I just read the April 30th issue of "The New Yorker" and was disgusted by a particular piece of tripe found in the commentary section regarding gun control and the VT tragedy. I'm a supporter of the first amendment, and believe that everyone should have a chance to be heard, but this column by Adam Gopnik repeatedly represented the author's opinions as fact, which just begs for a rebuttal. After some thought, I decided not to stop there. I want to write a paper for submittal to every newspaper, magazine, and journal I can think of that includes cited sources and good, hard facts about gun control and gun violence.
Here are some excerpts from Gopnik's column that I'd like your help disproving or arguing against:
"...an obviously disturbed student, with a history of mental illness, was able to buy guns whose essential purpose is to kill people..."
"The whole world saw that the United States has more gun violence than other countries because we have more guns and are willing to sell them to madmen who want to kill people."
"...on a recent list of the fourteen worst mass shootings in Western democracies since the nineteen-sixties the United States claimed seven, and, just as important, no other country on the list has had a repeat performance as severe as the first."
"Nations with tight gun laws have, on the whole, less gun violence;"
"...the point of lawmaking is not to act as precisely as possible, in order to punish the latest crime; it is to act as comprehensively as possible, in order to prevent the next one."
"Semi-automatic Glocks and Walthers, Cho's weapons, are for killing people. They are not made for hunting, and it's not easy to protect yourself with them. (If having a loaded semi-automatic on hand kept you safe, cops would not be shot as often as they are.)"
:banghead:
"There is no reason any private citizen in a democracy should own a handgun."
Obviously, this guy doesn't know what he's talking about. Now help me prove it to anyone who might actually believe him.
I'm looking for stats on cops who've successfully defended themselves with their weapons. Groups who hunt with semi-auto pistols. Stats about how many semi-auto target shooters we have in America. Nations with tight gun laws that still have gun violence. Stats on where America stands in gun violence as compared to other countries, and this "recent list of the fourteen worst mass shootings" that Gopnik refers to but doesn't name or cite. I'd also like good, defendable stats on people who've used handguns to save their own lives or the lives of others, and any other useful information you think would help me to prove my point to readers who probably know very little about firearms.
Thanks in advance.
Here are some excerpts from Gopnik's column that I'd like your help disproving or arguing against:
"...an obviously disturbed student, with a history of mental illness, was able to buy guns whose essential purpose is to kill people..."
"The whole world saw that the United States has more gun violence than other countries because we have more guns and are willing to sell them to madmen who want to kill people."
"...on a recent list of the fourteen worst mass shootings in Western democracies since the nineteen-sixties the United States claimed seven, and, just as important, no other country on the list has had a repeat performance as severe as the first."
"Nations with tight gun laws have, on the whole, less gun violence;"
"...the point of lawmaking is not to act as precisely as possible, in order to punish the latest crime; it is to act as comprehensively as possible, in order to prevent the next one."
"Semi-automatic Glocks and Walthers, Cho's weapons, are for killing people. They are not made for hunting, and it's not easy to protect yourself with them. (If having a loaded semi-automatic on hand kept you safe, cops would not be shot as often as they are.)"
:banghead: "There is no reason any private citizen in a democracy should own a handgun."
Obviously, this guy doesn't know what he's talking about. Now help me prove it to anyone who might actually believe him.
I'm looking for stats on cops who've successfully defended themselves with their weapons. Groups who hunt with semi-auto pistols. Stats about how many semi-auto target shooters we have in America. Nations with tight gun laws that still have gun violence. Stats on where America stands in gun violence as compared to other countries, and this "recent list of the fourteen worst mass shootings" that Gopnik refers to but doesn't name or cite. I'd also like good, defendable stats on people who've used handguns to save their own lives or the lives of others, and any other useful information you think would help me to prove my point to readers who probably know very little about firearms.
Thanks in advance.