Study reveals "widespread, bipartisan aversion" to neighbors owning AR-15 rifles

A recent study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reveals that across all political and social groups in the United States, there is a strong preference against living near AR-15 rifle owners and neighbors who store guns outside of locked safes. This surprising consensus suggests that when it comes to immediate living environments, Americans’ views on gun control may be less divided than the polarized national debate suggests.

The research was conducted against a backdrop of increasing gun violence and polarization on gun policy in the United States. The United States has over 350 million civilian firearms and gun-related incidents, including accidents and mass shootings, have become a leading cause of death in the country. Despite political divides, the new study aimed to explore whether there’s common ground among Americans in their immediate living environments, focusing on neighborhood preferences related to gun ownership and storage.

Smacks,
@Smacks@lemmy.world avatar

I’m fine with it as long as they’re properly trained and respect it.

Adulated_Aspersion,

Your title left out the whole “and neighbors who store their firearms unsafely”.

I would wager that the poll would have come out differently had those two vastly diverse topics been separated.

Ballistic_86,

Everyone cool with gun rights until you ask if someone they know should have access to guns with little regulation. On the abstract, preserving rights sound good. But when you stop to think of the types of people you know/have met/know about, restricting gun rights feels a bit more logical.

Corkyskog,

It’s fine, everyone I didn’t want to have a gun already has a gun. You’re more likely to be shot by a handgun anyway. My neighbor doesn’t need an AR-15, just one shot with one of his dozen hunting rifles, a few of them basically functionally the same as an AR pattern.

exanime,

“people” as in the plural of any of us are barely worth trusting with a car… And only because cars are intended for a productive purpose and many don’t have a other choice for transportation (thanks to short sighted, corrupt politicians)…

There is nobody I would trust with an AR-15

BleatingZombie,

As a gun owning liberal, what about AR-10s?

DreamlandLividity,

… gun-related incidents, including accidents and mass shootings, have become a leading cause of death in the country.

What? Not even close.

Veraxus,

Underlying Cause of Death, 2018-2022, Single Race Results (Persons aged 1-19)
#1 - Firearm

…cdc.gov/…/D158;jsessionid=E9C7B23A4CABE7AA0CDEFB…

DreamlandLividity, (edited )

Link does not work

PS: Are you including suicides? If so, than maybe it is possible in the 1-19 age group you selected but incredibly misleading and still untrue in general population.

PS2: You can link to the data by clicking save in the top right.

bradorsomething,

Hey we’re here to move the goalposts, where do you want them?

DreamlandLividity,

On the whole population where they belong instead of a carefully selected subset.

Ballistic_86,

Yeah, fuck those kids. They went out and bought those weapons! They can kill themselves if they want!

orrk,

I agree, we need to be able to threaten everyone we don’t like with execution!

steal something? DEATH SENTENCE. vandalize something? DEATH SENTENCE. made me mad? YUP THAT’S A DOUBLE DEATH SENTENCE.

an armed society is a polite society, because I can just shoot you!

/s. if anyone wasn’t able to tell

Ballistic_86,

Hell yeah! That’s why I keep a vial of anthrax on me at all times. Never know when you might need it.

You forgot to mention, pull into my driveway on accident, DEATH SENTENCE, served immediately. I need all citizens of the US to be Judge, Jury, and Executioner to feel safe.

orrk,

child ringing on doorbell? DEATH SENTENCE.

DreamlandLividity,

Oh no, kids are dying. Quickly tell everyone nothing ever happened in Tiananmen Square because spreading misinformation will help apparently.

Surely only people who want kids dead would point out misinformation. /s

Ballistic_86,

You are a sad nihilist and you have a strange way of arguing your point. Comparing a random person quoting a stat from the internet on a social media post to the CCP covering up Tiananmen is so interesting. It takes what-about-ism to a whole other level. It wasn’t even misinformation, it was just a hastily googled fact from some random person on Lemmy.

Hard to believe you wouldn’t go with the usual, “What about cars? What about being fat?” As if any of that would be relevant to the shocking stats for gun violence deaths of children and young adults.

DreamlandLividity,

… and you have a strange way of arguing your point.

That’s the issue, I am not arguing any point other than the main post is misleading. US gun laws are absolutely stupid. You desperately need a reform. I never disagreed with that. Sure, more people die of heart disease but that is much harder to fix than gun laws.

You are just projecting shit onto my comments that was never there and then get confused when I don’t disagree in the way you expect.

chiliedogg,

The goalposts have already been massively moved.

The post is about AR-15s. All rifles combined are used less than 3% of firearm homicides, which combined make up approximately 1/3rd of firearm deaths.

By including all firearm deaths in a discussion about AR-15s we’re suggesting they’re 100 times deadlier than they are.

ARs don’t actually have a huge impact. It’s why the sunset of the AWB was kinda ignored. Every study of the AWB’s impact showed no statistically-significant impact from the AWB, so there wasn’t much effort to keep it going at the time.

