our land and our blood cannot buy protection from jihad.-Bishop Artemije of Kosovo)
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To: genetic homophobe
What HORSECRAP this study is. I'll bet there's not a trained licensed concealed carry person in the bunch.

They are setting the stage for the government to outlaw guns. Well, I guess I'll be an outlaw. WOLVERINES!

63 posted on 10/07/2009 4:33:35 PM PDT by backwoods-engineer (Proud to be an American, where I least I know I'm free!)
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To: genetic homophobe
Packing heat may backfire.

You may be struck and killed by a meteor in your sailboat.

Or you might have a great day sailing.

Which of these scenarios is more likely?

Hands off my boat, pansies.


Frowning takes 68 muscles.
Smiling takes 6.
Pulling this trigger takes 2.
I'm lazy.

64 posted on 10/07/2009 4:36:06 PM PDT by The Comedian (Evil can only succeed if good men don't point at it and laugh.)
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To: The Comedian

Let’s save our police by having them disarmed! Duh.


65 posted on 10/07/2009 4:37:34 PM PDT by Your6
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To: genetic homophobe
it may be that guns give a sense of empowerment that causes carriers to overreact in tense situations, or encourages them to visit neighbourhoods they probably shouldn't, Branas speculates

Branas needs to stop speculating about subjects he knows nothing about. If I want self-defense advice, I'll go to a self-defense expert rather than a silly academic who has never seen a gun except on TV.

66 posted on 10/07/2009 4:53:39 PM PDT by hitkicker
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To: genetic homophobe

I know total nonsense when I see it. This is total nonsense!


67 posted on 10/07/2009 5:02:22 PM PDT by maxwellsmart_agent
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To: 70times7

I am a native Philadelphian and a former Philadelphia police officer. Now I am a journalist/writer.

While I’ve not read this study, I’d be willing to bet it is fallacious. It is a defective syllogism - sort of like the old “ All Riffian tribesmen have blue eyes, Ahmed has blue eyes, therefore Ahmed is a Riffian tribesmen” syllogism.

The defective conclusion is that people who carry guns are shot more than those who don’t, therefore it isn’t safe to carry a gun.

It omits that people who carry guns may be shot more than those who don’t because many people who carry guns are trying to shoot others who also may have a gun. It doesn’t state the cause of the shooting.

So it’s quite possible that those who have been shot while carrying a gun were shot while committing an illegal act by others who were also committing an illegal act or by those who were protecting themselves from an illegal act.

Now I’m not sure whether this headline was a result of the study or the journalist/editor. I’d have to read the study to learn who is grinding the axe.

Quite frankly, I don’t want to waste my time.


68 posted on 10/07/2009 5:14:15 PM PDT by William Tell 2
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To: genetic homophobe

Being named “Plaxico” increases the risk of being shot.

The name “Plaxico” should be banned.


69 posted on 10/07/2009 5:16:25 PM PDT by RegulatorCountry
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To: genetic homophobe; Allegra; big'ol_freeper; Lil'freeper; TrueKnightGalahad; blackie; ...
Re: Carrying a gun increases risk of getting shot and killed

Yep, that why thousands of police... are killed every day, eh?

70 posted on 10/07/2009 5:18:29 PM PDT by Bender2 ("I've got a twisted sense of humor, and everything amuses me." RAH Beyond this Horizon)
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To: Brucifer

agreed...The study was probably brought to us by the same people who brought us global warming...


71 posted on 10/07/2009 5:34:34 PM PDT by hippyhater
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To: Bender2
Carrying a gun increases risk of getting shot and killed

I'd recommend Army FM 17-12-8 for those who need help getting that first round on target. It's always a good idea to get the first shot off and accurately...just sayin'.

72 posted on 10/07/2009 5:36:06 PM PDT by big'ol_freeper ("Anyone pushing Romney must love socialism...Piss on Romney and his enablers!!" ~ Jim Robinson)
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To: William Tell 2
Well said. My post surrounded a frustration I have - no small number of freepers dismiss issues w/out actually thinking the matter through. In doing so they make it easy for trolls to view conservatives as ignorant and shallow. I agree that the article is very likely garbage, but the flaw is not so simplistic as gang members and legal CCs being calced the same way.

My experience w/ Philly is from various articles and routine visits. I am interrested in your view of what I wrote. If I'm off I don't mind being told, learning what is true is more important to me. Thanks for your service, BTW. Philly is rough. How long and what years were you an officer there?

73 posted on 10/07/2009 5:58:22 PM PDT by 70times7 (Serving Free Republics' warped and obscure humor needs since 1999!)
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To: genetic homophobe
"People who carry guns are far likelier to get shot – and killed – than those who are unarmed"

Yes! Absolutely!



If you are NOT packing heat when you try to rob me, I'm going to pull out my gun and march you right down the Po-Po's.

However, if you ARE packing heat when you try to rob me, I'm going to shoot to kill ya'; where you can become another statistic for the arsehats who wrote this report.

Cheers
74 posted on 10/07/2009 6:01:48 PM PDT by DoctorBulldog
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To: Brucifer

smell the BS all the way through the computer screen

I am amazed that the computer geeks have figured out how to do something like “scratch and sniff” over the WWW, but this is damn good example of it.

Am bettin this “study” found that many of those confronting CC folks did die while carrying an inferior weapon with no training and no range time.


75 posted on 10/07/2009 6:11:50 PM PDT by dusttoyou (libs are all wee wee'd up and no place to go)
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To: genetic homophobe

Pure weapons grade BS.

Methinks “new scientist” has a hidden agenda...


76 posted on 10/07/2009 6:15:20 PM PDT by Dr.Zoidberg (Warning: Sarcasm/humor is always engaged. Failure to recognize this may lead to misunderstandings.)
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To: dusttoyou
did die while carrying an inferior weapon with no training and no range time<"P>And holding it sideways when they try to pull their own triggers.
77 posted on 10/07/2009 6:19:08 PM PDT by arthurus ("If you don't believe in shooting abortionists, don't shoot an abortionist." -Ann C.)
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To: FormerLib
“My first thought as well: they didn't’t bother to differentiate between legal carriers and criminals or it would have disproved their assumptions!”

BINGO! Great minds think alike. I chased down this study and read most of their boring statistical analysis.

I could not find anywhere that they cared whether the guns were LEGAL or not. Some gang banger with a gun buying drugs from another gang banger with a gun in downtown Philly doesn't mean anything to me as I would never be kind that situation. Not even HALF of that situation.

from their study:

“It is also worth noting that our findings are possibly” (POSSIBLY?) “not generalizable to non-urban areas whose gun injury risks can be significantly different than those of urban centers like Philadelphia

NO KIDDING Sherlock.

This study is totally meaningless unless you are an unemployed, low life, Black, drug user or boozer, living in a bad neighborhood in downtown Philly. Unless those statistics apply to you, this study doesn't.

If you are interested download the PDF at http://works.bepress.com/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1087&context=dennis_culhane

78 posted on 10/07/2009 6:46:41 PM PDT by faucetman (Just the facts ma'am, just the facts)
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To: SparkyBass

I was going to write that but got to intellectual in my post. Now because of you I won’t have the opportunity.

Every time I see that quote it cracks me up and goes along with “studies have shown” and “experts say”.


79 posted on 10/07/2009 6:52:23 PM PDT by Vendome (Don't take life so seriously... You'll never live through it.)
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To: William Tell 2

Maybe we could hire a large research staff, do some computer modeling and come up some statistics? /s


80 posted on 10/07/2009 6:55:07 PM PDT by Vendome (Don't take life so seriously... You'll never live through it.)
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