A new study has found that Americans, including traditionally pro-gun groups, are averse to living near AR-15 owners and neighbors who store guns insecurely. This consensus highlights potential local-level agreement on gun safety practices.

A recent study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reveals that across all political and social groups in the United States, there is a strong preference against living near AR-15 rifle owners and neighbors who store guns outside of locked safes. This surprising consensus suggests that when it comes to immediate living environments, Americans’ views on gun control may be less divided than the polarized national debate suggests.

The research was conducted against a backdrop of increasing gun violence and polarization on gun policy in the United States. The United States has over 350 million civilian firearms and gun-related incidents, including accidents and mass shootings, have become a leading cause of death in the country. Despite political divides, the new study aimed to explore whether there’s common ground among Americans in their immediate living environments, focusing on neighborhood preferences related to gun ownership and storage.

  • jordanlund@lemmy.world
    855·
    6 months ago

    I’d be more concerned about a neighbor wearing a MAGA hat and flying a Trump 2024 flag than someone quietly owning an AR-15.

    But that’s because I’m aware of the statistics.

    https://www.statista.com/statistics/476409/mass-shootings-in-the-us-by-weapon-types-used/

    “Handguns are the most common weapon type used in mass shootings in the United States, with a total of 166 different handguns being used in 116 incidents between 1982 and December 2023. These figures are calculated from a total of 149 reported cases over this period, meaning handguns are involved in about 78 percent of mass shootings.”

    • barsquid@lemmy.world
      232·
      6 months ago

      If they have a MAGA hat and flag you have to be careful about approaching their driveway or front door. They are fear-addicted and armed.

    • Snot Flickerman@lemmy.blahaj.zoneEnglish
      12·
      6 months ago

      Thanks for backing up my position with the actual statistics. I’m aware of them too but I was too lazy to dig them up. Thanks.

      People should be way more concerned about handguns but mass shootings with rifles get all the attention.

      • ArcaneSlime@lemmy.dbzer0.com
        6·
        6 months ago

        Tbh it’s by design. It’s way easier to scare people with the big black scary call of duty gun and convince them to get on board with that, saying “no pistols are fine but those rifles that function the literal same are the issue,” then later you can try to convince people on the pistols with “actually since rifles only accounted for 500/60,000 gun deaths a year we have to ban the pistols now too.”

      • nilloc@discuss.tchncs.deEnglish
        31·
        6 months ago

        Mass shouting are 3+, but rifle shootings that makes news stories tend to be much higher 5-8+. And often times the rifle shooters are also using a handgun, so it skews the numbers a bit there too.

        But really all guns and especially handguns need better control, permitting, and revocation laws.

    • Katana314@lemmy.worldEnglish
      3·
      6 months ago

      I just categorize my concerns to semi-autos; size is irrelevant. Australia went so far as to ban just about all of them, even though that’s a very broad category.

    • Aezora@lemm.ee
      32·
      6 months ago

      Except by that exact source, mass shootings with rifles are under reported and the deadliest mass shootings were done with semi automatic rifles.

      “Since 1982, there has been a known total 65 mass shootings involving rifles, mostly semi-automatics. This figure is underreported though, as it excludes the multiple semi-automatic (and fully automatic) rifles used in the 2017 Las Vegas Strip massacre – the worst mass shooting in U.S. history, killing 58 and wounding 546. In fact, semi-automatic rifles were featured in four of the five deadliest mass shootings, being used in the Orlando nightclub massacre, Sandy Hook Elementary massacre and Texas First Baptist Church massacre.”

      • jordanlund@lemmy.world
        31·
        6 months ago

        Deadliest again is not “most prevalent”. Yes, that is what gets the attention and makes everyone scared, but they are not as common as the media wants everyone to believe.

    • tearsintherain@leminal.space
      210·
      6 months ago

      Except the stats (art and science) don’t mention that in many of the mass shootings, an AR-15 assault rifle was commonly used. Highly lethal, designed to kill as many people as possible in a short amount of time.