Letter: Face the facts on gun-death statistics

On the July 25 Opinion page, I noted that all the letters addressed gun control and gun rights. Some writers offered facts and constructive advice. However, the letter written by Blaise Vanne clearly stood out. The writer cited the recent assassination of Japan's ex-PM, Shinzo Abe, as an example that strong gun restrictions don't work. Then, referring to the U.S., he states, "Truth is, with an equal number of guns, there were massively fewer shootings a generation ago. Y'know, before Big Pharma doped up our kids with SSRIs, the radical feminists destroyed fatherhood and the family was intact."

You can write the word "truth" in an opinion letter, but you should be obliged to use facts with the "truth."

A 2019 N.I.H. analysis done on the 1914-2004 federal assault weapons ban showed that mass-shooting fatalities were 70% less likely to happen. Also, a 2019 U.S. Senate committee report concluded that gun massacres fell 37% while the ban was in place and rose by 183% after the ban expired. This doesn't include all the recent mass-shootings.

It's time to face the real truth, the facts, about the gun problem in this country. Over 22 million firearms were sold nationwide in 2020. There are now 120 guns for every 100 people.

Yes, Japan's gun restrictions did not stop an assassination, but the rate of gun deaths in Japan are less than 1% per 100,00 people. Compare that to America's gun deaths epidemic.

And please, do not falsely place the blame on drugs and on women. Recurring mass-shootings are now destroying families and our communities. Face the facts. America needs to urgently work toward decreasing the number of mass-shootings and enact another assault weapons ban.

Donna Ryan

Aurora