2008 August | LearnAboutGuns.com

UK Criminal Jailed for Supplying Machine Guns To Gangs

As reported, a man who ran an illegal arms factory converting replica submachine guns into lethal weapons was today sentenced to life imprisonment, with a minimum term of 11 years. I’m glad to see the British police have stopped a man who was intentionally helping equip gangs with automatic weapons, but this also shows that gun control laws just don’t work: Read the rest of this article »

The “Minimum Needs” Gun Control Tactic

When discussing gun ownership rights and laws, I’ve heard some people argue in favor of magazine capacity restrictions, features of ordinary firearms, and limits on the number of guns one can own, (incorrectly) asserting that such restrictions won’t harm law abiding citizens. I’ve previously discussed, from a technical standpoint, why such restrictions would not affect criminals, and would leave law abiding citizens confused about the law, and with guns that are less safe and less suitable for self defense. This article, however, addresses the deeper problem with arbitrarily restricting gun rights on the basis that a citizen doesn’t “need” a particular magazine capacity, feature, or quantity of guns. Read the rest of this article »

The Right To Keep And Bear Arms Extends Far Beyond The Constitution

Due to my profession, I tend to focus on the right to keep and bear arms as guaranteed by the Second Amendment of the United States constitution. However it is important to note that the right to keep and bear arms for self defense was a preexisting right that is guaranteed by the Second Amendment. In other words, the Second Amendment is simply an acknowledgment of the right to own a gun, and a command that the Government not infringe that already existing right, rather than the source of the right: Read the rest of this article »

911 Home Invasion Phone Call Video Clip

This is the audio from an actual 911 call made by a woman whose stalker broke into her home. She called 911 and locked herself in her bedroom – with her handgun. Incredibly, the 911 operator tells her “not to do anything too rash” to the stalker who just broke into her home and is approaching her! After he attacks her physically and she repeatedly cries for the attacker to stop, she fatally shoots him in self defense. Minutes later, the police arrive. Multiple police reports and calls to 911 didn’t stop this woman’s attacker, but 3 bullets from her handgun saved her life. This is why I support gun rights.

Watch the video here.

“Please Respect My Gun Ownership Rights”

I recently debated the issue of gun rights with a relative of mine who is decidedly anti gun. She has never fired a gun, and has no desire to do so. She is afraid of guns in and of themselves, rather than being concerned about the actions of criminals. I though I would post a particularly salient portion of the discussion, as I can best remember it: Read the rest of this article »

A Must-Read Article on “Assault Weapons” and “Saturday Night Specials”

Gary Reed has written a great article addressing the use of terms such as “assault weapon” and “Saturday night special.” Here is one of the more humerus quotes:

“Hometown Herald – A pair of assault thugs stole a Ford Saturday Night Special Crew Cab and drove it through the front door of the Saturday Nyte Special 99 Cent Store. They attacked the ATM with an assault crowbar, but the shop owner drove them off with a small self-defense assaultin’ pepperbox revolver.”

Woman Shot By Unintentional Discharge From Cop’s Gun

As reported, a 37-year-old Cleveland, Ohio woman was shot in the pelvis inside her home Monday night when a Highland Hills officer’s gun was unintentionally discharged. The injured woman, Richetta Ballou of East 73rd Street, was flown by helicopter to Huron Hospital, where she underwent surgery. Charles Golsten, 24, was reportedly attempting to adjust an off-duty holster holding a .22 caliber gun when it was fired. Read the rest of this article »

The Purpose of the Second Amendment Video Clip

This video clip is one of the most compelling personal accounts about guns and self defense that I have ever seen. Texas state representative Dr. Suzanna Gratia-Hupp’s parents were killed by an insane gunman while her gun was out in the car – left there because of the laws restricting concealed carry at that time. She gives some very moving and bold testimony about the REAL purpose of the Second Amendment: Self defense, and how the gun control laws only served to leave her family defenseless.
Read the rest of this article »

