Rising Nucleotides

Do as I say...

Back in July, there was a story about the United States being the most heavily armed nation in the world, based on per capita firearm ownership. It was based on a report which was the work of some transnational organization or other-- an organization that is basically dedicated to stamping out private ownership of small arms. Naturally, bloggers descended on the story like a pack of feral housecats.

Steven Den Beste of USS Clueless handily rips up the assumption that private ownership of guns is necessarily a bad thing, as the Small Arms Survey has so foolishly concluded.

Missing from this calculation is the question of whether the real problem is ownership of guns, or the willingness to use violence against others. Does the presence of guns cause more violence? The total absence of genocidal slaughter in the US, along with the fact that the majority of genocidal slaughter in Rwanda was committed with machetes rather than guns, tends to suggest that violence and gun ownership don't closely correlate, and that it's the violence that kills no matter what weapons it uses.

Mr. Den Beste noted that he doesn't actually own a gun, even though he strongly supports his Constitutional right to do so. That was an opening for Kim du Toit to pick on him a bit.

Now, I'm not of the opinion that everyone should own a gun -- indeed, I can think of several people who should not be allowed to own a gun (but do) -- but it seems to me that an engineer, of all people, should appreciate the fine workings and precision involved in a well-made firearm... in fact, it seems to me downright logical that an engineer would own a gun, for its aesthetic value if for no other reason.

At that point, I was spurred to action, and dashed off a comment to Mr. du Toit. Somewhat to my surprise, he not only printed it, but answered as well.

I was just enjoying a little chuckle over your suggestion that Steven Den Beste, of all people, was being illogical. Then I remembered that I don't own a gun, either. I was raised as a farmer, and not a hunter. No goblin infestation out where I'm from, so we just had a 12-gauge for extermination of varmints, and even that wasn't used often. I do appreciate the engineering of fine firearms, but... well, the concept of ownership somehow ended up on the back burner. This probably happens to a lot of people, doesn't it?

To which Kim du Toit replied:

Mitch: I recommend a .22 rifle for some fun shooting, and a large-caliber handgun for pest control of the human variety. For starters.

For the confused, "goblin" is a codeword for violent criminals. I still don't live in an area with high crime, so it's still a back-burner issue for me. It shouldn't be. Indeed, I am so remiss in my self-defense planning that I have only fired a gun on one occasion. Twenty rounds of 9 mm through a friend's Glock at a firing range... on August 16th of last year. I remember things like that, but that's another story.

No doubt there is a large population segment that has always considered firearm ownership, and yet not acted on that thought. If you are one of these people, I urge you to purchase a gun at your earliest convenience, lest you forget about it again.

Posted by Mitch at August 27, 2003 11:58 PM
You can find this entry in: Rights and Responsibilities