I own guns. My parents own guns. My brother owns guns.my cousin owns 15+ guns and is a police officer. My girlfriends father owns guns. Some of us belong to the NRA. My brother and cousin going shooting a couple times a month. In some cases, we own guns that would be banned under a lot of gun control laws. My cousins response to Newton was to buy an AR15.
Yet we all support background checks. I don't find the 90% number hard to believe at all.
Yes, but... if the question on the survey was "Do you support background checks for gun purchases?" you might, indeed, get a 90% "yes" score. But, that question would be bogus vis-a-vis the recent proposal, since background checks are already required for the majority of gun purchases. To get a meaningful response, the question would need to be "do you support even stricter background check rules than are currently in place?" and you'd really need a way to eliminate answers from people who don't know what the current rules are.
So quoting that 90% number might be technically accurate for some specific question on some specific poll, but I'd question whether or not it actually reflects public sentiment on this issue, from people who actually have an informed opinion on the issue.
It's not that I'm against background checks per se, it's that they are useless in stopping crime. It's simply a feel good badge we can throw on our sashes.
Plus, if we're serious about reducing gun violence, we limit handguns, not rifles. We can pat ourselves on the back and make us feel better over dead kids, but the real problem in this country with gun violence is handguns. The fact that it's all about "assault rifles" (a meaningless loaded nonsense term) shows that people are not the least bit sincere or knowledgable.
I know 3 places right now I can purchase a handgun without paperwork that are not gun shows.
Yet we all support background checks. I don't find the 90% number hard to believe at all.