The Gun Control Debate : You Decide (Contemporary Issues) [Paperback]

Lee Nisbet (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 2001 | Series: Contemporary Issues

At the end of the twentieth century and into the twenty-first, highly publicized gun massacres, especially in schools, have maintained 'gun control' as a hotly contested, peculiarly American, political and cultural debate. Featuring selections from historians, criminologists, social scientists, public health specialists, and jurists, Dr Nisbet offers an in-depth analysis of the central questions involved in America's debate concerning the further restriction or even prohibition of presently legally owned guns.Providing a set of critical-thinking questions that focus on key issues in the gun control debate, Nisbet helps readers to evaluate gun control issues more deeply and thoroughly than is possible using the popular media's portrayal of the controversy. Among the questions addressed are: Does the availability of guns influence levels, patterns, and concentrations of violent crime? If so, how, and with what policy implications? Does more guns equal more or less crime? Do guns kept for self-defense menace gun owners and their families more than protect them? Is mass media coverage of gun control issues biased? If so, how, and in what direction? How should we interpret the Second Amendment? Does the gun debate reflect an underlying cultural conflict between groups who detest each other's values and lifestyles?Containing twenty-nine new articles and an entirely new section on the media entitled 'The Gun Control Debate in the Age of (Mis)information', this new edition provides the most up-to-date research on a hotly contested topic. The contributors include: B. Bruce-Briggs, Phillip J. Cook, Barry Glassner, Gordon Hawkins, Richard Hofstadter, Don B. Kates Jr., Gary Kleck, David Kopel, John Lott, Joyce Malcolm, Garry Wills, Franklin E. Zimring, and many more. No matter what side of the debate you're on, this outstanding collection of articles will help you understand the complexities of this intensely controversial issue.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Anyone seriously seeking a thoughtful and organized debate ...will find [this book] invaluable." -- The New Gun Week

About the Author

Lee Nisbet, Ph.D., is professor of philosophy at Medaille College in Buffalo, New York. He holds degrees in both history and philosophy from the State University of New York at Buffalo. He is a cofounder, former executive director, and fellow of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP). He writes and lectures on the application of logical and psychological critical-thinking techniques to analyze controversial policy issues.

Product Details

• Paperback: 580 pages
• Publisher: Prometheus Books; 2 edition (May 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1573928615
• ISBN-13: 978-1573928618
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,113,230 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #83 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Current Events > Gun Control

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Articles on the Controversy, July 13, 2002

By 

Acute Observer (N. Jersey Shore) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Gun Control Debate : You Decide (Contemporary Issues) (Paperback)

This book contains various articles that deal with the natural right to keep and bear arms, for and against. You can read this book to educate yourself on opposing viewpoints. They date from the 1970s and 1980s, but their arguments are still valid. Since then 33 of the 48 states have passed "right to carry" laws. South Dakota and Vermont have virtually no gun controls; you can compare their crime and violence to areas with strict gun controls. But owner-operated small businesses overwhelmingly predominate: no powerful corporations to restrict the rights of the people.

Gun control goes back thousands of years: the aristocracy has always sought to disarm the common people the better to exploit them. Aristotle's Politics explains how democracy came to Greece once the common people were armed. Nineteenth century America was well armed. The Sullivan Law meant a citizen must prove a "reasonable need" to own and carry a handgun; the ordinary citizen is always rejected (unless they know somebody). The law disarmed the people, and was followed by increased crime and violence. Organized crime became more powerful after the people were disarmed. An armed militia of citizens could quickly put an end to them.

Low violence rates in Europe preceded their gun laws. After gun laws were passed in America crime rates grew. Recent reports say crime rates skyrocketed after Gt. Britain confiscated all guns. When will they ever learn?

Chapter 13 is from the 'New England Journal of Medicine' of June 12, 1986 by Arthur L. Kellermann and Donald T. Reay. No information is given on their backgrounds. From other sources you will learn that Kellermann was at John Hopkins University when he wrote this article, and later left to go to Emory University. The medical examiner of Kings County WA investigated 743 deaths from firearms. The results were 84% suicides, 13% homicides, and 3% accidents. From the percentages of victims (family, friends, and strangers) Kellermann concocted his statistic of a gun being 43 times more likely to kill a family member than an intruder. This statistic was heavily publicized in the press. There are five things wrong with this article.

1) It did not report on deaths in homes without any gun as a control. This is not scientific! Reports from other sources say a family member is 99 times more likely to be killed in a gun-free home than an intruder. Kellermann's statistics are flawed by design.

2) The suicide rate is lower and the murder rate is higher in America; suicide rates are higher and the murder rate is lower in countries that ban private ownership of guns (see Chapter 13). The total of suicides and murders is the rate of violent deaths; this provides a comparison. Most suicides occur in the home, so much so that the phrase "died at home" is a euphemism in obituary columns. A death in the home is much more likely for a family member than a stranger. America's high rate of gun ownership prevents home invasion crimes common to England and Europe.

3) Most assaults and murders occur between people who are known to each other. This makes homes potentially more dangerous that streets or shopping malls. The exception is for illegal activities; just read your daily newspaper. Children are always much safer in school than at home or in their neighborhood.

4) Another truth is that medical journals require payment to publish articles. It is another form of advertising or opinion molding. What millionaire's "foundation grant" was paying Kellermann to create his biased report?

5) Nothing in life is guaranteed, neither safety or liberty. Chapter 13 provides a comparison for violent deaths, but omits statistics for South American countries which have a similar colonial history. Isn't it true that countries that ban citizens from owning guns also oppress their citizens in other ways? You can look that up in a history book, or your newspaper.

The real problem in Gun Prohibition is its prelude to political oppression by lower wages and higher taxes. Just look at what happened since 1969! Wages were "stagnant" (the euphemism for being kept lower), taxes were higher (my state sales tax doubled). Nixon's devaluation of the dollar inllated the currency so more was paid in Federal taxes. Reagan increased Federal tax rate from 9% to 15%, the Social Security tax was also raised 50% (4% to 6%). This is the same form of oppression practiced in conquered countries during WW II.