According to CDCP data, 217 of the 2009 firearm deaths — more than 80 percent — were classified as suicides.I can understand the pro-gun attempt to separate suicides from other gun deaths. I disagree with it, but I can understand that it serves their argument. They say there aren't all that many gun deaths to worry about. Further restrictions are unnecessary. Of course this is not true, but that's their argument.
John Malouf, a psychologist from Valley Mental Health, said guns are the most common method used in completed suicides, while pills account for the most attempted suicides.
Malouf said he feels that if guns were more controlled or less available, people might be less inclined to commit suicide.
"It’s easy access to a lethal method," Malouf said, "When you think about it, if someone is suicidal and they don’t have a lethal method, they usually get through the crisis OK. If they have a gun, they kill themselves, not realizing they would get through the next day."
What I can't understand is the justification that usually accompanies this argument, that people have a right to commit suicide, that it's a simple choice and that people are free to choose.
The psychologist quoted above put it perfectly. The way I say it is this: suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem.
What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.
