Posted on 07/28/2015 5:15:25 AM PDT by rellimpank
Americans are increasingly convinced that owning a gun makes them safer.
A new Rasmussen poll found that an overwhelming majority of Americans (68%) "feel safer in a neighborhood where guns are allowed." And a series of polls by Gallup, the Pew Research Center and ABC News and The Washington Post show similar results.
But it isn't just what people say. They are clearly putting more stock in self-defense. Since 2007, the number of concealed-handgun permits has soared, from 4.6 million to 12.8 million. A new study by the Crime Prevention Research Center finds that a record 1.7 million permits have been issued in just the past year, a 15.4% increase.
Nationwide, 5.2% of adults have a permit.
But in five states, more than 10% of adults now have concealed-carry permits. In some counties around the United States, more than one in five adults are licensed to carry. In much of the country, someone among theater-goers or restaurant customers is likely to be legally carrying a permitted concealed handgun.
But even these numbers don't do full justice to the change that has taken place.
Recently, Maine became the 10th state to allow concealed carrying without a permit in all or almost all of the state. Kansas and Mississippi also made the change on July 1. In these states, we no longer know how many people are legally carrying guns, and thus the 12.8 million figure is clearly an underestimation.
Women increasingly carry guns and hold more than a quarter of concealed-handgun permits. Since 2007, the number of permits among men has grown by 156%, and among women by 270%.
(Excerpt) Read more at jsonline.com ...
—ping—
Slight correction ...more LEGAL guns equals less crime.
Hope you stocked up on bottled water Crim. here we go again.
An armed man is a free man.
An armed society is a polite society. Manners are good when one may have to back up his acts with his life.
Robert A. Heinlein
What exactly is a “legal” gun in second amendment terms?
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