Gun Control Myths

Click on the hyperlinks below to read short, concise answers to these commonly heard myths about gun control.

Myth No. 1: Gun Control Saves Lives

Myth No. 2: Handguns should be illegal because studies have shown they are 43 times more likely to be used against your own family than a criminal.

Myth No. 3: The family gun is more likely to kill you or someone you know than to kill in self-defense.

Myth No. 4: President Clinton Said "13 kids a day are killed by guns."

Myth No. 5: Wouldn't We All Be Safer If There Were Fewer Guns?

Myth No. 6: Friends or relatives are the most likely killers

Myth No. 7: We live in a civilized society--we don't need guns

Myth No. 8: Guns should be banned because they kill thousands of people each year.

Myth No. 9: We need to do something about the increasing access to firearms

Myth No. 10: When One Is Attacked, Passive Behavior Is the Safest Approach

Myth No. 11: If our representatives are passing gun control laws it must be because a majority of citizens is demanding that.  So, if a majority of the people decides owning a gun is no longer a right, maybe it's time to change the Constitution.

Myth No. 12: Individual citizens do not have the right to keep and bear arms because the Supreme Court has not yet ruled on the Second Amendment.

Myth No. 13: Doesn't the Second Amendment only guarantee the right of the states to maintain militias?

Myth No. 14: The Militia Mentioned in the Second Amendment Has Been Replaced by the National Guard

Myth No. 15: This is America. The government is never going to turn into a tyranny.

Myth No. 16: If the government uses the military and police to confiscate our guns, we can't fight them and win.

Myth No. 17: The United States Has Such a High Murder Rate Because Americans Own So Many Guns

Myth No. 18: In countries like Japan and England, where handguns are banned or heavily regulated, the murder rate is a fraction of what it is in the U.S.

Myth No. 19: Only the police are trained enough and responsible enough to carry guns.

Myth No. 20: The police do a fine job of protecting us.

Myth No. 21: Most police personnel favor gun control and they know more about crime control...

Myth No. 22: It’s too dangerous for the average citizen to try to apprehend criminals and the police are there to protect us.

Myth No. 23: Allowing people to carry concealed weapons in public will mean automobile accidents turn into shootouts.

Myth No. 24: Realistically, if you are robbed, carjacked, or attacked, you won’t have enough time to pull your gun out, anyway.

Myth No. 25: The average citizen with a gun is a bigger threat to himself and others than the criminal is.

Myth No. 26: No One Really Needs an Assault Weapon

Myth No. 27:  Innocent People Are Killed by Stray Bullets

Myth No. 28: Guns Will Make My Kids Glorify Violence

Myth No. 29: Guns Are Inherently Unsafe and Should Be Made to Conform to Product Liability Laws

Myth No. 30: Guns cause so many injuries every year that cities were forced to sue gun manufacturers to get back emergency room and medical costs.

Myth No. 31: Firearms Aren't Worth It Because of the Medical Costs They Cause

Myth No. 32: What’s wrong with limiting purchases to one gun a month? Why would you need to buy more than 12 guns a year, anyway?

Myth No. 33: What’s wrong with a short 5-day waiting period so the authorities can conduct a background check?

Myth No. 34: I’m not saying they should be banned, but what’s wrong with registering handguns?

Myth No. 35:  We license cars, marriages, attorneys, doctors, dentists, even hairstylists; why not license people who want to own handguns?

Myth No. 36: There's no harm in requiring a license before a person can buy a firearm.

Myth No. 37: Handgun Control, the Violence Policy Center, and the major news media say they don't want to ban all guns, just the bad ones that criminals use. What's wrong with that?

Myth No. 38: The fact so many prominent people are against citizens owning guns must mean they're right and I'm wrong.


Brass.gif (2059 bytes)To the Resource Center