Gun control
Saturday, April 28 at 2:00 PM

K.A. Skala of Denver writes:

Greg Dobbs says: “. . . gun rights advocates can’t point to a single country with strict gun control . . . where there’s a higher rate of gun deaths than . . .in the United States” ("Reasonable restrictions . . .", 4/21). That is a false argument, apples and oranges. Some countries with stiff laws have fewer deaths because of their history, mentality and attitude to authority.
Example: Japan. Better comparison is two similar regions in the same country.
States and cities in the U.S. with stiff laws do have higher rates than places with “shall issue” laws and armed population. Washington, D.C. is a crime capital of the US, with Chicago not far behind. Schools with total bans on guns do have a higher rate of gun deaths than the surrounding country. Also, countries with easy access to guns have less violent crime. Examples: Switzerland, and for violence outside the conflict with the Palestinians, Israel. Equally convincing: when a region relaxes the laws, crime goes down; when it stiffens them, crime goes up (numerous examples). Finally, Dobbs is getting his proof: Great Britain and Australia recently virtually disarmed the population.
Crime shot up. The rate of death is well on the way to exceed the US, if it hasn’t already. Q.E.D.

This letter has not been edited.


READER COMMENTS

So allowing citizens to protect themselves lowers crime, eh? What a concept. Nannyism simply does not work.

Posted by clyde on April 29, 2007 07:25 AM

Did you know that Americans of Japanese descent living in the US have a lower murder rate than the people of Japan? In the US they have easy access to guns but in Japan you can not buy a firearm.Figure that one out.

Posted by Ron on April 29, 2007 10:57 AM

Did you know that England has always had a homicide rate lower than the US even when they had no gun control laws.Before any gun control laws were put in England their homicide rate was about 25% of ours.After decades of gun control in England the rate is still about 25% of ours.Figure that one out.

Posted by Ron on April 29, 2007 11:06 AM

I will keep my firearms and be quite assured that if me or my family is threatned I can defend them anytime. I don't give a flying crap what the rest of the world does!!

Posted by A Citizen on April 29, 2007 02:03 PM

To A Citizen.There are a lot of people that want to turn you into a criminal for owning a gun including the UN.Join the NRA today and help fight the battle.1-877-NRA-2000.

Posted by Ron on April 29, 2007 05:42 PM

Ron is well aware that there are no proposals to outlaw all gun ownership. But he likes to ignore the truth when he wants to make an invalid point.

The NRA is opposed to laws which would make it easier to identify people like the VT killer. It is opposed to laws whihc would allow law enforcement agencies to maintain and share a data bank of people who have gun permits. It is opposed to laws which would permit the people who grant gun permits to know about applicants who have a history of mental illness. It is opposed to laws which would allow law enforcement agencies to share information about what is called gun trace data that would allow law enforcement agencies to trace guns used in crimes. "A crime gun trace tracks the sales history of the gun, from manufacturer, to distributor, to retailer, to first retail purchaser. " For example, ATF gun trace data showed that a mere 1% of gun dealers account for 60% of gun crimes, information which the law enforcement agencies could use to target their efforts. Through the auspices of the NRA, the ATF withheld this information from the public, although it furnished the information to the gun industry. It's as though the NRA is promoting the freedom of gun dealers to see guns to people who couldn't qualify for them if the truth were known.

This propaganda and false information spread by unscrupulous people like Ron, suggesting that laws are being proposed which would outlaw all gun ownership, is a straw man,a red herring. to divert the attention of the public from the efforts of organizations like the NRA to protect the wrong people, the people who shouldn't have guns.

Posted by Truth on April 29, 2007 07:30 PM

Truth is not telling the truth again but telling his anti-gun lies.Every statement he makes is to take your Right to Keep and Bear Arms away.Call the NRA and they will tell you the truth about these issues.1-800-392-8683.While you are on the phone join the NRA and help counter the lies that Truth is trying to spread.Also they can tell you about all the anti-gun legislation that is being introduced.Truth says that the NRA is trying to protect the wrong persons right to own guns.The only problem is that Truth thinks that all US citizens are "the wrong people to own guns".He even said in one of his letters that I would be the wrong kind of person to own a firearm just because I thought that people with concealed weapons permits should have had the the right to defend the students at VT.Truth is the kind of person all gun owners need to fight because what he tells is "half truths" about the gun issue.

Posted by Ron on April 30, 2007 07:10 AM

Ron, from the things I have read, since England banned guns, violent crimes have sky-rocketed. From assaults to murder to rapes & robberies. I think your statement may not be true.

Posted by Jay on April 30, 2007 02:59 PM

Recently, Great Britain passed a law prohibiting long-rifle and shotgun owners from storing these weapons in their private homes. The owner of the weapon is required to register the weapon and have it stored at a ‘hunting club, in a secured vault’. Since the enactment of this law, home invasion robberies referred to as ‘smash and grabs’ have increased dramatically. Reports have stated that several homeowners have suffered serious injuries from these attacks and yes, there have been a few fatalities. It seems clear that when the ‘thugs’ perceived that the homeowner could defend themselves of their property, the thugs would go elsewhere. No with no deterrent in place, the thugs have no fear and only the innocent law abiding citizen will suffer. Whatever, we do in America let’s not pass gun laws which would take away our right to defend our families, our homes, or our selves. If we do the thugs win, plain and simple.

Posted by Rob on April 30, 2007 06:34 PM

Jay.The data I gave was before the total ban of firearms in England so things might have changed now.

Posted by Ron on May 1, 2007 10:52 AM

Thanks for the info Ron I will give the NRA a call.

Posted by A Citizen on May 2, 2007 09:25 AM

I as well.

I'll be buying a lifetime NRA membership. Even though I don't agree with the NRA 100% of the time, I agree with them far more than any leftie gun-grabber.

Posted by RickyLee on May 3, 2007 02:17 PM

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