[577] in libertarians
Laissez Faire Book News: GUNS, CRIME, AND FREEDOM
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Chris Whitten)
Tue Jan 24 10:34:04 1995
Date: Tue, 24 Jan 1995 10:27:34 -0500 (EST)
From: Chris Whitten <lfb@panix.com>
Apparently-To: <libertarians@mit.edu>
Most emotionally compelling case for gun rights:
An American brutally mugged every 29 seconds
GUNS, CRIME, AND FREEDOM
by Wayne LaPierre
foreword by Tom Clancy
[Regnery Publishing]
(reviewed by Jim Powell)
This is the most compulsively readable case for gun rights I
have encountered in a very long time.
LaPierre, chief executive officer of the National Rifle
Association, marshalls unforgettable stories and dramatic facts
to tell an emotionally compelling story: the saga of the Second
Amendment, the ability of an armed populace to resist tyranny,
how gun rights enables people to stop crime, an international
perspective on crime and gun control, the insidious crusade to
undermine gun rights, today's crime explosion, the collapse of
the government "justice" system, the scandal of "juvenile
justice," cushy prisons, chronic abuses by the notorious Bureau
of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, the deterrent effect of capital
punishment, an agenda for restoring gun rights and getting tough
on crime.
While LaPierre provides an unusually well-developed
exposition, it's the stories and facts that jump out at you.
Perhaps the best way I can show you the value of this book is to
share a few highlights:
"In 1994, one American will lose his or her life to violent
crime every 21 minutes. One woman will be raped every 5 minutes.
One of our citizens will be robbed every 46 seconds, assaulted
every 29 seconds, or have his or her home invaded by a burglar
every 5 seconds."
* * *
"In 1992, almost half of all murder victims were African-
Americans; in fact blacks are 50 percent more likely than others
to be victimized by a violent crime. Someone earning less than
$7,500 a year is three times as likely to suffer from a violent
crime as someone earning more than $50,000. The poorest families
are twice as likely to suffer a burglary."
* * *
"The criminals in prison in the year 1986 alone had killed
nearly 50 percent more Americans than died in the Vietnam War."
* * *
"Adjusted for inflation, the cost per prisoner is 179
percent higher today than it was in 1960. Prisoners' living
standards have grown 40% faster than median income over the past
thirty years."
* * *
Prisons often provide criminals with amenities beyond the
means of peaceable citizens, like: "exercise rooms that rival
health spas... law libraries... day rooms with TV sets, VCRs,
video movies, and pool tables... unlimited free phone calls...
holiday feasts."
* * *
The National Institute of Justice spent 3 years surveying
1,800 prisoners and reported: "81 percent agreed that the 'smart
criminal' will attempt to find out if a potential victim is
armed... 74 percent felt that burglars avoided occupied dwellings
for fear of being shot... 57 percent felt that the typical
criminal feared being shot by citizens more than he feared being
shot by police... 69 percent of 'handgun predators' personally
knew other criminals who were scared off or shot at by armed
victims."
* * *
"Drowning accidents, bicycle accidents, skate board
accidents, automobile accidents, poisoning from drug (medication)
accidents, and so on, result in far more deaths than firearms
accidents."
* * *
"Assault weapon is nothing more than a contrived term that
now applies to all semi-automatic firearms. Their distinguishing
feature is that after firing a single shot by one pull of the
trigger, a mechanism reloads another cartridge."
* * *
In one major study: "eighteen thousand [gun] permit holders
were tracked. Three involved gun-related crimes and ten involved
instances where license holders successfully used their guns to
fend off criminal attackers. There was not one single case in
which a license holder had his gun taken away by a criminal, shot
someone by accident, or was killed defending himself or herself."
* * *
"The twentieth century provides no example of a determined
populace with access to small arms having been defeated by a
modern army. The Russians lost in Afghanistan, the United States
lost in Vietnam, and the French lost in Indo-China. In each case,
it was the poorly armed populace that beat the 'modern' army. In
China, Cuba, and Nicaragua, the established leaders, Chiang Kai-
shek, Battista, and Somoza lost. Modern nations like Algeria,
Angola, Ireland, Israel, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe only exist
because guerrilla warfare can triumph over modern armies. While
we may not approve of all the resulting governments, each of
these triumphs tells a simple truth: a determined people who have
the means to maintain prolonged war against a modern army can
battle it to a standstill..."
If you buy only one book on gun rights to help you be more
persuasive with friends, neighbors and others, this is it.
"A definitive manual for taking part in the political debate,
and preserving your right to keep and bear arms." --Tom Clancy
Book No. PO6223 (hardcover) 263p. $22.95
LAISSEZ FAIRE PRICE ONLY $19.95
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Thanks,
Chris
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Chris Whitten LFB@panix.com
Laissez Faire Books 1-800-326-0996
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