TIA,

I don't suppose you are purposely trying to find the arguments LEAST likely to be convincing to 2nd Amendment advocates. Nevertheless, you have found three of them.

Unconvincing Arguement #1: You write, "Cars have many utterly benign purposes. Guns are always used to shoot things." Do you really mean to imply that shooting things is never benign? When my daughter asked her grandparents to teach her target shooting as a hobby, is that not benign? When my widowed great-aunt (who lived a twenty minute drive from the nearest police station) had an intruder literally breaking down her front door, and she shot through the bottom panel into his legs, driving him away, was that not benign? When my parents buy licenses for buck season, doe season, black powder season, and bow season, and then bring in enough meat to supply themselves and several elderly members of their church with healthy food, while also reducing the over-population of deer, is that not benign?   

Unconvincing Arguement #2: You write, "Cars are also darn hard to conceal." Your point is apparently that, since guns are easy to conceal, they should be tightly regulated or banned. Knives, matches, lighters, books, and condoms are all easy to conceal. Should they be tightly regulated or banned?   

Unconvincing Arguement #3: You write, "I've also never heard of toddlers hitting themselves in the head with their parent's car." Neither have I. Have you ever heard of toddlers being accidentally killed by a car? One of our friends lost her sister when the girl, a toddler, ran directly into the path of her grandparents' car. When I was 13, two young children who were visiting our nearest neighbor were killed when they climbed into their parents' car, somehow set it on fire (playing with matches, most likely), and then were unable to get the doors open. I saw the smoke, but didn't think much of it at first. By the time anyone realized that something was wrong, the children were dead. For all age groups combined, the National Safety Council reports 43,100 accidental motor vehicle deaths in 2007, compared to 830 for firearms: http://www.nsc.org/lrs/injuriesinamerica08.aspx

I'm not trying to argue by anecdote. I've already stated the reasons for my position. At this point, I'm not really trying to change your mind about gun control. I just wanted to point out that even a person as wise and as humble as you sounds neither wise nor humble when making such arguments.

Kent