Gun owners in the US are predominately male, Republican, and white.

[pnwmom]

Some interesting statistics below. I wonder why white people are almost twice as likely to own a gun?

According to a 2005 Gallup poll:

http://www.gallup.com/poll/20098/gun-ownership-use-america.aspx

Nearly half of men (47%) report personal ownership, compared with just 13% of women.

Americans aged 18 to 29 are slightly less likely than those who are older to be gun owners. Only one in five 18- to 29-year-olds (21%) say they own a gun, while 32% of 30- to 49-year-olds and 31% of those aged 50 and older report ownership.

Roughly one in three Americans who live in the Midwest (34%) and the South (36%) say they personally own a gun. Ownership is lower among those residing in the East (22%) and the West (23%).

Forty-one percent of Republicans say they own a gun, compared with 27% of independents and 23% of Democrats.

One in three whites (33%) own a gun, while only about one in six nonwhites (18%) do.

[villager]

1. "I'm the NRA," indeed...

n/t

[gejohnston]

25. self delete

[Euromutt]

55. FWIW, I didn't choose to be white and male

That's just how my mother popped me out. But despite being a gun owner and--gasp!--a member of the NRA, I don't feel much urge to vote GOP. There's just something about the anti-choice and anti-LGBT rights their candidates seem to consistently adopt that sticks in my craw...

[The Straight Story]

2. And what percent of male/r/white use them in crimes? (nt)

[pnwmom]

3. Gallup didn't ask them.

:shrug:

[The Straight Story]

7. Well, I am not sure of the point then

Is someone trying to correlate gun ownership to crime and race?

I could say that 100% of the governments of the world own guns - but not sure what that means.

This study can say mostly whites own guns here (well, legally - since I am not sure how easy it is to tragic illegal guns) but I am not sure that really means anything at all....

Is it supposed to mean something? Am I missing something?

[pnwmom]

10. I think the huge disparity between men and women owning guns

is interesting, since I have so often seen men make the argument that women need guns to protect themselves against rape. It seems that very few women agree.

But everyone will have their own reaction to these statistics. I just thought the numbers were interesting.

[S_B_Jackson]

31. If my wife is any indication...

much of the difference in gender's responses may lay in the fact that women are less likely to discuss their gun ownership. My wife would simply have replied "No, I don't own any firearms." as she has in a couple of surveys that have called our home over the last 6 years. This despite the fact that she has carried a firearm with her for nearly 20 years - 4 years before the passage of CCW in TX (not that a woman would have had much chance of getting convicted anyway).

Myself? If I'm confident that the polling entity is legitimate, I'd have no problem admitting to ownership of a shotgun.

[spin]

34. Many concealed weapons instructors are reporting a significant increase ...

in the number of women who are attending their classes.

Rise in firearms use by women a national trend
Sunday, April 17, 2011
By Shannon M. Nass

There is a new trend among women and it has nothing to do with high heels or hemlines. Conversations about caliber and kick back are swirling as across the country, the number of female shooters is on the rise.

"More and more women are coming into gun ownership and the number of women participating in recreational shooting has risen exponentially," said Rachel Parsons of the National Rifle Association, which will hold its annual national convention April 29-May 1 at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, Downtown. Included on the schedule is a women-only NRA Pistol Instructor Training class. (Registration ended Friday.)

The National Shooting Sports Foundation confirms the trend. In 2009, the last year for which the foundation has statistics, gun store owners reported a 73 percent increase in female customers. And while many of the women were using the guns for hunting -- there was a 28.5 percent increase in firearms bought for that purpose -- the number of women buying guns for personal defense increased 83 percent.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11107/1139929-358.stm#ixzz1MTqgO0gL

Almost one out of every five concealed weapons permit holders in Florida are female.



source: http://licgweb.doacs.state.fl.us/stats/cw_holders.html

[pnwmom]

43. Sarah Palin's a great role model. n/t

[Katya Mullethov]

48. She has always appeared , to me , to be made entirely of plastic

But Sue Hupp , now there's a role model .

[DWC]

61. Suzanna Hupp is amazing

Her book, From Lubys to the Legislature, is a must read for anyone concerned with the question of armed self defense.

