[Vision2020] Firearms - Dangerous or Useful?

[Mike Finkbiner]

My earlier post dragged some numbers into the debate, because I think a lot 
of people treat the issue of firearms as an emotional issue and don't look 
at the facts.  The page I listed

http://www.gunowners.org/sourcetb.htm

is merely a group of links to the original studies so those interested could 
look at them.  Any post on V2020 has to oversimplify a complex issue like 
this, which is why I think we need to reference more detailed work.

The main points I was trying to make are -

1) When we want to discuss the dangers of any technology, we need to include 
the benefits as well as the risks.  Firearms have many benefits to honest 
citizens who are being preyed upon by criminals.

2) Firearms are dangerous, but most of the people who are being killed are 
already involved in criminal behavior and the death rate among children is 
very much lower than other types of accidents.   Honest people are very 
unlikely to be killed by guns in their houses, and while keeping guns out of 
children's hands is important, fences around swimming pools might save more 
lives.  People who stress the danger of gun ownership without putting it in 
context are not giving you the full story, for whatever reason.

3) Total homicide and suicide rates around the world don't appear to be 
related to the rate of firearms ownership.

I didn't get into the question of rights, but here's my brief take on it.

To my mind it's quite clear that honest citizens have the right to self 
defense against both criminals and tyrants, and the people who wrote the 
Constitution simply codified that as the second most important amendment 
after free speech.  Look at the infamous Dred Scott decision, the 1856 
Supreme Court case which essentially held that blacks were not citizens.  
Here's part of their reasoning -

"It would give to persons of the negro race, who were recognized as citizens 
in any one State of the Union, the right to enter every other State whenever 
they pleased, singly or in companies, without pass or passport, and without 
obstruction, to sojourn there as long as they pleased, to go where they 
pleased at every hour of the day or night without molestation, unless they 
committed some violation of law for which a white man would be punished; and 
it would give them the full liberty of speech in public, and in private upon 
all subjects upon which its own citizens might speak; to hold public 
meetings upon political affairs, and TO KEEP AND CARRY ARMS WHERE THEY 
WENT."   (Emphasis added)

In other words, if they allowed blacks to be citizens they could keep and 
bear arms, which terrified many people at the time.  Most gun control laws 
in this country started as a means of controlling the lower classes (blacks, 
Italians, Irishmen, etc.)

As a society we have generally held that certain people forfeit at least 
some of the rights as citizens, such as voting or firearms ownership. That 
included convicted felons and people who are involuntarily committed to 
mental institutions by the courts.

The second part has been harder to deal with then the first, but the NRA 
just joined with a wide range of people in congress to change the instant 
check program.  H.R. 2640 will give financial support to the states to put 
people with mental health orders saying they are dangerous or mentally 
incompetant on the national list of people who are prohibited from owning 
firearms.

- http://www.nraila.org/Legislation/Federal/Read.aspx?id=3128

I'm not clear if Hamilton would have been on that part of the list, but we 
as a state need to to do some serious thinking about how we handle people 
like him.

As far as the comments about his access to armor piercing ammunition and 
automatic weapons, I don't believe he had either.  Almost any ammunition 
fired from a normal hunting rifle will pierce soft armor, the sort that 
policemen generally wear.   They are designed to defeat normal pistol 
rounds, so armor piercing ammunition wouldn't be needed.  Our troops in Iraq 
are wearing heavier vests, with pockets for special hard plates which will 
defeat many, but not all, normal rifle rounds.

Both of the weapons he had, were standard semi-automatic rifles.  There was 
some confusion about the AK-47 clone he used, but when the police tried it 
they found it will only fire one round each time you pull the trigger.   
Both rifles have magazines which can be replaced, and he had several for 
each so he was able to quickly reload and keep firing, but only one round at 
a time.

So - we need to hold people responsible for their actions.  Crimes committed 
with firearms should be punished much more severely than those without.  
People who are careless about allowing untrained people access to their 
firearms should be held responsible.  Training and education about safe 
firearms use is important.

Oleg Volk came to the country from Russia many years ago.  He does a far 
more eloquent job than I can to put the case for responsible gun ownership, 
unfettered by a government which may not always have the rights of honest 
citizens at heart.

- http://www.a-human-right.com/introduction.html


- Mike


Mike Finkbiner
mike_l_f at hotmail.com

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