Vox
However, the paper's findings about suicide were
statistically significant — and astounding. Buying back 3,500 guns
correlated with a 74 percent drop in firearm suicides. Non-gun suicides
didn't increase to make up the decline.
There is good reason why gun restrictions would prevent suicides. As Matthews explains
in great depth, suicide is often an impulsive choice, one often not
repeated after a first attempt. Guns are specifically designed to kill
people effectively, which makes suicide attempts with guns likelier to
succeed than (for example) attempts with razors or pills. Limiting
access to guns makes each attempt more likely to fail, thus making it
more likely that people will survive and not attempt to harm themselves
again.
Bottom line: Australia's gun buyback saved lives, probably by
reducing homicides and almost certainly by reducing suicides. Again,
Australian lessons might not necessarily apply to the US, given the many
cultural and political differences between the two countries. But in
thinking about gun violence and how to limit it, this seems like a
worthwhile data point. If you're looking for lessons about gun control,
this is a pretty important one.
