Poisoning mortality rate:
37,286 / 298,362,973 / 12.50 / 12.37

Motor vehicle, traffic:
43,664 / 298,362,973 / 14.63 / 14.45

Disarming people is not really about safety concerns, or there would be corresponding movements on demonstrably more serious problems such as how to not be poisoned or killed in traffic.

http://www.justfacts.com/guncontrol.asp

With the FBI reporting an average of just over 5,000 firearm related homocides annually, and over 59,000,000 adult gun owners who did not commit a violent crime involving a firearm last year = virtually all gun owners, the bulk of firearms related crimes being commited by possesors of firearms that are unregistered is a problem, a small problem, but still a problem.

The firearms obtained by persons of a criminal persuasion generally are stolen or are of the black market variety, i.e., previously stolen, imported illegally, and in some cases, 3rd and 4th party purchases. When selling a firearm it is impossible to determine where is may end up five years down the calendar. You sell it to a relative, friend or neighbor, they sell it similarly, or it is stolen or misappropriated. Gun control is a pipe dream.

Gun shows are not the villan. Background checks are not a cure all. No firearm has ever been indicted by a grand jury, tried, convicted, nor sentanced to prison. And there are penalties in play for negligent gun owners. But note that there are no outcries in place for products used in the commission of homocides other than firearems: knives, baseball bats, phone cords, pantyhose, fists, feet, poisons. Yes, firearms represent a higher proportion of homocide crimes, armed robberies, kidnappings. But if there comes a day (hopefully never) when the anti-gun lobby gets their way, count on an anti-baseball bat lobby, anti-poison lobby, and so on and so forth. And so fifth. Inevitably a victim will want the world made right.

Who all is in favor of banning non-crisp bacon? Ayes have it.

“Just the facts, maam, just the facts.”

I think it is Nation wide concerning the “private” selling and the gun shop or gun show selling. The concern is that they think private selling is the same as show selling. But no one ever talks about back alley selling either.

I’m not really opposed to private sellers at public gun shows being required to conduct a background check, and it’s interesting to see that the shows you attended require just that.

The larger concern is that it would only be the first step towards banning handguns, or other firearms, all together.

As the article notes, the argument that firearms are a threat to public safety don’t work well in a state where the rate of firearm ownership is high and crime is low.

Yet, they persist. You are absolutely right to note the ideological thrust. while they predictably jump on violent crime incidences to trumpet their cause, it’s times and in locations like this with a clear track record of success that their pernicious ideology is most evident. I also think it’s less to do with utopian visions and more to do with outright state control. A population holding this measure of protection against a government gone wild is a formidable threat to their ambition.

I hope this goes well for you and your lovely state. Always wanted to live there…