Myths about guns are truly deadly
By JOHN STOSSEL
http://www.unionleader.com/articles_showa.html?article=62176

GUNS are dangerous. But myths are dangerous, too. Myths about guns are
very dangerous, because they lead to bad laws. And bad laws kill
people.

"Don't tell me this bill will not make a difference," said President
Clinton, who signed the Brady Bill into law.

Sorry. Even the federal government can't say it has made a difference.
The Centers for Disease Control did an extensive review of various
types of gun control: waiting periods, registration and licensing, and
bans on certain firearms. It found that the idea that gun control laws
have reduced violent crime is simply a myth.

I wanted to know why the laws weren't working, so I asked the experts.
"I'm not going in the store to buy no gun," said one maximum-security
inmate in New Jersey. "So, I could care less if they had a background
check or not."

"There's guns everywhere," said another inmate. "If you got money, you
can get a gun."

Talking to prisoners about guns emphasizes a few key lessons. First,
criminals don't obey the law. (That's why we call them "criminals.")
Second, no law can repeal the law of supply and demand. If there's
money to be made selling something, someone will sell it.

A study funded by the Department of Justice confirmed what the
prisoners said. Criminals buy their guns illegally and easily. The
study found that what felons fear most is not the police or the prison
system, but their fellow citizens, who might be armed. One inmate told
me, "When you gonna rob somebody you don't know, it makes it harder
because you don't know what to expect out of them."

What if it were legal in America for adults to carry concealed
weapons? I put that question to gun-control advocate Rev. Al Sharpton.
His eyes opened wide, and he said, "We'd be living in a state of
terror!"

In fact, it was a trick question. Most states now have "right to
carry" laws. And their people are not living in a state of terror. Not
one of those states reported an upsurge in crime.

Why? Because guns are used more than twice as often defensively as
criminally. When armed men broke into Susan Gonzalez' house and shot
her, she grabbed her husband's gun and started firing. "I figured if I
could shoot one of them, even if we both died, someone would know who
had been in my home." She killed one of the intruders. She lived.
Studies on defensive use of guns find this kind of thing happens at
least 700,000 times a year.

And there's another myth, with a special risk of its own. The myth has
it that the Supreme Court, in a case called United States v. Miller,
interpreted the Second Amendment - "A well regulated Militia, being
necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to
keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed" - as conferring a special
privilege on the National Guard, and not as affirming an individual
right. In fact, what the court held is only that the right to bear
arms doesn't mean Congress can't prohibit certain kinds of guns that
aren't necessary for the common defense. Interestingly, federal law
still says every able-bodied American man from 17 to 44 is a member of
the United States militia.

What's the special risk? As Alex Kozinski, a federal appeals judge and
an immigrant from Eastern Europe, warned in 2003, "the simple truth -
born of experience - is that tyranny thrives best where government
need not fear the wrath of an armed people."

"The prospect of tyranny may not grab the headlines the way vivid
stories of gun crime routinely do," Judge Kozinski noted. "But few saw
the Third Reich coming until it was too late. The Second Amendment is
a doomsday provision, one designed for those exceptionally rare
circumstances where all other rights have failed - where the
government refuses to stand for reelection and silences those who
protest; where courts have lost the courage to oppose, or can find no
one to enforce their decrees. However improbable these contingencies
may seem today, facing them unprepared is a mistake a free people get
to make only once."

Myths about guns are truly deadly
By JOHN STOSSEL
http://www.unionleader.com/articles_showa.html?article=62176

GUNS are dangerous. But myths are dangerous, too. Myths about guns are
very dangerous, because they lead to bad laws. And bad laws kill
people.

"Don't tell me this bill will not make a difference," said President
Clinton, who signed the Brady Bill into law.

Sorry. Even the federal government can't say it has made a difference.
The Centers for Disease Control did an extensive review of various
types of gun control: waiting periods, registration and licensing, and
bans on certain firearms. It found that the idea that gun control laws
have reduced violent crime is simply a myth.