Semper Fi,

[cleanhippie]

54. You really think so?

Or was that just another of your asinine posts?

[gejohnston]

67. you mean Sarah

"daddy has to load and chamber rounds while I ask if it kicks" Palin?? She knows guns like she knows Korean history.

[cleanhippie]

36. No, you do NOT see that argument made, and your attempt to twist it is doshonest.

The argument is that women should be ABLE to CHOOSE to protect themselves with a gun, not that they NEED one.


Despicable dishonesty. Even in your OP title. :puke:

[pnwmom]

42. Despicable dishonesty? Yeah, right. Talk about splitting hairs.

Funny I don't see WOMEN talking about using guns to protect themselves against rape. Just gun-loving MEN.


http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=118&topic_id=416652&mesg_id=416657

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=118&topic_id=416652&mesg_id=416787

[cleanhippie]

53. Splitting hairs? It changes the entire MEANING of your argument.

And your links prove me right.

Maybe people having the right to carry on campus would cut way down on those rapes.

but I will recommend my daughter to go to a school that respects the right of a woman to defend herself.



Not sure how you got "all women NEED a gun to protect themselves" from these posts, as they both CLEARLY state it is about the RIGHT to carry a gun for protection.

Splitting hairs? Hardly. And now you are trying to shift the attention to WHO is saying this? Really? If you are not happy with the amount of women advocating for their RIGHT to defend themselves, perhaps you need to reevaluate YOUR position on the subject.

[Brickbat]

4. It's that kind of info that makes me want to get one.

[pnwmom]

6. Appeals to your competitive instinct? n/t

[Brickbat]

11. No, protection.

Also, I want to take up hunting.

[ileus]

30. Hunting and enjoying nature go hand in hand....I just started back last year.

I'd forgotten how enjoyable being out in nature is, and this time I was able to enjoy it with my kids.

[Brickbat]

32. We live in the woods, we love venison, and we have way too many deer here.

I just need to come to turns with field dressing...:rofl:

[lawodevolution]

many white republican

Gun owners are aware they are heavily armed compared to other racial and political groups and would like to keep it that way. Of all the people Ive introduced to guns by taking them to the range never once did I take a white person, although I would if the opportunity came up but I don't go to the range with gun owners and I never met a white person who didn't own guns already. Also every time I go to the range I take at least one newbie, and I feel no desire to go unless I'm taking someone. You should see the looks we get when I take a middle eastern person to the range.

[Union Scribe]

5. Many minorities live in cities where the governments

make it difficult for the law-abiding to keep and/or bear arms, so this statistic isn't terribly surprising.

[lawodevolution]

8. These polls are very poor at determining gun ownership rate as many

Gun owners refuse to answer or will respond with a no.

[pintobean]

13. *ring* - Hello? - Hi, this is Gallop. Do you own a gun?

No. *click*
Back to cleaning the guns.

[pnwmom]

14. Gallup typically asks these questions within a larger survey.

By the time these questions come, the interviewee is already cooperating.

[pintobean]

15. No shit.

but many gun owners don't "cooperate" with people asking about their guns. It would certainly end the conversation with me.

[pnwmom]

17. I used to work for a major survey research firm.

You'd be surprised at the questions most people are willing to answer, once they get over the initial hurdle.

[lawodevolution]

20. I used to follow a pediatrician a long time ago and I noticed that all Mexican parents said no to

The infamous gun question and after getting a no the pediatrition would go on to the next issue. Being from a large Mexican family I started asking around about who owned guns in the family and found that everyone did and our friends and even random people that I'd talk to, so based on my experience a lot of Mexicans are gun owners but in the pediatrics clinic none of them are gun owners and none of them are advised on gun safety. I think Mexican gun owners have a distrust of authority figures that stems from past racism and which will take a long time to resolve.

[pipoman]

28. along with most other minority groups.

[eqfan592]

33. I don't doubt it...

...but many gun owners tend to be disinclined to trust anybody calling them up asking them about their firearms, due to the at times contentious political climate. I've seen many speak of times when pollsters called them and the negative responses they gave, so my guess is that the poll numbers are likely somewhat skewed (this is not a criticism of the polling agency, as I don't see how they might allow for this).

