Are Gun Owners In The Majority ?

[Treo]

The title's pretty self explanatory, I said in another thread that most Americans really don't care one way or the other about guns.

After I said it I got to thinking that I really don't know that's true so I throw out these 2 questions;

1.) Among those adults legally able to own a gun in America, are gun owners ( any type of firearm) the majority?

2.) In American households where it is legally permissable to have a gun, are there guns in the majority of those households?

 

[sqlbullet]

http://www.harrisinteractive.com/harris_poll/index.asp?PID=234

This is from 2001, but I would expect either no change or a further decline since 2001. So, we are a minority.

 

[Bill2e]

we may not be in the majority, but we are close & if we all voted together we would NEVER have to worry about Assult Weapons Bans & other stupid gun laws. But GUN Rights is not the #1 issues for all gun owners

 

[bullseye308]

Even if we were the majority by a long shot, most gun owners are too lazy to do anything about anything until after it happens, and at that point it is just complaining about how other gun owners didn't do enough when they had the chance.

 

[Yo Mama]

With the exorbinant amount of laws we have to control guns, it's no wonder we are not in the majority. That was the idea! And boy did it work.

In our history, you would be hard pressed to find a home without a gun, or someone in the home who was capable of marksmanship.

 

[moooose102]

i sincerly hope so.

 

[Calibre44]

bullseye308 wrote: Even if we were the majority by a long shot, most gun owners are too lazy to do anything about anything until after it happens, and at that point it is just complaining about how other gun owners didn't do enough when they had the chance.

Yep … that just about sums up what happened over here whenr we lost our handguns.

 

[ImARugerFan]

Out of all gun owners, there are far less who own hand guns, and also less who own 'assault' type rifles. I think the bulk of firearm owners own a shotgun or rifle or two for hunting and no more. Most of us on THR are the exception, not the rule Also as a previous poster stated, gun control isn't the only issue at stake when voting for most gun owners.

 

[BruceRDucer]

I think (and nobody cares what I think) that an attitude suggesting that nice-people-don't-have-guns more or less prevails in the U.S.

Of course, the flaw is an assumption that most people are nice. There are enough exceptions to that idea to justify more gun ownership.

Arguably, the world has become less "nice".

/

 

[Blofeld]

These polls never take in account the unspecified number of guns held by those of nefarious character. Throw thugs into the mix, and we are the majority.

 

[hso]

No, the majority of Americans do not own firearms of any type.

But, the majority of Americans are not retirement age and the AARP is a significant group with social and political influence. For political reasons any well organized group representing a large minority will have significant political influence. The disorganized nature of American gun owners as a group make us vulnerable.

 

[Treo]

But are the thugs going to register to vote, and join pro gun oranizations, and be active in protecting the RKBA?

 

[Blofeld]

No, the thugs are the group that doesn't answer polls, and waits for disarmament of those who play by the rules and answer said polls.

My point was polls focus on legit owners, and at some point are used against them, when the real threat are the illeagal guns that media never follows up on.

Thug A shoots Thug B. There is never a story on how and where Thug A got his gun. The focus will shift to the poll that shows how many people own these things that are responsible for the death of poor Thug B.

Sorry for the rant, no coffee yet.

 

[Loosedhorse]

It would be interesting to see how many usual voters or likely voters live in households with guns, and how the pollsters count folks in the military (while diverse, folks in the military are often pro-gun, and they cannot--as I understand it--have guns in certain on-base housing).

It would also be interesting to know how many gun-owners are "on the edge:" own guns because their parents did but don't have much commitment to them, don't use them much, or/and woundn't really mind if someone banned those dangerous guns: you know, the SNSs and the AWs, that criminals stuff.

 

[radioburning]

80 million gun owners in a nation of over 300 million.

Unfortunately, we are not the majority, but 80 million(and who knows how many non-owning but still pro-gun) is not something to be taken lightly by most politicians.

 

[JKimball]

Population 18 and over is about 75% of total = 225 million total.

80 Million is 35% of 225 million.

So I'm thinking if 40% of gun owners gave just one gun to somebody who isn't a gun owner, but who they respect, and who they know will appreciate it, we would have a majority.

Guns make great Christmas gifts. If you have family that is unarmed, start there. Even if it is a single shot shotgun or a milsurp that you picked up for less than $100. Let's get more people taking responsibility for their home defense and thinking of themselves as gun owners.

Makes me want to start a thread in activism.

 

[Larry E]

The percentage of gun owners, and the attitude towards gun owners probably depends on the location. For fear of being stoned or set upon by "good people" I'd never wear an NRA or shooting related hat or clothing when I lived in Seattle. In Montana, most people either don't pay any attention or ask what you shoot.

