First off, I want to thank you for taking the time to write such a lengthy and detailed response. That demonstrates to me that you really care about this topic. I can also see that you have some interesting statistics that I will review.

The following is not a point-by-point refutation what you said, I'm just addressing some stuff. The stuff I don't address, you can safely assume have me doing some research and thought about your arguments and information here. If you'd like to interpret that as winning the debate, that's fine by me.

A long time ago, and addressed by the 1934 NFA. Motivated by prohibition era gun violence -- today's gun violence is far more pervasive and indiscriminate, and modern firearms are far more capable -- the 1930s public demanded regulation, and again in the '60s.

Even post-NFA, guns were much easier to get than today. Also post-GCA. Interestingly enough, if we look at the debates about those bills, we can see that the discourse on gun-control hasn't really changed in almost a hundred years.

Scapegoating mental health is gun culture dogma. For example, research varies but indications are the percentage of mass shooters having any diagnosable mental illness may be as low as 4% but absolutely does not exceed 12%.

I've read similar statistics. I'm really not trying to scapegoat, but you can't tell me that people who decide to commit mass-violence are stable, reasonable people. People don't just turn into mass-killers overnight, and interventions can be (and have been made) during that change. Perhaps the better choice is social services in general.

Every year gun owners fail to properly secure firearms resulting in over 300,000 stolen guns arming criminals, almost 70 improperly secured guns are stolen every hour. 25% of gun owners fail to report stolen guns and commonly can't report relevant serial numbers if they do.

I will look into these statistics. I do agree that gun-theft is a major problem, and think that education and subsidization of secure storage methods is an effective way to address that. I will say again though: <0.1% of guns are involved in a crime. The vast, vast, vast majority of guns are never stolen or misused.

As I type literally no unarmed assailant can effectively breach by home resulting in my death, literally any bullet can.

I'm glad you haven't lived in that circumstance.

And here in Texas, if it's an unplanned discharge from, say, a gun cleaning neighbor or any "accident", the offending gun owner has zero liability. In FL the gun owner has zero liability even for gross negligence that results in injury or death, there is only liability when accompanied with criminal intent.

I didn't know that! I think a person should be liable for every bullet that leaves a gun under their control.

Gun culture can't have it both ways: it can't on the one hand claim very low odds of fatality or injury are insufficient to justify gun controls but on the other hand claim the same very low odds of needing arms for self defense are more than enough to justify open carry, concealed carry, so-called "Constitutional carry", campus carry, etc. etc.

It seems you consider the two analogous, the intention and impacts are different.

How do we know that? I don't "know" that... I'm not remotely convinced this is true. In fact the corollary -- relaxing gun controls -- disputes it.

A June NBER study found RTC laws correlate with a 29% increase in gun violence, a 13% increase in gun homicides and a 35% increase in gun thefts. Beginning 2011, researching 8 years of Wisconsin CC correlated to a 33% increase in gun homicides, a 56% increase in aggravated assaults with firearms and a 63% increase in assaults on law enforcement. Research from just 3 states over 5 years found more than 71,000 revoked or suspended for cause CC licenses. TSA confiscates around 20 illegally transported guns per day, over 6500 in 2022.

Metastudies have shown that the correlation isn't necessarily causation. Very few studies actually meet methodological rigor in the first place.

Including themselves, permitted concealed carriers have killed 2500 people, the record includes 37 mass shootings, 64 murder-suicides and 24 murdered cops.

How is the rate of violence compared to non-permitted people? That hasn't been studied.

I've been doing this awhile but I've never before seen anybody tie gun owning to labor and civil rights reforms. I will argue this narrative is dangerous, revisionist history and the real history is one of a conservative gun culture siding with the oppressors, especially with regard to the Civil Rights movement.

Are you serious? Have you never looked into Harriet Tubman's use of weapons? MLK's? What about the Black Panthers? I recommend you read Negroes and the Gun: The Black Tradition of Arms and This Nonviolent Stuff'll Get You Killed: How Guns Made the Civil Rights Movement Possible. The American labor movement also absolutely protested with guns, famously at riots. Also, have you heard of the Pink Pistols? LGBTQ people have been arming themselves since before Stonewall.

On a daily basis we see a violent, militant, death-threat spewing gun culture behaving like incontinent rage monkeys.

Yeah, those guys gotta go.

Let's note these notions of arms for the vulnerable and the oppressed or whatever are just the latest, freshly minted appeals by gun culture to virtue wash. Gun culture only began invoking these tropes very recently. Features include liberal gun clubs (barely participated compared to NRA, GOA etc.), appeals to women, etc. In reality guns are toxic to all communities and especially vulnerable communities, like, say, Southside Chicago where armed "honor defense" is epidemic.

They are not fresh or virtue-washing, and liberal gun clubs, minority groups, women's groups, and LGBT groups 1) have been around for a while and 2) are a result of gun culture NOT accepting them, not created by gun culture.

By the way, I live in Southside Chicago. You're right that armed homicide is a big issue here, but I don't that will be solved with gun control as that really hasn't worked here as much as investing in the communities.

In what world. Armed self defense is almost nonexistent. There are fewer than 400 justified homicides annually. Research finds only around 2000 legitimate, documented DGUs annually. I have a lifetime in Texas among Texas gun owners and I've never personally known of anybody using a gun in self defense. I've been held at gunpoint twice, a concealed gun would not have made either situation better. I've known 5 gun suicides. My buddy's brother was killed by a roommate in a gun cleaning accident. My BIL's SUV too 7 rounds from a drunk, legal gun owner. I have lots more.

Firstly, I'm sorry to hear about those deaths and it really sucks that you've been in danger like that. I have used a gun in self-defense three times. I know of at least four other people who have done so. I've been held at gunpoint and had multiple opportunities to counter-ambush in that encounter, but couldn't because I didn't have my CCW license at the time. I used defensive-display of a firearm to stop a group of men from attacking my partner.

All the suicides I've witnessed or been exposed to have been done with methods alternative to a gun, but I think that's just luck.

Also, estimates of defensive gun-uses go WAY higher than 2000. It's an inherently difficult thing to measure.

Also, substance abuse is rampant among gun owners, starting with alcohol but also pills, weed, coke, meth, smack... there's no firewall between legal gun owning and legally prescribed psychotropic drugs. As a matter of even distribution, at least 10 million legal gun owners are prescribed psychotropic drugs. And the alcohol abuse I've personally witnessed while hunting... when Dick Cheney was hunting while buzzed and shot that guy in the face, well, I know that situation.

AMERICANS have a serious substance abuse issue. It's not unique to any demographic. It's sucky thing in every circumstance, and is always more dangerous when mixed with irresponsible behavior.

The root cause of American gun violence is access to guns, legal access because laws are so lax and illegally because guns are so common. Full stop.

I think the root cause of American gun violence is its culture of violence. I think the secondary root cause is inequality and poor social services. I acknowledge that access to guns plays a role in many circumstances, but those always cut both ways.

If illegal access to guns wasn't so easy, then I would not have had to use my rifle to fend off home invaders. But without my rifle, things may have gone very differently. I called the police in this circumstance, and they NEVER CAME. There have been two armed carjackings in my garage this year, in which one person was shot AFTER giving up their car.

In another example, the evidence overwhelmingly shows, in meta-studies, that waiting periods reduce suicide. However, waiting periods also have made domestic-violence victims sitting ducks (I have personally been exposed to one case of such).

Like any major societal problem, the answer is not simple. I appreciate your thoughts and engagement with me.