The guns that are involved in almost all homicides, suicides, and accidents aren’t ARs. They’re pistols. When the AWB expired, the gun control crowd focused on them almost exclusively. But then around 2009 messaging suddenly changed and ARs were the most evil thing in the universe again.

In 2008, the Supreme Court ruled in DC v Heller that handguns were protected. Suddenly gun control groups had a problem. They couldn’t ban handguns without a constitutional amendment, and they needed to justify their existence.

So they changed messaging and started going after ARs bigtime. They created a political climate that drove unhinged crazy people to go buy ARs to spite the Brady Foundation, and the AR became the most popular firearm platform in the country.

Then, wonder of wonders, the most popular gun was used in more crimes.

It’s like saying F-150s are more dangerous than Cybertrucks because more F-150s get in wrecks.

bloodfart,

Iirc that dataset does include suicides and accidental discharges.

paholg,

It says “a leading cause”, not “the leading cause”. Depending on how long your list of leading causes is, anything could qualify.

I skimmed the source they linked, and it lists guns as the leading cause of death for ages 1-19. I did not see an overall list.

I would agree that a more carefully phrased sentence would have been better and less misleading.

Link to source: …jhu.edu/…/2020-gun-deaths-in-the-us-4-28-2022-b.…

DreamlandLividity,

It says “a leading cause”, not “the leading cause”. Depending on how long your list of leading causes is, anything could qualify.

English is not my native language but this sounds like it should not be a thing. Sounds like it was made for con artists…

Silentiea,
@Silentiea@lemmy.blahaj.zone avatar

Basically yes. It’s at best a way to hedge their language and avoid being technically wrong, but in practice it can certainly be used in quite misleading ways.

I would say that in my opinion “a leading cause” would need to at least be in the top half, but it could possibly be anything but last since it’s “leading” last place…

Plibbert,

Am I reading this data sheet correctly? Did they seriously use a data set of 2100 people and call that “widespread”?

dan, (edited )
@dan@upvote.au avatar

A random sample of 2100 people is often sufficient to get a statistical significant result for a population of around 50 million with a 5% margin of error.

I’d maybe add a few thousand more for a study that represents the entire USA, but 2100 isn’t a small sample size.

Udbdjdoakay666,

America fuck yeah

slickgoat,

The comments couldn’t get more American if it was a competition on making American commentary.

I understand both side of the argument, but at the same time I get neither. American cultural identity in relation to firearms is unique in the Western world. Guns have transcended rights and wrongs. People hunt. People use guns recreationally. People cosplay warriors. Some people use guns for bad reasons. Most people never cause the slightest harm. But in any event, culturally, guns occupy a political position not usually seen in the first world.

I’m not even sure what I am trying to say? I do know this, the debate will never end because the two different positions are completely contradictory and all compromise is effectively lost. I’d be interested in hearing a solution that both sides could live with. It would be a doozy.

nxdefiant,

You’ve succinctly defined the problem, and the only solution is a cultural shift away from the norm. Hopefully that shift will be peaceful, which will most likely only happen if it’s gradual.

UnderpantsWeevil,
@UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world avatar

the only solution is a cultural shift

The culture is always shifting. I would not say it has shifted in the direction of safety. On the one hand, you have horders who believe its their civil right to stuff their house with tank shells and miniguns and you can’t tell them what to do. On the other, you’ve got police who will start firing blindly in all directions when an acorn drops, because they’re so terrified of anyone else owning a gun.

Together, these seem to suggest a cultural shift towards “You’re allowed to own a gun but if you make me scared I’m allowed to shoot you” as a middle ground.

nxdefiant,

Yeah, the culture in this case is a glacier. The cultural shift is going to leave gouges in the earth.

vaultdweller013,

In all honesty if someone has tank shells and a minigun they probably have a shit tonne of permits. Either that or they dont have any dogs so the ATF doesnt care.

mctoasterson,

The hilarious part of this is that statistically, many Americans have AR-15s and other rifles sitting somewhere within a few hundred yards of them. There are countless millions of them.

This would be like polling people about their fears surrounding theoretical concealed weapons when, statistically, they just got home from the grocery store or gas station and there were probably 10 people there carrying guns without incident, and they just didn’t know about it.

Katana314,

I may be unaware of the rats living in a small nest inside of a drainspout near me, but that still doesn’t mean rats are “okay” or “harmless”. So this isn’t quite a gotcha about their normality.

justabigemptyhole,
@justabigemptyhole@lemmy.world avatar

I have a problem with being compared to vermin for the rifle that sits unloaded in a safe until I take it to the range

Katana314,

I have a problem with living near a AR-15 owner and rolling the dice about how honestly responsible every member of their household is, but it seems like neither of us is getting a simple solution.

