Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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270 of 285 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A life-changing book!!, February 6, 2003
We all remember those events in our life that make memories so sweet: Summers with your parents, riding bikes with friends, your first kiss, first lover, finishing high school and then college. This book was a milestone in my life.
Being raised a democrat and generally considering my self an independent, I never really gave much thought to the gun rights and gun control movements. Then, 4 years ago, I picked up a second edition copy of John Ross' masterfully written novel and it changed my life. (I now own a signed first edition as well)
He is entertaining and lively in describing the firearm culture and development in the early part of the last century. The life of a young man growing up in this culture and becoming a driving force in the novel. The story is a page turner, and one breezes through this tome in no time. A dramatic chain of events in the lead character's life leads to a near revolution in the country. The ending that has you cheering as the good guys win!
Since reading this novel, I have read tens of thousands of pages of political thought, historical record and legal documents and have come to understand just where continued gun control is taking us...it is a place I do not wish to go.
In the last four years, I have become a champion for the second amendment rights community, a holder of a federal firearms license , a collector with over 60 firearms, a hobby gunsmith and a lobbyist for the firearms community. All this from a person who voted for Clinton his first term!
Get John Ross' book, it will open your eyes.
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176 of 189 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
It Changed My Thinking, April 26, 2003
I'm a pretty conservative guy. I follow rules because I find it comfortable to do so. I stop at stop lights and do a lot of things I would rather not do as well as not doing things I would like to do because I find this an orderly and secure way to live.I do recognize that there are many stupid poorly conceived laws and rules but I still comply. I have never thought about starting a revolution because the trivial moronic little rules and regulations that we are requested to comply with are unreasonable in a free society. But that is the topic of this book. Few books in my life have changed my thinking over the long term. Unintended Consequences did this. This book is about the gun culture. How it began and where it is today. I never never never thought about how not only many of the Federal firearms regulations are but in a more global sense how many of our regulations are ridiculous. This may sound like a vague description of a 800+ page book. But this book is so global. It talks specifically about Henry Bowman who grows up shooting guns as a hobby like many others collect stamps or ride motorcycles. Yet he explains very slowly and methodically how his life experiences with his hobby are hampered unreasonably by Federal regulations. You do not have to be a gun lover or hater to appreciate this book. You only have to have a hobby or passion; any hobby or passion. You will see how our Constitution and Bill of Rights have been beaten and changed, how we are losing our individual rights and how dangerous the repurcussions. Please read this book for the message, it will change you.
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63 of 68 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
AN ABSOLUTE MUST-READ, October 2, 1996
By A Customer
Note--I have no connection with anyone involved in the
creation or publication of this novel.
I bought this book at the Dallas Gun Show in March, following a
recommendation by a friend. It was a $28.95 investment, so you can
imagine it was a solid recommendation.
I got a lot for my money. UC is a hardback running 861 pages, and
there's a lot of print per page. It is published by Accurate Press,
St Louis, Missouri.
If you are the impatient type, understand this:
READ THIS BOOK NOW! BUY IT FOR EVERYONE YOU KNOW WHO DOESN'T
UNDERSTAND THE GUN CULTURE. IMPERFECT THOUGH IT MAY BE, THIS ONE
COULD REALLY MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
Excuse my shouting. This is easily the best novel about the gun
culture I have ever read. I don't agree with all of it, but it
includes an informed, logical and passionate statement of everything
I have ever wanted to express about bureaucracy and the loss of
personal freedom.
The novel covers the period from 1906 to 'The Present day' (which is
actually the period of office of the next President of the USA).
John Ross has read his 'How to Write a Novel' books. In a
contemporary style the book describes how, even during the golden age
of America (pick your own dates), freedom has been jeopardised.
Through reconstruction of the events surrounding the passing of the
gun laws in 1934, 1968 and 1986, Ross illuminates the encroachment of
the freedom of all Americans.
The present day harrassment of dealers and owners of restricted
weapons: machine guns, suppressors, and short-barrelled long arms by
the ATF, is documented in immense detail. Some firearm owners
may feel this doesn't concern them, but it does.
The restricted weapons' owners are just at the bleeding edge of
bureaucratic totalitarianism.
Waco, Ruby Ridge and a number of other atrocities are told with
considerable attention to detail. The author makes no pretence
of putting together a 'balanced view', rather making the case
against the ATF with the precision of a high court prosecutor.
The result anticipated by Ross is a bloody one. As with all
revolutions, large and small, the innocent suffer with the guilty.
Revolutionaries incite and anticipate revolutionary fervour in the
general population. With the inertia of a large number of well-fed
people to overcome, innocent blood is going to be shed. To his
credit, Ross does not shirk this issue.
The reader must make up his own mind. Be assured you will find no
racism, homophobia or religious fundamentalism in Ross' arguments.
There is some kinky sex, although this seems more at the advice of
Ross' literary agent than due to any real need within the book. The
dust jacket is similarly lurid.
Politics and history apart, this book should be read for its arcana of
firearms' matters. Here you will find good information on:
-body armor;
-machine gun mechanisms;
-suppressor technology;
-long range rifle shooting;
-dangerous game hunting, and many other topics.
I learned a lot, and I've been reading about firearms for twenty
years. If I wasn't living in Switzerland, I'd buy a case of these
books and give them away as Christmas, birthday and retirement
presents to everyone I know.
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