Gun Control

Book Overview

It may surprise you to learn that 1 out of 3 American homes with kids have guns. This startling statistic speaks volumes of what we need to be doing; educating our children about guns and gun control.... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0737736615
• ISBN13: 9780737736618
• Release Date: January 2007
• Publisher: Greenhaven Publishing
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 6.1" x 8.9"
• Age Range: 14 to 17 years
• Grade Range: Grades 9 to 12

Customer Reviews

A Trial of Conflicting Arguments

This 185 page book begins with a quote of the First Amendment "Congress shall make no law ... abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press" but lacks "the right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed." Why is that? The purpose of this book is to provide the contrasting viewpoints to help "develop critical thinking skills" for the reader. Those who want to limit the power of the people want to disarm them, while those in favor or popular power want them to remain armed. This goes back to Roman times and the Caesars! Are there dangers in armed people? When people are disarmed they will be oppressed (high taxes and low wages) and this also causes misery and death, as in 19th century Europe when immigrants fled `gun control' countries to come to gun friendly America. News reports say this is still happening today. "Does Private Ownership of Handguns pose a serious threat to society?" The answer is NO, as demonstrated by 19th century American history and by such states as Vermont and South Dakota today. The argument that a higher rate of gun ownership leads to more gun deaths is as true as saying more car ownership leads to more automobile deaths. Note how people use flawed statistics or false data in their arguments. "Vancouver has a higher rate of violence that most other Canadian cities" (p.19). Since the rate of violent death in Canada is just slightly less than in America then something other than guns must be killing Canadians. Given the effect of temperature Canada's rates should be lower. You can compare rates for states along the Canadian border to states along the Gulf Coast. Note the quote on page 21: "the two cities have similar rates of murder"! Canada's crime rate escalated after its 1977 ban of handguns. That quote from the NEJM (p.41) is a concocted lie. Not having a gun in the home makes it 99 times more likely a resident will be killed than an intruder. Cities with gun prohibition have a higher crime rate than rural areas with gun possession. Police officers on the street believe private citizens should own handguns at home or on their person (p.49). Lobbyists are paid to speak against this (p.50). Sugarman's remarks are false, the switch from revolvers to more modern pistols (p.51) copies what European police did after WW One. The countries with the strictest gun prohibitions have the highest rates of suicide (p.58). [Political oppression?] You can't trust statements when they are biased and contain "errors of fact, logic and procedure" (p.59). Should firearms safety programs be taught in schools (p.71)? "Does the Constitution protect private gun ownership?" The history of America says YES. There is nothing in the Constitution or the Bill of Rights to support gun prohibition (p.78). The Second Amendment recognized people's rights to be armed. The First, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Amendments also guarantee rights to individuals. The `Los Angeles Times' article is false, the National Guard cannot keep