"That's sort of like just throwing rocks at someone who's throwing rocks at you instead of trying to actually solve the problem in the first place."
guns aren't the problem, a criminal won't follow the rules if all guns are banned, they'd get them elseware. a criminal who can't get guns from American stores will just resort to the black market and wind up using foreign weapons. then you have to consider that the ppl behind the gun is the real problem bc the gun isn't the issue, it's the way you use the weapon. a criminal won't care if america bans guns, all they'd see is that their biggest threat, a responsible gun owner won't stand in the way anymore. the flaw with the thought track that all guns are bad is that what protects this country? soldiers with guns. what protects you on the home front? cops with guns. what protects you when the cops are unable to assist? a responsible gun owner.
EDIT: when it comes down to it, if you were robbed at gun point.. what would 911 do for you... my point is a few stupid people who abuse a weapon should not make ppl freak out thinking all gun owners are terrorists. in my opinion, if your life was at stake what would u rather do? wait the twenty average minutes it takes for police to arrive or would u rather 'nip it in the bud'. a thug won't mess with a person if that person is a responsible gun owner with a handgun or shotgun aimed at him. i read an article about a young woman who was about to be raped in college, what happened?
the woman was concealed carry, when the man forced himself on her the woman drew her weapon and aimed at the rapist. she then dialed 911. that woman could have been violated if she hadn't been carrying a weapon. forgive me for sounding blunt but, you missed every single point as to why guns HELP citizens.
to finalize my point, what will stop a thug trying to harm you, a level headed gun owner who knows right and wrong.