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| Topic: Do gun control laws | |
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By Thomas Sowell
Do gun control laws really control guns and save lives? The gun control controversy is only the latest of many issues to be debated almost solely in terms of fixed preconceptions, with little or no examination of hard facts. Media discussions of gun control are dominated by two factors: the National Rifle Association and the Second Amendment. But the overriding factual question is whether gun control laws actually reduce gun crimes in general or murder rates in particular. If, as gun control advocates claim, gun control laws really do control guns and save lives, there is nothing to prevent repealing the Second Amendment any more than there was anything to prevent repealing the 18th Amendment that created Prohibition. But, if the hard facts show gun control laws do not actually control guns, but instead lead to more armed robberies and higher murder rates after law-abiding citizens are disarmed, then gun control laws would be a bad idea, even if there were no Second Amendment and no National Rifle Association. The central issue boils down to the question: What are the facts? Yet there are many zealots who seem utterly unconcerned about facts or about their own lack of knowledge of facts. There are people who have never fired a shot in their life who do not hesitate to declare how many bullets should be the limit to put into a firearm’s clip or magazine. Some say 10 bullets, but New York state’s recent gun control law specifies seven. Virtually all gun control advocates say 30 bullets in a magazine is far too many for self-defense or hunting — even if they have never gone hunting and never had to defend themselves with a gun. This uninformed and self-righteous dogmatism is what makes the gun control debate so futile and polarizing. Anyone who faces three home invaders, jeopardizing himself or his family, might find 30 bullets barely adequate. After all, not every bullet hits, even at close range, and not every hit incapacitates. You can get killed by a wounded man. These plain life-and-death realities have been ignored for years by people who go ballistic when they hear about how many shots were fired by the police in some encounter with a criminal. As someone who once taught pistol shooting in the Marine Corps, I am not the least bit surprised by the number of shots fired. I have seen people miss a stationary target at close range, even in the safety and calm of a pistol range. We cannot expect everybody to know that. But we can expect them to know that they don’t know — and to stop spouting off about life-and-death issues when they don’t have the facts. The central question as to whether gun control laws save lives or cost lives has generated many factual studies over the years. But these studies have been like the proverbial tree that falls in an empty forest, and has been heard by no one — certainly not by zealots who have made up their minds and don’t want to be confused by the facts. Most factual studies show no reduction in gun crimes, including murder, under gun control laws. A significant number of studies show higher rates of murder and other gun crimes under gun control laws. How can this be? It seems obvious to some gun control zealots that, if no one had guns, there would be fewer armed robberies and fewer people shot to death. But nothing is easier than to disarm peaceful, law-abiding people. And nothing is harder than to disarm people who are neither — especially in a country with hundreds of millions of guns already out there, that are not going to rust away for centuries. When it was legal to buy a shotgun in London in the middle of the 20th century, there were very few armed robberies there. But, after British gun control zealots managed over the years to disarm virtually the entire law-abiding population, armed robberies became literally a hundred times more common. And murder rates rose. One can cherry-pick the factual studies, or cite some studies that have subsequently been discredited, but the great bulk of the studies show that gun control laws do not in fact control guns. On net balance, they do not save lives but cost lives. Gun control laws allow some people to vent their emotions, politicians to grandstand and self-righteous people to “make a statement” — but all at the cost of other people’s lives. — Thomas Sowell is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. |
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Like, that argument was used to reduce the speed limit.
Now, most interstates are 80+ mph. A big CHIT NO to limiting arms will do anything but boost the boldness of the criminal. Any idiot can understand that. |
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Evidently not bro', or this wouldn't even be an issue. Some people want a perfect utopia which it AIN'T gonna happen! Something anti-gun people need to get through their heads!
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Just look at Chicago.
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This is just an observation, but it's interesting to me how so many of the people against gun control tend to be white male republicans.
