CONSERVATIVE journalist and Former Speechwriter for President Bush,
David Frum, says the number of times guns are used defensively has been
vastly exaggerated. He goes on to say that "The trouble is that this
claim of 2.5 million defensive gun uses is manifestly flawed and
misleading."
For gun advocates, however, the main problem with the government
estimate is that it is not nearly high enough to support their case that
private gun ownership is the best way to stop crime. Many of them
prefer another statistic, this from a study published in 1995 arguing
that Americans use guns in self-defense some 2.5 million times a year,
or once every 13 seconds. A Google search finds more than 1 million
citations of this study posted online.
Better yet:
But most of the time, gun owners are frightening themselves
irrationally. They have conjured in their own imaginations a much more
terrifying environment than genuinely exists -- and they are living a
fantasy about the security their guns will bestow. And to the extent
that they are right -- to the extent that the American environment is
indeed more dangerous than the Australian or Canadian or German or
French environment -- the dangers gun owners face are traceable to the
prevalence of the very guns from which they so tragically mistakenly
expect to gain safety.
Read more
here
More critique of Kelck can be found here.
ReplyDeleteThe fact that the NRA is so terrified of correct and accurate numbers being collected that they obstruct any legislative attempt to do so is as clear a red flag that they know an informed public will not follow, support or agree with them as you could ask for as an indicator of a serious problem.
ReplyDeleteLet's add in defunding any study which might happen to show that guns are detrimental to society as well:
ReplyDeletewww.sacbee.com/2012/07/29/4668327/gun-lobby-blocks-violence-studies.html
articles.courant.com/2011-01-30/news/hc-campbell-guns-public-health-0130-20110130_1_gun-violence-gun-control-nra-member
David Frum writes for CNN. That indicates he's a mainstream, possibly slightly right-of-center author boldly standing up to the entrenched forces of the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy, NRA, Koch Brothers, Bush and Haliburton! Hooray!
ReplyDeleteOdd that nobody else has noticed the glaring error in the study, no scholar, no politician, no gun writer, which only goes to prove that Frum is the Smartest Ever.
Laci- I heard something on the radio the other day that interested the hell out of me. The report said that the NRA only contributes 9 million to the lobbying effort annually. Compared to other groups that spend 100's of millions, it's amazing to me that they wield so much power.
ReplyDeleteJ.O.B., don't forget - there is the OFFICIAL NRA lobbying, the registered stuff, and then there is the unofficial, in-the-dark ALEC lobbying that spends so very very much more money buying right wing politicians to serve their real clients, the gun manufacturers.
ReplyDeleteDog- You think they write checks through different lobbying groups? I don't know, but it would explain the power they hold in Washington.
DeleteJoe, I hate to break it to you that if you were to actually sift through the shite on the internet, you would find that the study has been heavily criticised before David Frum.
ReplyDeleteBut you probably also believe that almost 20 million Americans have seen spacecraft from another planet, and over a million have been in personal contact with aliens from other planets. Since those figures were arrived at using the same methodology as Kleck.
Joey, I don't think you delve too deep into opposing opinions before falling lock step in with other "conservatives".
J.O.B. you can find the figures on contribution from various firearms related industries here. While the NRA may be "only" 9 million in contributions, other firearms related groups and manufacturers also contribute to add to the pot.
Not to mention there is loads of astroturf out there from "gun rights" supporters.
Toss in another piece on NRA defunding the CDC www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/we-wont-know-the-cause-of-gun-violence-until-we-look-for-it/2012/07/27/gJQAPfenEX_story.html
A politician knows that a hot button issue can mobilize a minority opposition in greater numbers than those who support it. Alas, that's why the NRA holds more influence with lawmakers than the majority of folks.
ReplyDeleteEveryone who has dealt with the "gun rights" crowd know that they are single issue voter who will vote against their interest if it means they can keep their "gunz".
They are so prone to being propagandised that they don't think, they just act--no matter how unreasonable those actions are.
Laci- Thanks for the link and explanation. That, along with Dog's reply, certainly helps me better understand "The power in Washington thing".
Delete"Everyone who has dealt with the "gun rights" crowd know that they are single issue voter who will vote against their interest if it means they can keep their "gunz"."
I do disagree with you on this one. I am a gun rights advocate to a degree. I like living in a country that allows me to own firearms, and use my firearms for sport. But I have voted Democratic before and I'm sure I will again.
But I do agree that MOST are single issue voters. I just think that single issue might weigh more towards the religion, instead of guns. But you may be right. Thanks again.
J.O.B. - we know the NRA writes lots of checks directly and indirectly through their participation in ALEC auctions of conservative politicians. It is the sole way that many of the cookie cutter laws have been passed in state legislatures since the 2010 conservative wins. They have served special interests while tryng to deceive ordinary constituents as to whom they really serve. We've written quite a bit about ALEC here; I would encourage you to peruse. The NRA is one of the most influential parts of it; it was through ALEC they promoted the shoot first laws.
ReplyDelete