Every parent of every school shooter would also claim to be a responsible gun owner. Who wouldn’t?

justabigemptyhole,
@justabigemptyhole@lemmy.world avatar

Yea I really don’t care if you’re “rolling the dice.” Laughable hyperbole. Most people are demonstrably unsafe drivers, but I don’t revel in imaginary victimhood and try to take people’s cars away. As a great man once said, “Life sucks, get a fucking helmet.” Or in your case, a plate carrier. I’m going to keep stacking ammo and guns and not shoot anyone, not because murder is wrong, but out of spite for anti-gunners. Anyway Trump sucks. Hail Satan.

Katana314,

“Not caring” about other people’s safety is definitely characteristic of gun owners, so full consistency there.

yuri,

Same with the fucken “Most people are demonstrably unsafe drivers”. Shit REEKS of self aggrandizement, but then again most conservatives seem to anymore.

justabigemptyhole,
@justabigemptyhole@lemmy.world avatar

Not a conservative, but nice try

yuri,

However you self identify, you share a lot of the same red flags.

justabigemptyhole,
@justabigemptyhole@lemmy.world avatar

You should get out and meet people and see the full spectrum there is, instead of wasting your razor sharp wits on the internet. I think you’d be surprised to find the cartoonish spectres you conjure to rail against are hard to find.

tacosplease,

In the comparison above, the rifles would be the rats… not you.

I haven’t seen a single rifle say it was offended by that statement.

Ballistic_86,

While it sounds like you safely own a firearm, letting you do that means we let mentally ill people, irresponsible parents, and whoever feels like also have access.

Sorry to say, but I would take your guns away from you 1000x if it meant taking them away from people who cannot own them safely.

justabigemptyhole,
@justabigemptyhole@lemmy.world avatar

You’ll never get the chance.

glouriousgouda,

US citizens be like: “It’s fine with us, buchy’all needta keep all that over there!”

😀🤷‍♂️😅

kerrigan778,

If your suburban/urban neighbor knows what model of gun you have and you aren’t hunting/shooting buddies then you’re doing something horribly wrong and are definitely a scary neighbor regardless of what type of gun it is.

PopcornTin,

This is a more of a study on the public’s opinion of this model gun. It gets a bad rap in media, so people who don’t know anything else about it don’t want anything to do with it.

Until they need somebody with one…

vaultdweller013,

Ya know you were making a fair point right up until that last sentence. While yes the reason the AR-15 is so feared is cause its super common meaning that by sheer statistics id expect it to be used in shootings fairly frequently, I dont want some random sonovabitch coming near me with any gun. Not because I fear guns, but because most folks are fucking stupid and unless ive got some type of guarantee they know what their doing im assuming they are a fuck up.

I apply the same rule to power tools and mobile industrial equipment.

BeMoreCareful,

Taking the shotty for a walk.

kerrigan778,

As you do

dual_sport_dork,
@dual_sport_dork@lemmy.world avatar

[Whistling “farmer in the dell.”]

RememberTheApollo_,

I don’t necessarily care if my neighbor owns an AR rifle. I do care what kind of person they are if they own one, or other firearms.

Are they one of the crowd that treats firearms with the careless disregard of a fashion accessory? Do they have to accessorized it to the utmost tacticool possible? Do they have a private arsenal? Do they leave it lying around in their home or vehicle, or any other firearm for that matter, unsecured? Do they tie guns to their personal or political identity?

All of these things are negatives of varying severity, especially any failure to secure the guns and tying gun to their identity. Why those? Guns get stolen from homes and vehicles all the time and then are used in crimes while the gun owner washes their hands of the consequences of their lazy storage. Unsecured guns are used in accidental shootings by kids or others. And identity tied to firearms is just an indication of inflexibility and possible political extremism.

rottingleaf,

Are they one of the crowd that treats firearms with the careless disregard of a fashion accessory?

This. I’m fine with pro-gun people who are responsible gun owners. I feel weird about people who want to tighten regulations and have guns, but if they are responsible gun owners, then it’s fine.

Pro-gun people who treat it as a toy or as a compensation for their dick size are dangerous, and scary, but not in the cool way.

People who are for tightening regulations etc, but own guns and treat them like toys are the lowest of the low, though. Both dangerous and miserable.

vaultdweller013,

People who play with firearms are dangerous idiots who need to be disarmed immediately, with an axe since it should be enough for a quick and clean cut.

drdiddlybadger,
@drdiddlybadger@pawb.social avatar

Oh yeah you can exercise your rights somewhere else. Somewhere waaaay in another county.

I imagine people (in the US) would be less itchy about neighbors with guns if everyone had bullet resistant walls and there were fewer accidental discharges around.

GiddyGap,

I think people would be less itchy about neighbors with guns if less school children were being massacred.

drdiddlybadger,
@drdiddlybadger@pawb.social avatar

That would definitely help.

SeattleRain,

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