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Just look at Chicago. And New York! Violent crime is at an all time high! Burglaries and home invasions are up, rape, car jacking, robbery, assault.... and BloomingIdiotberg and his gestapo mayor are perfect examples of what such a gun control policy will do to the public. Warrantless "Stop and Frisk", gun bans, and the strictest laws in the country.... homicide/death rate has almost doubled as well as the violent crime rate! |
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Edited by
Sojourning_Soul
on
Tue 01/22/13 04:22 PM
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This is just an observation, but it's interesting to me how so many of the people against gun control tend to be white male republicans. Maybe it's because there are so few liberal patriots! or Liberals are corrupt, power hungry, money grubbers, and less guns means less resistance to policies that are destroying America! |
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Edited by
Bushidobillyclub
on
Tue 01/22/13 04:21 PM
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This is just an observation, but it's interesting to me how so many of the people against gun control tend to be white male republicans. Which causes which? Maybe they are related, but not causal? Maybe it is a selection effect, are you sure other groups are not represented in significant quantities, but tend to not speak out? A politician willing to support ALL rights would be my ideal candidate. What does that make me? http://www.youtube.com/user/MrColionNoirThis guy is pretty outspoken . . . maybe its just this forum. Maybe if you did a study of youtube you would find a deviation of race, or politics. Dono |
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This is just an observation, but it's interesting to me how so many of the people against gun control tend to be white male republicans. Expand you observation. I am no Repube. I am a Constitutionalist. Do you support the Constitution? Do you support Rule of Law? Do you reeeeealy believe criminals will obey gun laws? Are you an oBlowme supporter? |
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This is just an observation, but it's interesting to me how so many of the people against gun control tend to be white male republicans. |
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 (and I'm not a Republican, but a conservative Independent)
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This is just an observation, but it's interesting to me how so many of the people against gun control tend to be white male republicans. 
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not a republican, rather a person who is very learned in history and already know where this is going... again.... Who would care about how many or what color or how big the magazines on my rifles are... unless they are my enemy? Any questions?
whats his name on Television the other day was saying how these "assult rifles" have no purpose whatever except killing people. Cant hunt with it. (this was just after he discussed how deadly they are) I have been hunting with one since i was 16. Wore out two at the range making money at service rifle comp. Apparently i missed the memo about how they have only one purpose. Not accurate? Have out shot many a 30.06 driver with one at 600 meters... But my point is that people listen to mis-informed idiots like this and this is why they have their opinion. they don't realize that they are being used as pawns in the age old battle of Freedom versus tyranny. ITS NOT ABOUT DUCK HUNTING ANYWAY ITS ABOUT PROTECTING OURSELVES AGAINST A GOVT GONE MAD. why is that so hard to see??? |
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... no comments from the left????
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... no comments from the left???? They're waiting for their Messiah and his archangel Franken....Fienstu..... foolstien.... you know, the wicked witch of the west, to give them one. |
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And the same people yelling the loudest about "its for the children", are for abortion. Confused here. What did i miss? Mabe i should have paid more attention in art class and less in history.
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Yep! It's all about the children!
