Slave Power, Gun Power

This statistic struck me hard.  Gun ownership in America is actually very narrow: 78% of Americans own zero guns, 19% own 50% of the gun. 

And 3% own the other 50%.  There could be 300,000,000 guns in circulation in this country, and 3% of the population is about 9,700,000 people who own 150,000,000 gun.  That's 15 guns each, on average, for that 3% of people who own 50% of the guns.

The reason super majorities of Americans support common sense gun regulations is because super majorities of Americans don't own guns.  Our entire national debate is catered to indulging the 22% of Americans who do own guns.  Even more so, our debate seems to be beholden to the 3% of the population who hoard guns like totems or precious gems.

This reminds me of the debate over slavery leading up to the Civil War.  A majority of white Southerners did not own slaves, in fact that number approached...wait for it...75%.  Of the remaining 25% of Southerners who did own slaves, 2% of those families (or 0.5% of all white Southerners) owned more than 50 slaves - in other words, the large plantations that we typically think of when we think of the antebellum South.

The evil genius of the plantation elite was in getting common whites - even the majority who didn't own slaves - to identify with their economic and social agenda.  To some degree, we see the same thing today.  Because everything is partisan, once your side picks a side in the gun control debate, that position is locked in by partisan loyalty.  By framing the debate over guns in apocalyptic terms of lost liberty, the NRA/GOP has been able to stifle any debate over even widely agreed upon safety measures.  "Sure, you may not own a gun, but why should you let OBAMA take your non-existent gun away?  Why do you hate freedom?"

There is another point, about how modern day gun violence correlates with the historical presence of race-based slavery.  Wherever you find high murder rates, you typically see the legacy of slavery.  Thus, the US has a high murder rate and Canada doesn't, despite many cultural similarities.

When we talk about restricting the availability of guns, we aren't talking to the 78%, we aren't talking to the 19% who own a rifle and a shotgun for different types of hunting.  We are talking to the 3% of Americans who are armed to the freaking teeth.

We are talking to Stephen Paddock.