Gun bans and draconian restrictions on gun possession will not reduce criminals' access to guns, but rather will disproportionately disarm good citizens and deprive them of the right to protect themselves with the most effective weapon against criminal victimization. Gun control thus does more harm than good, given evidence that shows many more Americans protect themselves with guns than are harmed by guns. The authors propose a research and policy agenda to help reduce violence. There should be oversight of the competence and integrity of additional tax-funded research pertinent to policy toward guns, and existing law against violent crime should be effectively enforced. Also, existing laws that counter the true sources of criminals' guns should be enforced, i.e., laws that target the illegal "black market" in stolen guns. Further, the ownership and use of guns should be treated the same as cars, completely, consistently, and constitutionally; specifically, this means that mentally competent, law-abiding adults should be able to carry concealed firearms for protection in public with no "need" required to be demonstrated. Efforts to reduce the economic and social conditions that foster violent behavior should also be emphasized. Relevant measures should include welfare reform, improvement in life and career opportunities for the poor, the mitigation of media violence, the promotion of conflict resolution training, and an end to the "scapegoating" of guns and gun owners as the cause of violent victimization. 98 references