FOX NEWS: AMERICANS UNALTERABLY OPPOSED TO GUN-CONTROL POLICY NO ONE'S ACTUALLY PROPOSING

Headline of a Fox polling story:

Fox News poll: Twice as many favor more guns over banning guns to reduce crime

Yes, that's what Fox's pollsters asked:

Would there be less violent crime in the United States if: [ROTATE 1-2]

Guns were banned 28%

More law-abiding people had guns 58%

Fascinating -- or it would be fascinating if any politician or other influential figure were actually proposing to ban all guns. A significant percentage of Americans may think that's what's being proposed by the president, but it's not even close. So why even ask the question, except to give a news organization that thrives on straw-man arguments a little more straw?

And the other choice is equally absurd. If more law-abiding people get guns, that will mean that the gun market is thriving even more than it is now, and purchasing a gun is even easier than it is now -- which means that more guns will also be obtained by people who aren't law-abiding. (Or people who are law-abiding now but may eventually lose their battle with mental illness or rage or depression and decide to shoot up a school, or kill a spouse, or shoot themselves.) The belief that there's some way to increase the number of good people with guns without also increasing the number of bad people with guns, in a nation where the NRA has emasculated all national agencies that enforce gun laws, as well as most local agencies, is delusional.

To their credit, the same poll respondents who engage in this NRA-propaganda-fed magical thinking about guns actually want laws to make getting a gun harder:

The most popular suggestions are requiring criminal background checks on all gun buyers (with 91 percent favoring this proposal), providing services for mentally ill people who "show violent tendencies" (89 percent) and improving enforcement of existing laws (86 percent)

Large majorities also favor mandating mental-health checks on gun buyers (83 percent) and requiring criminal background checks on anyone buying ammunition (80 percent).

Smaller majorities favor putting armed guards in schools (60 percent), banning high-capacity clips (56 percent), [and] banning assault weapons (54 percent)....

And yet, according to the poll, 56% of Americans have a favorable opinion of the NRA, which exists to make sure that nothing on the above list ever happens (except for the armed guards in schools).

But that, I suppose is because Americans see the NRA as fighting the good fight against politicians and other policymakers who want to ban all guns.

You know, people who don't actually exist.