Here are the confirmed children murdered by drone strikes at the hands of Barack H. Obama HE WINS! He's killed more kids than all the school and theater shooters combined! PAKISTAN Noor Aziz | 8 | male Abdul Wasit | 17 | male Noor Syed | 8 | male Wajid Noor | 9 | male Syed Wali Shah | 7 | male Ayeesha | 3 | female Qari Alamzeb | 14 | male Shoaib | 8 | male Hayatullah KhaMohammad | 16 | male Tariq Aziz | 16 | male Sanaullah Jan | 17 | male Maezol Khan | 8 | female Nasir Khan | male Naeem Khan | male Naeemullah | male Mohammad Tahir | 16 | male Azizul Wahab | 15 | male Fazal Wahab | 16 | male Ziauddin | 16 | male Mohammad Yunus | 16 | male Fazal Hakim | 19 | male Ilyas | 13 | male Sohail | 7 | male Asadullah | 9 | male khalilullah | 9 | male Noor Mohammad | 8 | male Khalid | 12 | male Saifullah | 9 | male Mashooq Jan | 15 | male Nawab | 17 | male Sultanat Khan | 16 | male Ziaur Rahman | 13 | male Noor Mohammad | 15 | male Mohammad Yaas Khan | 16 | male Qari Alamzeb | 14 | male Ziaur Rahman | 17 | male Abdullah | 18 | male Ikramullah Zada | 17 | male Inayatur Rehman | 16 | male Shahbuddin | 15 | male Yahya Khan | 16 |male Rahatullah |17 | male Mohammad Salim | 11 | male Shahjehan | 15 | male Gul Sher Khan | 15 | male Bakht Muneer | 14 | male Numair | 14 | male Mashooq Khan | 16 | male Ihsanullah | 16 | male Luqman | 12 | male Jannatullah | 13 | male Ismail | 12 | male Taseel Khan | 18 | male Zaheeruddin | 16 | male Qari Ishaq | 19 | male Jamshed Khan | 14 | male Alam Nabi | 11 | male Qari Abdul Karim | 19 | male Rahmatullah | 14 | male Abdus Samad | 17 | male Siraj | 16 | male Saeedullah | 17 | male Abdul Waris | 16 | male Darvesh | 13 | male Ameer Said | 15 | male Shaukat | 14 | male Inayatur Rahman | 17 | male Salman | 12 | male Fazal Wahab | 18 | male Baacha Rahman | 13 | male Wali-ur-Rahman | 17 | male Iftikhar | 17 | male Inayatullah | 15 | male Mashooq Khan | 16 | male Ihsanullah | 16 | male Luqman | 12 | male Jannatullah | 13 | male Ismail | 12 | male Abdul Waris | 16 | male Darvesh | 13 | male Ameer Said | 15 | male Shaukat | 14 | male Inayatur Rahman | 17 | male Adnan | 16 | male Najibullah | 13 | male Naeemullah | 17 | male Hizbullah | 10 | male Kitab Gul | 12 | male Wilayat Khan | 11 | male Zabihullah | 16 | male Shehzad Gul | 11 | male Shabir | 15 | male Qari Sharifullah | 17 | male Shafiullah | 16 | male Nimatullah | 14 | male Shakirullah | 16 | male Talha | 8 | male YEMEN Afrah Ali Mohammed Nasser | 9 | female Zayda Ali Mohammed Nasser | 7 | female Hoda Ali Mohammed Nasser | 5 | female Sheikha Ali Mohammed Nasser | 4 | female Ibrahim Abdullah Mokbel Salem Louqye | 13 | male Asmaa Abdullah Mokbel Salem Louqye | 9 | male Salma Abdullah Mokbel Salem Louqye | 4 | female Fatima Abdullah Mokbel Salem Louqye | 3 | female Khadije Ali Mokbel Louqye | 1 | female Hanaa Ali Mokbel Louqye | 6 | female Mohammed Ali Mokbel Salem Louqye | 4 | male Jawass Mokbel Salem Louqye | 15 | female Maryam Hussein Abdullah Awad | 2 | female Shafiq Hussein Abdullah Awad | 1 | female Sheikha Nasser Mahdi Ahmad Bouh | 3 | female Maha Mohammed Saleh Mohammed | 12 | male Soumaya Mohammed Saleh Mohammed | 9 | female Shafika Mohammed Saleh Mohammed | 4 | female Shafiq Mohammed Saleh Mohammed | 2 | male Mabrook Mouqbal Al Qadari | 13 | male Daolah Nasser 10 years | 10 | female AbedalGhani Mohammed Mabkhout | 12 | male Abdel- Rahman Anwar al Awlaki | 16 | male Abdel-Rahman al-Awlaki | 17 | male Nasser Salim | 19 |
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Liberals can put together a gun ban in two or three days.
Yet cannot pass a budget and debt deal in four years. |
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Liberals can put together a gun ban in two or three days. Yet cannot pass a budget and debt deal in four years. A guy is visiting San Francisco, and walks into a small store in Chinatown. He notices a small bronze statue of a rat. He asks the owner "how much", and the owner replies "$50 for the bronze rat, and $1000 for the story behind it." ... The guy says, "forget the story", and buys the rat. As he's walking down the street he notices two live rats following him. As he continues to walk, more rats start following him. He starts to get a little concerned, and heads for the waterfront. By the time he gets there there are thousands and thousands of rats following him. He walks up to the end of the pier and throws the bronze rat into the bay, and the rats all follow and leap off of the pier and drown. The guy rushes back to the store and walks in. The owner says, "Ah!, so your back for the story". The guys says, "No, I was wondering if you have any bronze liberals? 
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