I wanted to know why the laws weren't working, so I asked the experts.
"I'm not going in the store to buy no gun," said one maximum-security
inmate in New Jersey. "So, I could care less if they had a background
check or not."

"There's guns everywhere," said another inmate. "If you got money, you
can get a gun."

Talking to prisoners about guns emphasizes a few key lessons. First,
criminals don't obey the law. (That's why we call them "criminals.")
Second, no law can repeal the law of supply and demand. If there's
money to be made selling something, someone will sell it.

Studies on defensive use of guns find this kind of thing happens at

"There's guns everywhere," said another inmate. "If you got money, you
can get a gun."

Talking to prisoners about guns emphasizes a few key lessons. First,
criminals don't obey the law. (That's why we call them "criminals.")
Second, no law can repeal the law of supply and demand. If there's
money to be made selling something, someone will sell it.

Myths about guns are truly deadly
By JOHN STOSSEL
http://www.unionleader.com/articles_showa.html?article=62176

GUNS are dangerous. But myths are dangerous, too. Myths about guns are
very dangerous, because they lead to bad laws. And bad laws kill
people.

"Don't tell me this bill will not make a difference," said President
Clinton, who signed the Brady Bill into law.

Sorry. Even the federal government can't say it has made a difference.
The Centers for Disease Control did an extensive review of various
types of gun control: waiting periods, registration and licensing, and
bans on certain firearms. It found that the idea that gun control laws
have reduced violent crime is simply a myth.

I wanted to know why the laws weren't working, so I asked the experts.
"I'm not going in the store to buy no gun," said one maximum-security
inmate in New Jersey. "So, I could care less if they had a background
check or not."

"There's guns everywhere," said another inmate. "If you got money, you
can get a gun."

Talking to prisoners about guns emphasizes a few key lessons. First,
criminals don't obey the law. (That's why we call them "criminals.")
Second, no law can repeal the law of supply and demand. If there's
money to be made selling something, someone will sell it.

A study funded by the Department of Justice confirmed what the
prisoners said. Criminals buy their guns illegally and easily. The
study found that what felons fear most is not the police or the prison
system, but their fellow citizens, who might be armed. One inmate told
me, "When you gonna rob somebody you don't know, it makes it harder
because you don't know what to expect out of them."

What if it were legal in America for adults to carry concealed
weapons? I put that question to gun-control advocate Rev. Al Sharpton.
His eyes opened wide, and he said, "We'd be living in a state of
terror!"

In fact, it was a trick question. Most states now have "right to
carry" laws. And their people are not living in a state of terror. Not
one of those states reported an upsurge in crime.

Why? Because guns are used more than twice as often defensively as
criminally. When armed men broke into Susan Gonzalez' house and shot
her, she grabbed her husband's gun and started firing. "I figured if I
could shoot one of them, even if we both died, someone would know who
had been in my home." She killed one of the intruders. She lived.
Studies on defensive use of guns find this kind of thing happens at
least 700,000 times a year.

And there's another myth, with a special risk of its own. The myth has
it that the Supreme Court, in a case called United States v. Miller,
interpreted the Second Amendment - "A well regulated Militia, being
necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to
keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed" - as conferring a special
privilege on the National Guard, and not as affirming an individual
right. In fact, what the court held is only that the right to bear
arms doesn't mean Congress can't prohibit certain kinds of guns that
aren't necessary for the common defense. Interestingly, federal law
still says every able-bodied American man from 17 to 44 is a member of
the United States militia.

What's the special risk? As Alex Kozinski, a federal appeals judge and
an immigrant from Eastern Europe, warned in 2003, "the simple truth -
born of experience - is that tyranny thrives best where government
need not fear the wrath of an armed people."

