Any carelessness with firearms has the potential for instant catastrophe, which is why there is a huge focus within the shooting fraternity to ensure that people use their firearms safely, says Gary.

Following some of the emotion-charged coverage of firearms and hunting that has appeared recently in the media (as epitomised by Max Christoffersen’s article), it’s time to restore a bit of perspective.

There is no doubt that each and every untimely death is a tragedy, whatever the cause. The grief of losing a loved one before their time is unimaginable. And it happens in New Zealand around 1,800 times a year.

That’s around five untimely deaths every day – each and every one a heart-rending catastrophe for friends and family. Irrespective of the cause, every untimely death is an equally terrible loss – a life snuffed out before their time, their full potential unrealised.

And yet, to judge by media coverage, some tragedies are more equal than others. And some causes of untimely death much more deserving of the pundits’ indignation.

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To illustrate this point, cast your mind back almost exactly five years, to Labour Weekend 2010. That long weekend, nine people died in separate incidents, as a result of somebody’s recklessness.

It was not a particularly exceptional weekend in that regard – recklessness has continued to kill people week in, week out since then at a comparable rate. And yet there will be one name, and one name only, that you will still recognise from the list of people who died that holiday weekend. Here are their names:

Peter Hughes, Jessie Lineham, Harmony Wihongi, Liam Tumai, Rosemary Ives, Katie Blake, Russel Clark, Betty Walker, Lynne Donald.

Each and every one of those people suffered an abrupt, unexpected, and untimely death, suddenly ending a life full of unfulfilled promise and leaving friends and family grieving.

In several of those deaths, the perpetrators displayed some of the most contemptible and callous behaviours imaginable. And yet one of these tragedies generated 13 times more media coverage than all of the others combined. Not because the other deaths were somehow less dreadful, or the other lives less worthy, but simply because that particular death involved the use of a firearm.

You might think from the media coverage generated by Mr Christoffersen and his ilk that firearms were a major bane on our society. So without losing sight of the fact that - like every other untimely death - every death from careless use of a firearm is a terrible loss, let’s put these deaths into some kind of perspective.

BIGGEST KILLERS

Looking at the mortality statistics for 2011 (the most recent year available), there were a total of 1,853 untimely deaths (i.e. deaths other than from illness, and excluding those who died in the Christchurch earthquake that year). Of these, a grand total of three were caused by the negligent use of firearms, and a further four were murdered with a gun. That is 0.38 per cent of all untimely deaths.

For everyone who died that year from the negligent or criminal use of firearms, there were more than 260 who died before their time from other causes.

To add further perspective, let’s put firearms-related deaths alongside some other causes with a similar death rate: falling out of bed (32 deaths), falling off their chair (21 deaths), suffocated or strangled by their own bedsheets (23 deaths), choking on food (24 deaths), killed by animals (six deaths).

Each of these deaths is heartbreak for those touched by it; but if we want to minimise the total number of untimely deaths in New Zealand, then focussing on firearms is simply not fishing where the fish are. The big killers remain transport accidents (353 deaths in 2011), suicides (493 deaths), and the mundane tripping and falling (495 deaths).

But, I hear you say, even if clamping down on firearms saves a single life then it’s worth it, no? While that is a sentiment that trips easily off the tongue, it is one that none of us really believes.

We know we could save lives by fitting speed regulators and alcohol interlocks on all cars, by lowering speed limits in urban areas, by outlawing alcohol and tobacco, by prohibiting ownership of dogs, or by banning all sports that sometimes cause death (which the ACC will tell you includes basketball, golf, and bowls).

But we don’t do these things because we know that, as heart-breaking as every untimely death is, there is much more to life than simply making everyone’s life as long as possible.

And make no mistake that recreational use of firearms brings enormous pleasure to a great many people.

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According to Sport New Zealand, there are over 150,000 New Zealanders who hunt, and over 100,000 who participate in target shooting sports – participating in 29 different recognised target shooting disciplines.

It has been estimated that there are around 530,000 occurrences of lawful recreational firearms use in New Zealand every year – covering everything from a weekend father-and-son hunt bringing home meat for the table, to a fun family outing to a Cowboy Action shoot. And it is something at which we excel; shooting has, over the years, delivered New Zealand's fourth highest medal tally from the Commonwealth Games, behind athletics, swimming and cycling.

There is no doubt that firearms deserve respect; any carelessness has the potential for instant catastrophe. Which is why there is a huge focus within the shooting fraternity to ensure that people use their firearms safely.

From the Mountain Safety Council and the New Zealand Deerstalkers Association, through to the various administrative bodies of the target shooting disciplines, training and safety is a top priority – first and always.

That is part of the reason why, in spite of the enormous participation in shooting sports, it results in fewer deaths each year than swimming, boating, motor sports, scuba diving, or fishing.

So please, when discussing firearms in New Zealand, let’s ditch the hysterics and maintain some sense of proportion.

What do you think of New Zealand's attitudes to firearms and hunting? Should we have stricter laws or are the measures we have in place already enough? Click the green button or email your reader report to stuffnation@stuff.co.nz.