[Euromutt]

58. Sure they might answer, but how do you know they're not lying?

I'll be blunt, if someone were to cold-call me and ask, even as part of a wider survey, whether I owned firearms, I wouldn't even go for the "prefer not to answer" option; I'd lie through my teeth and tell them "no." And I'm no aberration; a study done in 1995 found that 10.3% of respondents known to hold hunting licenses, and 12.7% of respondents known to have a handgun registered to them, denied owning firearms when interviewed (Rafferty, Ann P. et al. "Validity of a household gun question in a telephone survey." Public Health Reports. May-June 1995 v110 n3 p282(7)).

Fact is, gun owners tend to be cagey about the fact that they are gun owners, for any number of reasons.

[RSillsbee]

59. I don't care what you ask me prior

When you ask if I own guns I'm going to tell you no and I will very likely be wearing one when I say it.

[jpak]

9. Who knew?

:rofl:

[one-eyed fat man]

12. Where are illegal gun owners in your survey?

[Philippine expat]

16. Whats wrong with this survey?

1. Would illegal gun owners acknowledge they own guns?
2. How many legal gun owners lie because the legal ownership of weapons is no one elses business?
3. Are any polls to be believed?
4. What is the point of this poll?

[pnwmom]

18. Do you think women are more likely to lie about gun ownership than men?

I think it is interesting that men are 3.5 times more likely than women to profess owning a gun. And I find it entirely believable that only about one in ten women personally owns a gun. I've never known a woman who did -- even though I've known plenty of women whose husbands did.

[Philippine expat]

19. Not more likely but as likely n/t

[lawodevolution]

21. Women often pass the attribute of "gun owner" to the husband.

My wife does not consider herself to be a gun owner although there is a gun with a pink grip in the safe for her. She fully supports gun rights but she defers the gun ownership part to me and leaves me to maintain her gun.

[jpak]

22. Yes they must be subservient to their husbands as the Lord demands

:puke:

yup

[badtoworse]

23. Pointless drivel, as per the usual

[gejohnston]

27. Yeah I like to see some one pull some misogynistic shtik where i'm from

[pnwmom]

39. What is the deal with the pink guns?

A pretty gun? A feminine gun? This is ludicrous.

[Katya Mullethov]

57. We were rat-rodding an ancient Coleman Spa ® last night

And Mrs Mullethov had her pink canvas tool bag out . It bristles with pink handled tools of every sort . Not exactly pink , more of a mauve really , but anyway ....she has all kinds of stuff like that . Cutlery , clothes , tools , guns , ear muffs .

[gejohnston]

64. some marketing guru at thought it was a good idea

but if you think that is bad, check this out. Something tells my you don't have much of a sense of humor.
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.thefirearmsforum.com/attachment.php%3Fattachmentid%3D27927%26stc%3D1%26d%3D1248219566&imgrefurl=http://www.thefirearmsforum.com/showthread.php%3Ft%3D63727%26page%3D9&usg=__iq2LHPJ6LTMCZ9i6yy00nNg3-Ls=&h=293&w=650&sz=62&hl=en&start=0&sig2=V9pkkNfhiFhc0fUtB32ENg&zoom=1&tbnid=IRhRSYYsUKKn3M:&tbnh=83&tbnw=185&ei=rUfRTYOBF422tgft4eCGDg&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dkalashnikitty%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Dactive%26sa%3DX%26biw%3D1680%26bih%3D781%26tbm%3Disch%26prmd%3Divnsufd0%2C426&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=93&vpy=179&dur=9110&hovh=151&hovw=335&tx=196&ty=109&page=1&ndsp=34&ved=1t:429,r:26,s:0&biw=1680&bih=781

[pnwmom]

38. She leaves you to maintain the gun? And defers the gun ownership to you?

Then she isn't a gun owner. One of the guns YOU own has a pink grip!

:rofl:

[oneshooter]

49. My Loving Wife can break down and clean ALL of my collection.

Having said that,she does need a little help with the 1919a3 and the BAR.

Oneshooter
Armed and Livin in Texas

[one-eyed fat man]

50. Why is that a surprise?

She is like many wives who expect their husbands to do the nasty jobs. Equality ends when it's time to take out the trash, share space in the closet, register for the draft or pick up the check.