"The prospect of tyranny may not grab the headlines the way vivid
stories of gun crime routinely do," Judge Kozinski noted. "But few saw
the Third Reich coming until it was too late. The Second Amendment is
a doomsday provision, one designed for those exceptionally rare
circumstances where all other rights have failed - where the
government refuses to stand for reelection and silences those who
protest; where courts have lost the courage to oppose, or can find no
one to enforce their decrees. However improbable these contingencies
may seem today, facing them unprepared is a mistake a free people get
to make only once."


--
"War is God's way of teaching Americans geography" -- Ambrose Bierce

"America is a vast conspiracy to make you happy." -- John Updike

"Long term commitment in relationships is only necessary because it takes
so damn long to raise children. Marriage may well be some kind of trick
to keep the males around beyond sexual satiation." -- Captain Compassion

"Progress is the increasing control of the environment by life.
--Will Durant

Joseph R. Darancette
daranc@NOSPAMverizon.net

Myths about guns are truly deadly
By JOHN STOSSEL
http://www.unionleader.com/articles_showa.html?article=62176

GUNS are dangerous. But myths are dangerous, too. Myths about guns are
very dangerous, because they lead to bad laws. And bad laws kill
people.

"Don't tell me this bill will not make a difference," said President
Clinton, who signed the Brady Bill into law.

Sorry. Even the federal government can't say it has made a difference.
The Centers for Disease Control did an extensive review of various
types of gun control: waiting periods, registration and licensing, and
bans on certain firearms. It found that the idea that gun control laws
have reduced violent crime is simply a myth.

I wanted to know why the laws weren't working, so I asked the experts.
"I'm not going in the store to buy no gun," said one maximum-security
inmate in New Jersey. "So, I could care less if they had a background
check or not."

"There's guns everywhere," said another inmate. "If you got money, you
can get a gun."

Talking to prisoners about guns emphasizes a few key lessons. First,
criminals don't obey the law. (That's why we call them "criminals.")
Second, no law can repeal the law of supply and demand. If there's
money to be made selling something, someone will sell it.

A study funded by the Department of Justice confirmed what the
prisoners said. Criminals buy their guns illegally and easily. The
study found that what felons fear most is not the police or the prison
system, but their fellow citizens, who might be armed. One inmate told
me, "When you gonna rob somebody you don't know, it makes it harder
because you don't know what to expect out of them."

What if it were legal in America for adults to carry concealed
weapons? I put that question to gun-control advocate Rev. Al Sharpton.
His eyes opened wide, and he said, "We'd be living in a state of
terror!"

In fact, it was a trick question. Most states now have "right to
carry" laws. And their people are not living in a state of terror. Not
one of those states reported an upsurge in crime.

Why? Because guns are used more than twice as often defensively as
criminally. When armed men broke into Susan Gonzalez' house and shot
her, she grabbed her husband's gun and started firing. "I figured if I
could shoot one of them, even if we both died, someone would know who
had been in my home." She killed one of the intruders. She lived.
Studies on defensive use of guns find this kind of thing happens at
least 700,000 times a year.

And there's another myth, with a special risk of its own. The myth has
it that the Supreme Court, in a case called United States v. Miller,
interpreted the Second Amendment — "A well regulated Militia, being
necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to
keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed" — as conferring a special
privilege on the National Guard, and not as affirming an individual
right. In fact, what the court held is only that the right to bear
arms doesn't mean Congress can't prohibit certain kinds of guns that
aren't necessary for the common defense. Interestingly, federal law
still says every able-bodied American man from 17 to 44 is a member of
the United States militia.

What's the special risk? As Alex Kozinski, a federal appeals judge and
an immigrant from Eastern Europe, warned in 2003, "the simple truth —
born of experience — is that tyranny thrives best where government
need not fear the wrath of an armed people."

"The prospect of tyranny may not grab the headlines the way vivid
stories of gun crime routinely do," Judge Kozinski noted. "But few saw
the Third Reich coming until it was too late. The Second Amendment is
a doomsday provision, one designed for those exceptionally rare
circumstances where all other rights have failed — where the
government refuses to stand for reelection and silences those who
protest; where courts have lost the courage to oppose, or can find no
one to enforce their decrees. However improbable these contingencies
may seem today, facing them unprepared is a mistake a free people get
to make only once."

