21 incredible fact about personal weapons in the United States

Some time ago U.S. President Barack Obama with tears rolling down the face, promised to curb gun violence plaguing the nation with or without that of Congress. In his emotional speech, he spoke about the upcoming Executive action, through which it is planned to tighten restrictions on arms sales.

Obama immediately came under fire from supporters of the rights to personal weapons. The Executive Director of the Institute of the National rifle Association Chris W. Cox said that "the American people do not need more emotional condescending lecture that completely devoid of facts."

While in Washington, the raging debate over gun control, here are 21 facts that will help you to understand the place of personal weapons in American life.

31: the percentage of American households that reported having firearms in 2014 — the lowest level of gun ownership over the last 40 years.

23 million: the number of checks that the FBI conducted in 2015, almost three times the 8.5 million checks made in 2000.

11 million: the number of weapons produced in the United States in 2013, a year after the massacre at the primary school "sandy hook". This is more than twice the number of firearms (5.4 million), produced in 2010.

48: the percentage of Americans who indicate protection as the main reason for gun ownership, while 32% stated that they required for hunting. For comparison, in 1999, 49% of Americans said that they need weapons for hunting, and only 26 percent for protection.

15: the number of minutes that have passed in 2016 before the first firing (00:15 1 January 2016).

2,97: the number of murders using firearms per 100 thousand people in the United States in 2012; the figure is 38,97 in Venezuela, 0,51 in Canada, to 0.19 in Germany, 0,14 — in Australia, 0,07 in England and Wales and from 0.06 in France, according to The Guardian.

310 million: number of civilian firearms in the United States as of 2009, according to the report of the congressional Research service from the 2012.

1892: the year in Kennesaw, Georgia, a law was passed requiring all its residents to bear arms. The law is still in effect, although there are a number of loopholes that people can use to opt out.

60: percentage of suicides of all deaths from firearms. Suicide is the second most common cause of death for Americans aged 15 to 34 years. In all age groups, it is in the top 10 most common causes of death.

80: the percentage of people carrying out mass shootings with the use of officially obtained firearms.

27: the number of Americans who died from the shooting on Christmas day last year — equal to the total number of people who died from the shooting in Austria, New Zealand, Norway, Slovenia, Bermuda, Estonia, Iceland and Hong Kong combined.

16,4: the average number of "active shooting incidents" (during which individuals are killed or trying to kill people in a populated area) per year between 2007 and 2013; between 2000 and 2007 this number was equal to 6.4.

47: the percentage of Americans who favor stricter laws related to the circulation of weapons in the country. This is significantly below the 58% registered in 2012 after the school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut.

$ 17 million: the amount the national rifle Association, the United States spent in 2012 on elections of the President and to Congress.

2000-5200: the estimated number of exhibitions of weapons held in the US each year.

Of 19.5/1: proportion of deaths by firearms in the US compared with other countries of the Organization for economic cooperation and development (it includes 34 developed countries of the world). For 15-24-year-old homicide using firearms in the US is 42.7 times higher than in other OECD countries.

132,1: the percentage increase in the market value of a weapons manufacturer Smith & Wesson for 2015. Action gunsmiths Sturm, Ruger & Co., and Vista also felt good last year, showing an increase of 72.1 and 29.9%, respectively.