Long guns are used primarily for hunting, a reasonably well-regulated sport, but a handgun is intended primarily for the shooting of another human at close range. The manufacture, importation, and purchase of handguns far surpasses that of long guns. Data indicate that handguns rarely protect their owners from criminals, and most are involved in accidental deaths and in suicides. Many are stolen from the homes of law-abiding citizens and used in other crimes. The best self-defense is a good alarm system, thorough police patrolling, and a neighborhood watch program. The myth that gun ownership deters crime is exposed when data show that violent crime is less in the Northeast, where gun ownership is lowest and gun laws stricter, and violent crime rates are highest in the South, which leads the Nation in gun ownership and in the laxity of gun laws. A comparison of the rate of handgun killings in the United States with the rates in other countries with stricter gun control laws shows the effectiveness of gun control legislation, but it must be a nationwide regulation if it is to be maximally effective.