The bodies of the fateful Virginia Tech Massacre victims were hardly cold before the pro-gun control lobby jumped on the bandwagon, citing this tragedy as yet another reason for stricter gun regulations.
The problem is that Virginia Tech is a 'gun-free zone'. Permit-carrying students are prevented from wearing concealed weapons. Perhaps mad-gunman Seung-Hui Cho just wasn't aware of the 'rules' or he'd have come with a less lethal repertoire of weapons -- like a rubber mallet, 'cap' gun or pea-shooter. If only they had put up large neon signs declaring, "This area is a gun-free zone! Leave your gun at home so you can feel safer!" they could have avoided this disaster.
The fundamental irony is like bitter gall given the many lives lost: gun control only applies to law-abiding citizens -- the section of the populace least likely to commit violent crime and most in need of protection from animals like Cho. You'd have to subscribe to the dense Liberal Logic to expect criminals (who by definition break the law) to abide by any such 'regulations'. You don't need to be a rocket scientist to figure out that if a criminal could choose between helpless victims or an environment where they're liable to shoot back, the choice is a simple one.
Several comprehensive studies by reputable economist John Lott et al, conclude that, "[a]llowing citizens without criminal records or histories of significant mental illness to carry concealed handguns deters violent crimes and appears to produce an extremely small and statistically insignificant change in accidental deaths." Also, "...concealed handgun... laws reduce the number of multiple victim public shootings. Attackers are deterred and the number of people injured or killed per attack is also reduced, thus for the first time providing evidence that the harm from crimes that still occur can be mitigated."
In a country with as high a rate of violent crime as South Africa, it would be criminal to further disarm the innocent population -- leaving them at the mercy of an inept, incompetent and apathetic police force that would just as soon join in on the ‘fun’ than prevent it.
The problem is that Virginia Tech is a 'gun-free zone'. Permit-carrying students are prevented from wearing concealed weapons. Perhaps mad-gunman Seung-Hui Cho just wasn't aware of the 'rules' or he'd have come with a less lethal repertoire of weapons -- like a rubber mallet, 'cap' gun or pea-shooter. If only they had put up large neon signs declaring, "This area is a gun-free zone! Leave your gun at home so you can feel safer!" they could have avoided this disaster.
The fundamental irony is like bitter gall given the many lives lost: gun control only applies to law-abiding citizens -- the section of the populace least likely to commit violent crime and most in need of protection from animals like Cho. You'd have to subscribe to the dense Liberal Logic to expect criminals (who by definition break the law) to abide by any such 'regulations'. You don't need to be a rocket scientist to figure out that if a criminal could choose between helpless victims or an environment where they're liable to shoot back, the choice is a simple one.
Several comprehensive studies by reputable economist John Lott et al, conclude that, "[a]llowing citizens without criminal records or histories of significant mental illness to carry concealed handguns deters violent crimes and appears to produce an extremely small and statistically insignificant change in accidental deaths." Also, "...concealed handgun... laws reduce the number of multiple victim public shootings. Attackers are deterred and the number of people injured or killed per attack is also reduced, thus for the first time providing evidence that the harm from crimes that still occur can be mitigated."
In a country with as high a rate of violent crime as South Africa, it would be criminal to further disarm the innocent population -- leaving them at the mercy of an inept, incompetent and apathetic police force that would just as soon join in on the ‘fun’ than prevent it.
2 comments:
Nice blog; you don't seem in the least confused to me. (hexenschuss)
Thanks. I'm sure the confusion will bleed through the canvas eventually. ;-)
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