a debate that's out of (gun) control (at TFPO)

A topic so big, it took two parts for me to (barely) scratch the surface.

Part 1

In discussing gun rights and gun control, let’s begin with a clarification: While gun bans can be elements of gun control policy, the reverse isn't necessarily true. Gun control is, by definition, a set of policies intended to manage the ownership and use of firearms. Inconveniently, perhaps, for gun rights ideologues, the very idea of gun control begins the moment we...

Part 2

Another understandable, albeit less reasonable, concern on the part of the gun lobby is the worry that arises from requiring universal background checks, an idea that strikes gun rights advocates like the NRA’s Wayne LaPierre as equivalent to a gun registry. If the government knows who has guns, the argument goes, they will know where to go to confiscate those guns. But let’s consider the conceptual difference between a universal background check and a gun registry...


Catherine said...

Some additional thoughts:

There are some legitimate studies of gun violence out there by reputable institutions like Johns Hopkins but those go unmentioned. Requiring liability insurance is another thing we should consider to recompense the inevitable victims. Also adding those with domestic violence restraining orders to the no-sell list would be good. A lot of women are killed in "gun cleaning" accidents that don't even make it to the news let alone the criminal justice system.

Mark Ames points out that gun ownership does the exact opposite of protecting our freedom, which explains the absence of these upstanding citizens the past dozen years in which our Constitution was totally shredded. Gun ownership encourages atomization, hiding in one's basement waiting for the final Butch-and-Sundance shootout rather than organizing. That's probably why the government can't be bothered to move on this issue.

Having armed guards in schools only militarizes and terrorizes children, it does not deter, as Columbine should have taught us. The Ft. Hood shooter managed to kill a whole lot of people on a military base surrounded by armed and highly trained warriors.

The likeliest victims of gun violence, women, children and cops who should have the biggest say in this issue, however, will be drowned out by the real movers and shakers of the NRA: gun manufacturers which won't even let the UN pass a small arms treaty to reduce the instability in third world countries from the global trafficking problem. If they don't mind child soldiers in Africa, they sure don't give a rat's ass about dead kids in America.

Frederik Sisa said...

Good grief, I totally neglected to reply to your comment. Sorry! Time got the better of me. In any case, I agree with you completely. I consider gun manufacturers to be crime profiteers, sowing fear and paranoia for the sake of selling more and more guns.