Questions tagged [guns]

Questions about a tubular weapon or other device designed to discharge projectiles or other material.

Gun

noun

noun: gun; plural noun: guns

  1. a weapon incorporating a metal tube from which bullets, shells, or other missiles are propelled by explosive force, typically making a characteristic loud, sharp noise.

    synonyms: firearm, pistol, revolver, rifle, shotgun, carbine, automatic, handgun, semiautomatic, machine gun, Uzi; More

    weapon; informal piece, gat, heater "the illegal trafficking of drugs and guns"

    • a device for discharging something (e.g., insecticide, grease, or electrons) in a required direction.

    • a starting pistol used in track and field events.

    • the firing of a piece of artillery as a salute or signal. "the boom of the one o'clock gun echoed across the river"

  2. informal muscular arms; well-developed biceps muscles. "it's encouraging to note that Schwarzenegger wasn't born with massive guns"

verb

verb: gun; 3rd person present: guns; past tense: gunned; past participle: gunned; gerund or present participle: gunning

  1. shoot someone with a gun. "they were gunned down by masked snipers"
  2. informal: cause (an engine) to race. "as Neil gunned the engine, the boat jumped forward"
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Are more people killed with hammers than with guns in the US?

There are countless sources claiming that There are more deaths from being attacked by hammers than by…
AJFaraday
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What is the value of armed bystanders in preventing gun deaths?

On Nov. 5, 2009, 12 soldiers and one civilian were killed, and more than two dozen others were wounded, when a gunman walked into the Soldier Readiness Processing Center at Fort Hood and opened fire. Using not an assault rifle but a 357 magnum,…
toro
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Is there a correlation between voting for the Democratic Party and gun crimes in the USA?

The following image has been making the rounds on social media: Is the infographic even accurate? If so is the conclusion it's pushing backed up by valid statistics? (that there's a clear correlation between the gun problem (as defined by firearm…
user5341
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Did about 150 die from gun violence in the US during the 4th of July weekend 2021?

CNN reports At least 150 people were killed by gun violence in more than 400 shootings across the country during the Fourth of July weekend Ref: CNN.com In the article this data is based on data from 'Gun Violence Archive'.…
pinegulf
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Are fully automatic firearms very hard for civilians to obtain in the USA?

In the wake of another horrific mass shooting incident in the USA which appears to have involved an automatic weapon I was surprised the read the following in the Weekly Standard: Automatic rifles, on the other hand, are severely restricted and…
matt_black
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If one man is shot in the head while holding a gun to another man, can the former get a shot off on the latter?

In the movies, the following situation is routine: One man is hunting down another. Upon locating him, the hunter points his firearm at the hunted's head at close range. At this very moment, an ally of the man being hunted comes out of nowhere, and…
Matthew Moisen
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How often are guns used by private citizens in self defense per year in the United States?

According to Wikipedia the numbers reported range from 65 thousand to 2.5 million. I am very skeptical of the 2.5 million figure and in fact I am even skeptical of the 65 thousand figure. This Wikipedia page lists documented cases where guns were…
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Did violent gun crime rates rise in Australia after the 1996 gun control laws?

In 1996 Australia passed the National Firearms Agreement (NFA) which greatly restricted the option to legally own some types of guns by private citizens. The activist site, World Public Union claims that crime is on the rise in Australia since…
SIMEL
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Does increased gun ownership in the US correlate with a reduction in violent crime rates?

This is somewhat of the converse of the question Is Gun Control Effective: A quote of famous musician and gun advocate Ted Nugent has been making the rounds on the Internet again lately: Where you have the most armed citizens in America, you have…
Beofett
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Did Lenin say this about guns?

a system of licensing and registration is the perfect device to deny gun ownership to the bourgeoisie - Lenin This quote can be found all over the internet, but I can't find any reliable sources for it. Two examples for where it's used:…
tim
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Did a Florida woman get 20 years jail for firing warning shots in the air?

In the wake of the recent Zimmerman trial, Shan Diddy (@shannycat81) posted a tweet that was retweeted over 7,000 times, including by noted skeptic, Paul Provenza. Meanwhile, ALSO in Florida, a Black single mother gets 20 years in jail for firing…
Oddthinking
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Has a weapon functionally equivalent to the AR-15 been available for U.S. civilian purchase since 1907?

According to a (since-deleted) widely shared LinkedIn post (emphasis added): A hundred and twelve years ago, in 1907...our great grandparents were first able to buy the rifle pictured. The semi-auto Winchester Model 1907. This is a gun they could…
LShaver
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Can you shoot a locked door open?

I think Mythbusters did padlocks, but I don't know if they did the standard door lock test. We see it in movies and tv shows, but can a locked door be "unlocked" by shooting the lock with a handgun? EDIT: Let's keep this movie related: 1 shot,…
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Have Iceland's police only ever shot one person dead?

Is it true that Iceland's police force(s) have only shot and killed one person ever? Bloomberg reports (December 3, 2013): Icelandic police shot dead a man who refused to stop firing at them with a shotgun in the capital of Reykjavik earlier today…
Matthew Flaschen
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Was George Washington the source of this quote equating government gun control with evil intentions?

The latest gun advocacy rhetoric I've seen includes this quote, attributed to George Washington: When any nation mistrusts its citizens with guns it is sending a clear message. It no longer trusts its citizens because such a government has evil…
Beofett
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