February 5, 2006
BY mailto:[email protected] FRANK MAIN Crime Reporter
Americans with guns in their cars are more likely to engage in "road rage" than unarmed drivers, according to a new study funded by the Chicago-based Joyce Foundation.
The Harvard School of Public Health surveyed more than 2,400 people who were asked if they carried a gun in their vehicle at least once in the last year.
About 23 percent of those who said "yes" admitted to making obscene gestures while driving -- compared with about 16 percent of those who claimed they never pack a weapon, the study said.
The survey also found 14 percent of those with firearms said they "aggressively followed" other motorists, vs. 8 percent of those without guns.
Tighter restrictions favored
The authors, David Hemenway, Mary Vriniotis and Matthew Miller, acknowledged their survey did not ask whether a gun was in the car at the time the road rage incident happened.
"Despite these limitations, our findings indicate that the same type of individuals who cause most of the road deaths in the United States -- young males, particularly those who smoke, binge drink and have been arrested for non-traffic violations -- are most likely to engage in rude and hostile behaviors on the nation's roads," the authors said. "Road rage may be most dangerous when an enraged motorist has immediate access to a lethal weapon, such as a gun."
Vriniotis told the journal New Scientist that "in the interests of injury and violence prevention, it probably makes more sense to tighten rather than relax restrictions on gun carrying in motor vehicles."
John Lott, a controversial former University of Chicago economist and author of More Guns, Less Crime, scoffed at the study on his Web site. Lott criticized the survey for not asking if the guns were in the cars legally or illegally.
"Permit holders tend to be extremely law-abiding," he said.
BY mailto:[email protected] FRANK MAIN Crime Reporter
Americans with guns in their cars are more likely to engage in "road rage" than unarmed drivers, according to a new study funded by the Chicago-based Joyce Foundation.
The Harvard School of Public Health surveyed more than 2,400 people who were asked if they carried a gun in their vehicle at least once in the last year.
About 23 percent of those who said "yes" admitted to making obscene gestures while driving -- compared with about 16 percent of those who claimed they never pack a weapon, the study said.
The survey also found 14 percent of those with firearms said they "aggressively followed" other motorists, vs. 8 percent of those without guns.
Tighter restrictions favored
The authors, David Hemenway, Mary Vriniotis and Matthew Miller, acknowledged their survey did not ask whether a gun was in the car at the time the road rage incident happened.
"Despite these limitations, our findings indicate that the same type of individuals who cause most of the road deaths in the United States -- young males, particularly those who smoke, binge drink and have been arrested for non-traffic violations -- are most likely to engage in rude and hostile behaviors on the nation's roads," the authors said. "Road rage may be most dangerous when an enraged motorist has immediate access to a lethal weapon, such as a gun."
Vriniotis told the journal New Scientist that "in the interests of injury and violence prevention, it probably makes more sense to tighten rather than relax restrictions on gun carrying in motor vehicles."
John Lott, a controversial former University of Chicago economist and author of More Guns, Less Crime, scoffed at the study on his Web site. Lott criticized the survey for not asking if the guns were in the cars legally or illegally.
"Permit holders tend to be extremely law-abiding," he said.
:haha: So the sooner these --> :congrats: are :banned: the safer us poor wittle :sheep: will be.... 
