But, hey, it’s a free country.

Can you prove that assertion? I know dozens and dozens of friends that have guns and none have shot themselves or someone else with them.

The word most means that more than half of all gun owners have shot either themselves or someone else they know.

Lots of studies confirm this.

One example from the NIH:

"Most will end up using it on themselves or someone they know"

With >80 million gun owners in this country, if your statement was true we'd have seen near-medieval levels of gun violence by now.

99% of those gun owners never have, and never will be, "...involved in a fatal or nonfatal accidental shooting, criminal assault, or suicide attempt..."

You are perfectly free to dislike guns, and I respect your right to do so.

You are not free to make stuff up without expecting to be called out on it.

If having a gun in the house makes you feel safer, goody for you. The statistics on shootings speak for themselves. The bottom line for me at least is gun ownership and safety have very little to do with one another.

A quick Googling gives a combined population of the study areas of =/- 1,395,000 people

(Memphis ca. 650K, Seattle ca. 745K, Galveston ca. 50K)

Say 20% of those own guns, which would mean 279,000 people (likely a lowball for Memphis and Galveston- Southrons
really like their guns)

The study states that "...626 shootings occurred in or around a residence..."

Subtracting the "Thirteen shootings were legally justifiable or an act of self-defense"
gives us a figure of 613

613 into 279,000 means that slighly less than 1/4 of 1% (or 1 out of 455) of gun owners were responsible for the events
you'd have us be 'concerned' about.

I stand by what I said upthread.

To "most" people, that means more than 50%.

You said "most people with guns," not "most people who use guns in self-defense." The latter is only a very tiny sliver of all people with guns. But you knew that.

Don't those goalposts get heavy after a while?

When they are used, instead of serving as toys or tchotchkes, which is blessedly how most of them end up, they are most often used on their owners or someone they know.

Overall Firearm Gunshot Nonfatal Emergency Department Visits and Rates per 100,000
2015, United States, All Races, Both Sexes, All Ages:
Cases- 84,997........Population (2015)- 320,742,673

2015, United States
Suicide Firearm Deaths and Rates per 100,000
All Races, Both Sexes, All Ages:
Deaths: 22,018........Population (2015)- 320,742,673

https://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/

That does not cover all uses of a gun for self defense.

Also, if you're counting guns that are illegally owned by career criminals, well, they're criminals! Of course they're going to use them to commit crimes! That's why they got the gun!

But what are the odds that an.honest person with an honest job is going to use their legally-purchased gun to commit an assault or a homicide?

....gun to commit an assault or a homicide?"

Less than 2 out of 1000 of all gun owners (and probably fewer for the legal ones), according to my math
in post #8

Not only does owning a gun not make you safer, but it actually makes you UNsafer, and more likely to die from a gun.

WTF people. But hey, 'mericans gotta 'merica.