every time a mass shooting horrifies the nation, gun control advocates trot out statistics and charts proving that more guns, produce more violent deaths, said david auerbach. then pro-gun people respond that the overall gun homicide rate has dropped 50% since 1993, despite a boom in gun sales, and point to polls showing a decline in support for gun regulation a decline in support for gun regulation. lather rinse, repecat. Both sides of the gun debate are certain that the facts are on their side , and keep making the same arguments over and over to no effect. w're deadlocked on gun conttol because this debate is based more on first principles than evidence.