[jpak]

51. You said "pink grip"

:rofl:

[eqfan592]

62. Well, my wife DOES make me clean her gun...

...but it is most certainly HER gun, which she reminds me of every time I neglect to point out that fact. :P

[lawodevolution]

65. pink is in style

[gejohnston]

24. if you are saying there needs to be more diversity in the shooting

sports/gun culture, I say "right on" please give a hand making it happen. Otherwise, ummmmmmmm I kind of figured it out for myself, but interesting read.

[PavePusher]

26. Possibly because the roots of gun control lie deep in a heart of racism.

Minorities are still playing catch-up in this field. I help out as often as possible with training and purchase advice.

[ileus]

29. Well there you have it, a good reason to ban guns...then we'll all be safe

[WatsonT]

35. Ok so us white males are doing our part, everyone else needs to step it up a bit

[pnwmom]

40. Or maybe white Republican males only imagine

they're safer with more guns.

Women don't seem to miss them.

[holdencaufield]

44. My Wife and Daughter

Own, use, and maintain their shotguns. They both attended the mandatory police safety classes in order to that them registered in their names. But, they're not pink -- it makes terrible camouflage.

[pnwmom]

45. Welcome to DU, holdencaufield!

And you're right that pink would make terrible camouflage!

[hack89]

47. Self delete. nt

[WatsonT]

52. Interesting, women are safe disarmed in this country

Go ahead an post that on any thread discussing the rate of sexual assaults against women in the US at this time.

See if they all agree with your notion that women are perfectly safe right now.

[eqfan592]

66. You can't really miss something that you've never had nor tried.

My wife didn't really want to have anything to do with guns, then she went shooting with me and had a ton of fun. She now sleeps with a loaded XD 9mm in her nightstand (that's a 9mm pistol just so certain people on the forum don't accuse me of using some sort of secret "gunner" code), and she would certainly miss it if it weren't there anymore. Shooting has been a predominately male past time for years and years, but women have been breaking into it for some time now.

[rl6214]

37. Yeah I guess the gang banger types don"t respond to polls

Or are they not considered gun owners?

[Euromutt]

41. They don't have land-line telephones

And since you can't make unsolicited calls to a cell phone, that eliminates them from the pool of potential respondents. It's increasingly happening with under-30s in general, in fact. No land line means no telemarketers, pollsters and other solicitors.

[RSillsbee]

60. No land line means no telemarketers, pollsters and other solicitors.

Biggest reason we got rid of ours

[hack89]

46. Self delete. nt

[slackmaster]

56. A firearm is for most people a discretionary purchase

White males tend to have more disposable income than other people do.

[discntnt_irny_srcsm]

63. Simple answers

Many folks just don't cooperate with surveys asking about their guns or their money. Not to go all CIA or anything but many have the attitude that those things are personal and the world just doesn't have a 'need to know'.

The US population is ~ 310,000,000. About 80,000,000 of those own ~ 205,000,000 firearms.

Men own guns more than women because, to a degree, men are louder, more violent and more aggressive. 75-80% of gun owners are male. The populations of prisons and jails are probably more than 75% male as well.

A greater percentage of populations of major metro areas tend to vote democratic. Most larger population centers are coastal. They tend to have a higher population percentage of non-whites and more restrictive laws on the purchase and carry of firearms. Those factors are related.

By age there is a bit of systematic error in this statistical sample. Assuming a uniform age density of the sample there would be fewer respondents in the age group 18-29 since it covers 12 years rather the 20 years of the older groups. Add to this that many in the 18-22 group are more students without full time incomes.

HTH

[onehandle]

68. So are Klansmen and Teabaggers.

Don't 'shoot' the messenger. It's true.

[DWC]

69. I am an electronic security professional

and have just entered my 5th decade in the security industry.

My recommendation and that of virtually any security professional is to NOT respond to any questions concerning any aspect of your security plan, physical or electronic, with anyone unless:

1. You know the individual to be trustworthy, and
2. You initiated the conversation.

This is a information intelligent people just do not share.

Be assured, this and any other poll seeking this or related personal security information will be seriously flawed.

Semper Fi,