Poll: Most Believe Record Gun Sales Are For Self-Defense Purposes

posted on April 15, 2016

While anti-gun organizations and gun-ban politicians continue attempts to derail our Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms, Americans are buying guns at a record pace. The exact reason why is uncertain, with many factors likely contributing.

But we now know what people think about why Americans continue to purchase more guns than ever before, as a recent Rasmussen Poll sought to answer that question. The survey asked: “What is the main reason most people purchase a gun—self-defense, to commit a criminal act, for job purposes, some other reason?”

The answer was unsurprising, although likely frustrating to those anti-gunners who would have you believe firearms are seldom used in self-defense. A whopping 66 percent believe self-defense is the main reason most people purchase a gun, while just 5 percent think they make such a purchase to commit a criminal act. A miniscule 1 percent say it’s for job purposes, and 22 percent say most people buy a gun for some other reason.

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