.0001% in today's world is wrong, but we are talking about the U.S. People still need to hunt in some countries and some places in this country. But yeah, having a gun in the household is problematic and yeah, accidents happen.
Please note the following from Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number_of_ ... by_countryAfter the U.S., you have Switzerland, Finland, Uruguay, Sweden, Norway, France, Canada and Iceland with high rates of gun ownership. The also have much lower crime rates by comparison.
The issue is much more complicated than statistical gun ownership. The type of guns, manner of carry, demographic mixture in a given area, a whole bunch of factors enter in. Switzerland has a very low gun crime rate. Switzerland also has a very low percentage of non-white, non-christian residents by comparison, and a very high level of education and standard of living. Likewise in Germany, Sweden and other countries.
Switzerland also had a standing reserve that up until recently required most adult citizens to participate in not only home defense but also national defense, and automatic weapons were issued to people in the reserves and kept in the home. Gun training was mandatory. In Israel, a standing reserve is also a big part of their national defense. Guess what? More people are still killed by drug overdose than guns or autos in the U.S..
http://townhall.com/tipsheet/danieldohe ... s-n1687973 Yet prescription drugs don't seem to be on anybody's radar for more regulation and oversight.
I'm with Thumpalumpacus. I own guns. I also have training and knowledge of their use. He does as well, he was in the military. But I know what is useful and what isn't, what works and what doesn't. Gun ownership must include gun responsibility and training in the proper use of it. A shotgun up close and personal is a defensive weapon. It is not an assault weapon and doesn't have sniping capability. Far more people, intentionally or otherwise, are killed by pistols than shotguns. And having an assault rifle makes no sense to me overall, because they are not designed as hunting weapons.