Happy to be where I am, I'm too old to argue with holier than thou fools and maintain my sweet and lovable demeanor.

 

[ranger335v]

Are we a majority? NO.

We can be a strong, vocal minority, like blacks or women's libbers, if we wish. When the last several presidential elections cut so thin the media has explained it by "the angry while male", "soccer moms", etc. What they did was distract from the fact that any committed minority can and will tilt tight elections. We have our chance in Nov. Again.

 

[Flagal]

From the female perspective we are not. I don't have one girlfriend that owns one or likes them. :-( I think that's sad, plus I don't have anyone except my hubby to go to the range with. Don't get me wrong, I love to go with him but it would be nice to go with a girlfriend.

More women are now considering owning a handgun, but not because they really enjoy them. It's more for saftey, therefor they don't shoot on a reg basis.

 

[jonmerritt]

Some of the nicest people I have met, turned out to be gun owners.

 

[Mad Man]

Some of the nicest people I have met, turned out to be gun owners.

So have some of the biggest jerks I've met.

 

[cliffy]

10 percent of America represents HUNTERS

Ten percent of America represents avid hunters, while ten percent of America represents avid anti-hunters. Who so-ever controls the most money, shall RULE, since eighty-percent of America are non-hunters but allow hunting; these are the real American folks who will decide whether avid hunters can continue to pursue their hobbies. A few slob hunters can ruin everything for all hunters. I consider these "slobs" as ANTI-hunters since they can ruin all hunting opportunities for all us considerate hunters. A tight-rope of consideration exists. A dead beast strapped to the hood of an automobile in plain sight represents an ANTI-HUNTER of the extreme. Hunters are foremost in view of all Anti-gun views and propaganda. Don't become the Anti-Target of Anti-Firearm groups thirsting to locate the "sick" antics of morbid, callous hunters. Owning firearms requires a positive perception of the eighty-percent. Many more people have own home protection than are "hunters," so hunters must protect America, by abiding by the rules to protect all arms. Firearm ownership made America Great, but losing them will make Americans SLAVES.

 

[SuperNaut]

80 million, while not a majority, is the largest subculture in the country. I like to tell people that 80 million isn't really a subculture it is just the culture. People talk about how huge the NRA is, when it "only" consist of ~4 million members. Gun culture is huge, active, and nigh to ubiquitous. No other "minority" even comes close.

 

[orionengnr]

80 million gun owners in a nation of over 300 million.

Yes, but the average household consists of what? Perhaps 3 to 4 people. And two of them may be minors.

We can safely assume that 100% of legal gun owners are 18+ years old.
So the real question is:
What percentage of the population is adult? If 70-80%, then 210-240M adults. (remember that minors don't vote...well, at least no more frequently than dead people or illegal aliens)
And then: What percentage of homes have adult gun owners? Assuming 240M adults, if they were all paired up (logical fallacy, I know) that would be 120M families, and 80M of them would have a gun in the home.

By that standard, we are a serious majority.

Once again, I know I have taken some liberties with these numbers, but it is another perspective...and not out of the realm of possibility.

That said, I introduce new shooters to the sport at every opportunity, and encourage them to become gun owners and join me at the range regularly. I have two confirmed converts this year so far, and I'm not done yet

 

[JKimball]

OK, this thread got me thinking about how we come up with these numbers. My understanding is that a random sample of a statistically significant size is surveyed, and then the results of that sample are applied to the entire country. So in the case of the Harris poll linked in post #2 they surveyed 1,014 adults and determined that 39% of U.S. households have a gun.

But what if gun owners that are surveyed don't want to talk about their gun ownership? I started a thread with a poll to get an idea of what percent of gun owners would be willing to disclose information about their gun ownership. Here are the current results:

How would you respond to a telephone survey questioning your status as a gun owner?
A) I would happily answer their questions, with nothing to hide. 3 = 4.05%
B) I’m willing to tell them I’m a gun owner, but wouldn’t want to share details of my collection. 26 = 35.14%
C) I’d rather not disclose anything about my gun ownership. 45 = 60.81%
Voters: 74.

So, conceivably, for every two gun owners that tell the surveyor about their gun ownership, there are three gun owners that won't tell them about their gun ownership. That doesn't neccesarily mean they are telling them they don't have guns, but the point is, they aren't being counted as gun owners when they are surveyed.

I'm guessing the true number of gun owners must be significantly higher than what they can come up with as a result of these polls.