Weird News from This is True: Guns Category Map

Guns Category Map

Balance in the Media

Sure, the Columbine killings got a lot of press. Ever hear the other side of the gun issue? Probably not: it's not fashionable in the media to tell about the positive aspects of guns -- and there certainly are many. The following story is from the 8 July 1998 issue of This is True (and is included in Volume 5 of the True book series, titled This is True: Cost of Being Poor Rising.)

A High Caliber of Citizens

University of Chicago economist John Lott studied crime statistics in states that have "relaxed" laws about carrying guns. He found that the crime rates in "right to carry" states went down, sometimes way down, after passing legislation allowing responsible adults to carry guns. Murders fell an average of 8 percent, rapes 5 percent and aggravated assaults 7 percent, while at the same time in the U.S. as a whole murders went up 24 percent, rapes went up 71 percent, and assaults went up more than 100 percent. And in those states, the death rate in mass public shootings -- such as a crazed gunman opening fire in a crowded restaurant -- dropped 69 percent, while deaths from accidental shootings increased by only about one per year. Hardly a gun freak, Lott has never been a member of the National Rifle Association and didn't even own a gun when he started his study. But once he saw how clearly the statistics were turning out, he bought one. (Time) ..."An armed society is a polite society." --Robert A. Heinlein.

Continue reading "Balance in the Media" »

Posted July 15, 1998 11:32 AM | Comments (0)

Guns: Smoke Gets In Your Eyes

Updates! Another Story and More Letters

The way some people reacted, you'd think this publication was called Guns Digest. Truth is, we haven't done a real "gun story" since the bit on John Lott way back in July 1998! To recap what led to this page, you need to see the relevant stories from the 20 April 2003 issue:

An Eye For An Eye

A woman who pulled up to a stop sign in Warren, Mich., was surprised when a man opened her door, pretended to have a gun, and ordered her to give him money. She didn't pretend she had a gun: she pulled out her licensed 9mm pistol, pointed it at his face, and told him "If you're going to shoot me then do it, 'cause I'm definitely going to kill you." The man ran, and the unnamed 40-year-old woman was unharmed. (Macomb Daily) ..."Rifles, muskets, long-bows and hand-grenades are inherently democratic weapons. ...A simple weapon -- so long as there is no answer to it -- gives claws to the weak." --George Orwell (1903-1950), British author

Continue reading "Guns: Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" »

Posted April 30, 2003 11:54 AM | Comments (0)

Skirmishes in the War on Drugs: Letters

Letters on the "War on Drugs" editorial. If you didn't see the story and resulting editorial, check out Skirmishes in the War on Drugs first.

The result of government determining morals is probably one of the major causes of the moral decline in this country. So long as we can point to Uncle Sam and say that it's ok by his rules we will never learn to take responsibility for our own actions. I believe that is why the courts are so full of absurd legal cases as well. We are no longer held responsible for our own actions when the government makes all the rules and decisions for us in what they decide are our best interest. --Bob, Texas

Continue reading "Skirmishes in the War on Drugs: Letters" »

Posted April 13, 2005 9:24 AM | Comments (0)

Tattooed & Screwed

Each month, Premium subscribers get an extra story without a tagline, which they're invited to supply -- otherwise known as the monthly Tagline Challenge. Two things usually come out of the Challenge efforts: 1) readers find out just how hard it is to come up with a good story tag, and 2) the collective brainpower of the Premium edition subscribers is a mighty force -- the lineup of entries is usually quite funny. The following story is from the June 2005 Challenge. Challenge stories aren't usually posted on the web site, but this one is because of the photo that goes with it:

Continue reading "Tattooed & Screwed" »

Posted June 30, 2005 1:19 PM | Comments (0)