Record gun sales followed by record low accidental deaths

In 2016, there were approximately 27 million (27,000,000) firearms sold. In 2015, 23 million guns changed hands. If the anti-gun narrative held true, it would stand to reason that accidental gun deaths climbed accordingly.

But they didn't, at least not according to the statistics from the National Safety Council (NSC).

Their injury report for 2015 has accidental deaths by guns at an all time low -489. Statistically, that's 0.3% of all deaths. That's fewer than any year since 1903- the first time those statistics were collected.

There are lots of arguments that could be made against gun regulations, but the National Shooting Sports Foundation puts forward what I think is the best possible explanation for the rise in ownership and the drop in accidental deaths: education about fun, safety and responsibility with firearms is paying off.

"The vast majority of the 100 million American firearms owners meet the serious responsibilities which come with firearms ownership," says NSSF President and CEO Steve Sanetti, "they store their firearms safely when not in use, and follow the basic rules of firearms safety when handling them."

That responsibility of ownership explains the drop in accidents. The rise of activities that highlight the fun of firearms and the growing awareness of personal responsibility explains the overall growth of shooting sports.

Republished from The Outdoor Wire.