This question came to me as I was pondering the consequences of a disarmed citizenry. It occurred to me that I had no idea how many people had how many guns. Most people I know here in the San Diego area do not own a gun, and probably wouldn't under just about any circumstance. It's far easier to get illicit drugs here than it is a concealed carry permit, so I know there aren't too many citizens packing heat on the street. So I did a little research, and came up with a Wikipedia article on the guns per capita (by country), and this Washington Post article with gun ownership rates per household (by state).
If you accept the 88.8 per 100 residents gun ownership rate for the U.S., then there are roughly 275 million privately-owned guns in the U.S. That's a lot of guns, and personally I find that very comforting. I suspect that number only includes legally owned guns, so it's probably on the low side.
The households with guns rate varies widely by state, from 3.8% of Washington, D.C. households to 59.7% of Wyoming households. In California, the rate is 21.3% – and in Idaho (where it's likely we're headed) the rate is 55.3%. It's easy to pick out the strong correlation between the lefty states and low gun ownership rates, and vice versa.
If this year's elections keep us on the train to Progressive hell, I think the likelihood of Greek-style “youth riots” in our cities goes up dramatically. If and when that happens, I want to be far from any big city, and surrounded by solid citizens with guns. I love the mountains of San Diego County...but they don't meet these criteria...
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