xenophon
Member
Wow, I've been reading a lot of letter's to the editor in WI lately, but was surprised to find this fine piece at 2:45am and was even more surprised when I saw who the author was!!
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Critics' claims prevent reasonable debate
http://www.jsonline.com/news/editor...ov03/184731.asp
(under the CONCEALED CARRY LAW heading)
Opinion pieces in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel have mischaracterized the debate over concealed carry as well as my own research. One column made it appear as though the academic debate is between "the work of one man," myself, and a couple of critics. That is not the case.
Academics who have published refereed research in academic journals showing that right-to-carry laws reduce violent crime include: Carlisle Moody, David B. Mustard, John E. Whitley and David E. Olson, among others. While some studies claim the laws produce no change in violent crime rates, among all the national studies that have been done, no refereed academic publication concluded that these laws produce a significant increase in violent crime.
Contrary to claims that my book "More Guns, Less Crime" "flunked peer review," not only have the results been confirmed by many academics, but the book was published and refereed by the University of Chicago Press.
As to claims that permit holders put others at risk, consider the two largest states with right-to-carry laws, Florida and Texas. In the 15 years after Florida's concealed-carry law took effect in October 1987, about 800,000 licenses were issued. Only 143 of these were revoked because of firearms-related violations. Almost all of these cases apparently resulted from people accidentally carrying a gun into a restricted area, such as an airport, and no harm was done. The experience in Texas was similar.
Contrary to assertions that right-to-carry laws endanger police, the academic research consistently shows that right-to-carry laws reduce murders of police by between 4% and 9% per year because fewer criminals carry guns when law-abiding citizens are allowed to protect themselves.
As to Gregory Stanford's bogus claim that I "made up a key survey," that assertion involves one number in one sentence in the book filled with thousands of numbers. A computer crash destroyed the data file for that number, but the survey was replicated, and I obtained very similar results.
John R. Lott Jr.
American Enterprise Institute
Washington
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Critics' claims prevent reasonable debate
http://www.jsonline.com/news/editor...ov03/184731.asp
(under the CONCEALED CARRY LAW heading)
Opinion pieces in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel have mischaracterized the debate over concealed carry as well as my own research. One column made it appear as though the academic debate is between "the work of one man," myself, and a couple of critics. That is not the case.
Academics who have published refereed research in academic journals showing that right-to-carry laws reduce violent crime include: Carlisle Moody, David B. Mustard, John E. Whitley and David E. Olson, among others. While some studies claim the laws produce no change in violent crime rates, among all the national studies that have been done, no refereed academic publication concluded that these laws produce a significant increase in violent crime.
Contrary to claims that my book "More Guns, Less Crime" "flunked peer review," not only have the results been confirmed by many academics, but the book was published and refereed by the University of Chicago Press.
As to claims that permit holders put others at risk, consider the two largest states with right-to-carry laws, Florida and Texas. In the 15 years after Florida's concealed-carry law took effect in October 1987, about 800,000 licenses were issued. Only 143 of these were revoked because of firearms-related violations. Almost all of these cases apparently resulted from people accidentally carrying a gun into a restricted area, such as an airport, and no harm was done. The experience in Texas was similar.
Contrary to assertions that right-to-carry laws endanger police, the academic research consistently shows that right-to-carry laws reduce murders of police by between 4% and 9% per year because fewer criminals carry guns when law-abiding citizens are allowed to protect themselves.
As to Gregory Stanford's bogus claim that I "made up a key survey," that assertion involves one number in one sentence in the book filled with thousands of numbers. A computer crash destroyed the data file for that number, but the survey was replicated, and I obtained very similar results.
John R. Lott Jr.
American Enterprise Institute
Washington