Myths about guns are truly deadly
By JOHN STOSSEL
http://www.unionleader.com/articles_showa.html?article=62176

GUNS are dangerous. But myths are dangerous, too. Myths about guns are
very dangerous, because they lead to bad laws. And bad laws kill
people.

"Don't tell me this bill will not make a difference," said President
Clinton, who signed the Brady Bill into law.

Sorry. Even the federal government can't say it has made a difference.
The Centers for Disease Control did an extensive review of various
types of gun control: waiting periods, registration and licensing, and
bans on certain firearms. It found that the idea that gun control laws
have reduced violent crime is simply a myth.

I wanted to know why the laws weren't working, so I asked the experts.
"I'm not going in the store to buy no gun," said one maximum-security
inmate in New Jersey. "So, I could care less if they had a background
check or not."

"There's guns everywhere," said another inmate. "If you got money, you
can get a gun."

Talking to prisoners about guns emphasizes a few key lessons. First,
criminals don't obey the law. (That's why we call them "criminals.")
Second, no law can repeal the law of supply and demand. If there's
money to be made selling something, someone will sell it.

A study funded by the Department of Justice confirmed what the
prisoners said. Criminals buy their guns illegally and easily. The
study found that what felons fear most is not the police or the prison
system, but their fellow citizens, who might be armed. One inmate told
me, "When you gonna rob somebody you don't know, it makes it harder
because you don't know what to expect out of them."

What if it were legal in America for adults to carry concealed
weapons? I put that question to gun-control advocate Rev. Al Sharpton.
His eyes opened wide, and he said, "We'd be living in a state of
terror!"

In fact, it was a trick question. Most states now have "right to
carry" laws. And their people are not living in a state of terror. Not
one of those states reported an upsurge in crime.

Why? Because guns are used more than twice as often defensively as
criminally. When armed men broke into Susan Gonzalez' house and shot
her, she grabbed her husband's gun and started firing. "I figured if I
could shoot one of them, even if we both died, someone would know who
had been in my home." She killed one of the intruders. She lived.
Studies on defensive use of guns find this kind of thing happens at
least 700,000 times a year.

And there's another myth, with a special risk of its own. The myth has
it that the Supreme Court, in a case called United States v. Miller,
interpreted the Second Amendment - "A well regulated Militia, being
necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to
keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed" - as conferring a special
privilege on the National Guard, and not as affirming an individual
right. In fact, what the court held is only that the right to bear
arms doesn't mean Congress can't prohibit certain kinds of guns that
aren't necessary for the common defense. Interestingly, federal law
still says every able-bodied American man from 17 to 44 is a member of
the United States militia.

What's the special risk? As Alex Kozinski, a federal appeals judge and
an immigrant from Eastern Europe, warned in 2003, "the simple truth -
born of experience - is that tyranny thrives best where government
need not fear the wrath of an armed people."

"The prospect of tyranny may not grab the headlines the way vivid
stories of gun crime routinely do," Judge Kozinski noted. "But few saw
the Third Reich coming until it was too late. The Second Amendment is
a doomsday provision, one designed for those exceptionally rare
circumstances where all other rights have failed - where the
government refuses to stand for reelection and silences those who
protest; where courts have lost the courage to oppose, or can find no
one to enforce their decrees. However improbable these contingencies
may seem today, facing them unprepared is a mistake a free people get
to make only once."


