Silicon Valley is afraid to have a conversation about using new technologies to reduce gun violence. Read the following article and decide what you think.
By Bryan S. Ganz, CEO - Byrna Technologies Inc. - Bryan@byrna.com
By now it should be obvious to anyone that is truly honest with themselves – there is never going to be meaningful gun control legislation passed in this country, at least not in the foreseeable future. Perhaps proponents of gun control can make it a little more difficult for some people to purchase a firearm. Perhaps proponents of gun control can even get certain types of weapons banned. But no one is ever going to get the 400+ million guns currently in circulation, off the streets – at least not without starting a civil war. I am not saying that this is a good or bad thing, I am just stating a fact.
So if it is not possible, or advisable to get guns off the streets, what can we do to reduce gun violence? We believe the answer is to put more guns on the street – non-lethal guns that is (what we in the less-lethal industry call “launchers”). Only by giving people a safe and effective non-lethal alternative to guns, can we reduce the incidence of gun violence.
Americans love their guns, and for good reason.
You are never going to convince these gun owners to give up their guns. You may, however, be able to convince them (or at least some of them) to add a non-lethal option to their arsenal. I know, because I am one of those gun owners. I own multiple handguns. I have a conceal carry permit and I have “carried” for years. If I am really honest with myself, however, I am not sure how quick I would be to pull the trigger in a real life confronation with an assailant. The answer is probably not very quick. It is called “trigger hesitancy” and it is more common than you would think.
The fact is, most gun owners live in mortal fear of ever having to pull the trigger. But could a moments hesitation cost you your life? On the other hand, if you don’t hesitate to fully evaluate the situation, could you be making a fatal mistake. With less-lethal self-defense weapons there are no fatal mistakes. We have all heard about the father in Ohio that mistakenly shot and killed his daughter as she snuck back into the house late at night or the tragic story of the young boy that was killed when he rang the wrong doorbell, or the young women who was murdered when she pulled into the wrong driveway. Not only were these mistaken shootings a tragedy for the victim and their family, but they were also a tragedy for the shooter’s family. Everyone lost and countless lives were destroyed.
If only these homeowners had a non-lethal alternative, things would have turned out very differently. Whether it be police shootings, violent crime or simply a case of mistaken identity, providing US citizens and law enforcement professionals with a safe, effective, non-lethal alternative to firearms we can be part of the solution to the epidemic of gun violence in America.
My colleagues and I believe so strongly in the benefit of having a non-lethal alternative to traditional firearms, that we started a company, Byrna Technologies Inc, based on on one simple principle – non-lethal weapons save lives. Our mission - get the word out that there are safe and effective alternatives to traditional firearms. Our message - Not every confrontation should be a life or death situation.
At Byrna, we produce non-lethal self-defense weapons that look like a gun, feel like a gun, work like a gun – but do not cause serious injury or death like a gun. Intuitive and easy to use, our Byrna launchers can easily incapacitate an assailant at standoff distances of up to 60 feet. With a Byrna, however, there are no fatal mistakes. Shoot the paperboy coming up the driveway by accident – leave a bigger tip at Christmas. No one is going to the hospital and no one is going to jail.
So why isn’t America embracing less-lethal alternatives. The answer is simple – most people don’t know that these options even exist. We have our friends in the media, both social media and mainstream media to thank for that. Consider the statistics:
Millions of people and Billions of dollars is important… right? You would think that anything that could begin to put a dent into these horrifying figues would be front and center on every news platform and advertised everywhere you turn – but you would be wrong.
It seems that Meta, Google and even Twitter (yes Twitter) would rather block our advertising and stop us from engaging the American public in an honest conversation about how to reduce gun violence than risk having the woke mob attack them for allowing “weapons” to be advertised on their platform. After four years of using Facebook, Instagram, Goodle and Twitter to promote a non-lethal option, we have been completely banned from advertising on these platforms and labled “contraband product.”
We understand that there is a grey area given the nature of our products, but we are not promoting violence - just the opposite. At Byrna, we believe that we are working for the greater good of our society. Every time someone uses a non-lethal weapon, instead of a gun, to protect themselves or their family, they are potentially saving a life. To date, Byrna’s have been used hundreds of times to stop carjackings, thwart muggings or prevent home invasions. Law Enforcement officers around the world have used Byrnas to apprehend criminals – all without a single life being lost (or taken).
Our goal is to have a common sense conversation about gun violence and the Constitutional right of every American to defend themselves and their families. If it is not realistic to materially reduce the 400+ million guns currently in circulation, let’s discuss giving people a non-lethal alternative. Recently, to that end, we began a live stream on YouTube discussing how our new non-lethal 12-gauge ammunition can convert a lethal shotgun (the most popular weapon in America) into a non-lethal launcher. By giving the estimated 47 million shotgun owners a non-lethal option to protect their family, we know we can reduce gun deaths. Unfortunately, the broadcast was dropped midstream by YouTube as they cut our lead – leaving thousands of people (literally ) in the dark about how to turn their lethal shortguns into a non-lethal launcher.
Where is the common sense in that? It’s ok to advertise violent video games (arguably more influential to the youth of our country than social media) but not for a discussion of turning a lethal weapon into a non-lethal weapon? Why can any number of social media influencers spend hours ridiculing political opponents, celebrities or their peers? Yet, our team can’t have an open and honest dialog about a very serious public health crisis plaguing our country.
Below is an excerpt from Meta’s content policy and their “commitment to voice”. Meta claims that “The goal of our Community Standards is to create a place for expression and give people a voice.” We want a voice! We believe that the adoption of new technologies to help reduce gun violence is an issue of paramount importance to all Americans. The large social media companies were founded on the idea of using new technologies to improve the lives of people around the globe. We ask them to allow us the same opportunity.
In summary, in the spirit of our ongoing effort to make this a more perfect union, we believe that fair dialog, open forums and the free market is essential. We need to stop big tech:
Let us know what you think by commenting on Social or writing to us. Want to learn more? Check out more information on Gun violence and our products here. Byrna | Best Non Lethal Self-Defense Products Want to get involved and help progress the national conversation? Please share our site/products with your friends and family.
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2022-gun-violence-statistics (omnilert.com)
Weapons, Ammunition, or Explosives | Transparency Center (fb.com)
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