From the second amendment foundation on the web
Many Gun control advocates cite statistics that seem to show an epidemic of children dying due to gun-related violence. On the surface, 4,000 children dying per year is a very disturbing trend. However, one must delve into the statistics to realize that these gun-control advocates are misleading the public. The definition of children used when finding these statistics includes people 20 years old or younger, and some groups actually use the age 23 as a cut-off for a child. Using these misleading definitions, the numbers are about 11 killed per day. Of course, if you use what most people consider to be children as a cutoff - say ten years old - the number drops to .4 deaths per day. While still not perfect, it is a far sight better than the 11 that gun-control advocates want people to believe. Why is there such a huge difference? When including the upper ranges of the teenage bracket, gun deaths jump. This is due in large part to gang related violence. Also, it includes the majority of the people who constitute the very dangerous and often lethal drug trade. Imagine a drug deal going bad, and one party shooting another. According to gun control advocates, this constitutes a "child" who died due to firearm wounds. Or, maybe a methamphetamine dealer gets into a shootout with police, and loses. Again, this would be cited as a "child," for purposes of scaring soccer moms everywhere.
According to John Lott, the number of children, nine and under, who died from accidental gunshot wounds in 1996 was 42. Compare that with the 2,404 who died that year in car crashes, 805 who drowned, or 738 that died of burns. When viewed in that light, guns are not the child safety hazard many would have you believe. Not to mention, of course, that guns can be used to defend those very same children, and that they will statistically make the house safer for them to live in. (Seven Myths of Gun Control, pg 120)
Many Gun control advocates cite statistics that seem to show an epidemic of children dying due to gun-related violence. On the surface, 4,000 children dying per year is a very disturbing trend. However, one must delve into the statistics to realize that these gun-control advocates are misleading the public. The definition of children used when finding these statistics includes people 20 years old or younger, and some groups actually use the age 23 as a cut-off for a child. Using these misleading definitions, the numbers are about 11 killed per day. Of course, if you use what most people consider to be children as a cutoff - say ten years old - the number drops to .4 deaths per day. While still not perfect, it is a far sight better than the 11 that gun-control advocates want people to believe. Why is there such a huge difference? When including the upper ranges of the teenage bracket, gun deaths jump. This is due in large part to gang related violence. Also, it includes the majority of the people who constitute the very dangerous and often lethal drug trade. Imagine a drug deal going bad, and one party shooting another. According to gun control advocates, this constitutes a "child" who died due to firearm wounds. Or, maybe a methamphetamine dealer gets into a shootout with police, and loses. Again, this would be cited as a "child," for purposes of scaring soccer moms everywhere.
According to John Lott, the number of children, nine and under, who died from accidental gunshot wounds in 1996 was 42. Compare that with the 2,404 who died that year in car crashes, 805 who drowned, or 738 that died of burns. When viewed in that light, guns are not the child safety hazard many would have you believe. Not to mention, of course, that guns can be used to defend those very same children, and that they will statistically make the house safer for them to live in. (Seven Myths of Gun Control, pg 120)