--
"War is God's way of teaching Americans geography" -- Ambrose Bierce

"America is a vast conspiracy to make you happy." -- John Updike

"Long term commitment in relationships is only necessary because it takes
so damn long to raise children. Marriage may well be some kind of trick
to keep the males around beyond sexual satiation." -- Captain Compassion

"Progress is the increasing control of the environment by life.
--Will Durant

Joseph R. Darancette
daranc@NOSPAMverizon.net

Myths about guns are truly deadly
By JOHN STOSSEL
http://www.unionleader.com/articles_showa.html?article=62176

GUNS are dangerous. But myths are dangerous, too. Myths about guns are
very dangerous, because they lead to bad laws. And bad laws kill
people.

"Don't tell me this bill will not make a difference," said President
Clinton, who signed the Brady Bill into law.

Sorry. Even the federal government can't say it has made a difference.
The Centers for Disease Control did an extensive review of various
types of gun control: waiting periods, registration and licensing, and
bans on certain firearms. It found that the idea that gun control laws
have reduced violent crime is simply a myth.

I wanted to know why the laws weren't working, so I asked the experts.
"I'm not going in the store to buy no gun," said one maximum-security
inmate in New Jersey. "So, I could care less if they had a background
check or not."

"There's guns everywhere," said another inmate. "If you got money, you
can get a gun."

Talking to prisoners about guns emphasizes a few key lessons. First,
criminals don't obey the law. (That's why we call them "criminals.")
Second, no law can repeal the law of supply and demand. If there's
money to be made selling something, someone will sell it.

A study funded by the Department of Justice confirmed what the
prisoners said. Criminals buy their guns illegally and easily. The
study found that what felons fear most is not the police or the prison
system, but their fellow citizens, who might be armed. One inmate told
me, "When you gonna rob somebody you don't know, it makes it harder
because you don't know what to expect out of them."

What if it were legal in America for adults to carry concealed
weapons? I put that question to gun-control advocate Rev. Al Sharpton.
His eyes opened wide, and he said, "We'd be living in a state of
terror!"

In fact, it was a trick question. Most states now have "right to
carry" laws. And their people are not living in a state of terror. Not
one of those states reported an upsurge in crime.

Why? Because guns are used more than twice as often defensively as
criminally. When armed men broke into Susan Gonzalez' house and shot
her, she grabbed her husband's gun and started firing. "I figured if I
could shoot one of them, even if we both died, someone would know who
had been in my home." She killed one of the intruders. She lived.
Studies on defensive use of guns find this kind of thing happens at
least 700,000 times a year.

And there's another myth, with a special risk of its own. The myth has
it that the Supreme Court, in a case called United States v. Miller,
interpreted the Second Amendment - "A well regulated Militia, being
necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to
keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed" - as conferring a special
privilege on the National Guard, and not as affirming an individual
right. In fact, what the court held is only that the right to bear
arms doesn't mean Congress can't prohibit certain kinds of guns that
aren't necessary for the common defense. Interestingly, federal law
still says every able-bodied American man from 17 to 44 is a member of
the United States militia.

What's the special risk? As Alex Kozinski, a federal appeals judge and
an immigrant from Eastern Europe, warned in 2003, "the simple truth -
born of experience - is that tyranny thrives best where government
need not fear the wrath of an armed people."

"The prospect of tyranny may not grab the headlines the way vivid
stories of gun crime routinely do," Judge Kozinski noted. "But few saw
the Third Reich coming until it was too late. The Second Amendment is
a doomsday provision, one designed for those exceptionally rare
circumstances where all other rights have failed - where the
government refuses to stand for reelection and silences those who
protest; where courts have lost the courage to oppose, or can find no
one to enforce their decrees. However improbable these contingencies
may seem today, facing them unprepared is a mistake a free people get
to make only once."


--
"War is God's way of teaching Americans geography" -- Ambrose Bierce

"America is a vast conspiracy to make you happy." -- John Updike

"Long term commitment in relationships is only necessary because it takes
so damn long to raise children. Marriage may well be some kind of trick
to keep the males around beyond sexual satiation." -- Captain Compassion

"Progress is the increasing control of the environment by life.
--Will Durant

Joseph R. Darancette
daranc@NOSPAMverizon.net