This is an absolute fallacy that pro-gun people repeat so regularly that they think it’s true.
Many suicides could be prevented if the person can be separated from the stress and means for only a couple days.
Guns are convenient and effective. If all guns (through some miracle) disappeared, suicide rates would go down.
There are tens of thousands of people who would not have committed suicide if they had no access to a gun.
Take a look at the suicide rate when the UK removed carbon monoxide from stove gas when they switched from coal gas to natural gas. It was no longer painless and convenient to “stick your head in the oven”.
Suicide by use of stove gas was the number one choice for suicide prior to the switch to natural gas. When the odor-free pain-free option disappeared, the suicide rate dropped by around 40%. These people didn’t opt for other means… they just didn’t commit suicide.
Of course suicide-by-other-means went up (as a percentage) but total rates fell. Remove motivation and EASY PAINLESS means and suicide rates drop. People do not inevitably choose another method.
Many suicides are also influenced by alcohol/drug+stress+impulse. Access to guns makes the “impulse” thing happen more often.
Guns are also more successful than many failed suicide attempt means. An intentional OD is more survivable than an intentional bullet to the head.
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In summation, while I disagree with lumping all gun-related suicides into “gun violence” statistics I also strongly disagree that all gun-assisted suicides would happen anyway.