Metal Storm Video Clip

This video clip shows a variety of fully automatic firearms from Metal Storm Ltd, a research company that specializes in electronically fired, stacked projectile weapon technology. The cartridges are lined up one after the other in gun’s barrel, and fired by an electrical signal. The rate of fire can exceed 1,000,000 rounds per minute. My favorite is actually a Metal Storm handgun, which fires 3 rounds in rapid succession – before the gun recoils from the first round! Read the rest of this article »

A Response to Senator Ulysses Currie’s Anti Gun Rights Statements

In a community newspaper, Maryland State Senator Ulysses Currie called the Supreme Court “blind to [the] consequences” of the recent District of Columbia. v. Heller decision, in which gun ownership for self defense was determined to be an individual right, independent of militia service. Senator Currie, who is not an attorney himself, starts out by criticizing the legal rulings of our country’s highest court. He then proceeds to suggest that the Second Amendment should be ignored by courts and legislatures, since the constitution was written over 200 years ago. Finally, Senator Ulysses Currie make the unfounded argument that allowing law abiding citizens to have firearms in their homes for self defense against the law-breaking criminals will result in more violence. I address each of these erroneous contentions below: Read the rest of this article »

Britain Needs Gun Rights – BritainNeedsGuns.co.uk

As I’ve previously mentioned, crime in England has skyrocketed since their passage of strict gun control laws. The criminals still shoot innocent citizens, and gun smugglers bring illegal guns into the UK just as illegal drugs are imported. The criminals who are willing to commit violent crimes such as murder are just as willing to violate a relatively minor gun control law. Tired of seeing law abiding citizens at the mercy of criminals, Graham Showell decided to do something: Read the rest of this article »

Gun Registration Bears No Relationship to Crime Prevention

Some residents of Morton Grove, which recently repealed its handgun ban, are now calling for gun registration requirements. I’ve also heard other people tout gun registration as some sort of cure to the actions of criminals. Allow me to explain why gun registration bears no relationship to crime prevention, and is instead a wrongful infringement of the 2nd Amendment individual right to keep and bear arms for self defense: Read the rest of this article »

Rubber Band Gun Video Clip

Although the focus of LearnAboutGuns.com is generally a serious discussion of guns, gun rights, and self defense, this article is decidedly light hearted. Below is a video clip of a rubber band machine gun, with a rate of fire in excess of 40 rubber bands per second. Called the “Disintegrator,” this rubber band launcher has two counter rotating cylinders, driven by electric motors. The video clip can be seen below: Read the rest of this article »

Army Veteran Charged With Felony For Possessing Deactivated Souvenir Weapon

As Press Democrat reports, depressed Iraq war veteran Corporal Matthew Jensen called 911 for help. The police arrived and eventually took him to the Veteran’s Administration for treatment. However, the officers discovered a deactivated 1940’s-era SKS rifle on floor, which Matthew had taken from a dead Iraqi sniper and brought back as a gift for his father. The rifle’s firing pin and mechanism had been removed, rending it inoperable, however the California state prosecutor decided to charge Matthew with a felony violation of California’s “assault weapon” ban law: Read the rest of this article »

Chicago Murder Rate Up 18% – despite the Handgun Ban

As the Chicago Tribune reports, Chicago’s murder rate is up 18% over the same time frame last year. 62 people were killed in the month of July alone, and there were several high profile shootings, such as the Taste of Chicago shootings or the murder of a cop with his own gun. In the overwhelming majority of these murders, criminals used handguns, despite 20+ year long ban on handgun ownership in Chicago. Clearly, the criminals are ignoring the handgun ban. Read the rest of this article »

Attempted Rape In Oak Park, IL

As the Wednesday Journal reports, Oak Park, IL police are investigating a rape attempt. The woman was in the rear of her property on the 1000 block on North Austin Blvd., around 8:30 p.m., Aug. 5, 2008, when a man grabbed her by her arm and by her throat. The attacker then attempted to remove her pants.The woman fought back, kneeing her attacker and stomping on his foot, causing him to cease the attack and escape eastbound on Augusta Boulevard. Read the rest of this article »

Chinese Immigrant Stabs Bus Passenger to Death and Eats the Victim – while unarmed citizens flee in terror

As the Boston Herald reported, passengers aboard a Greyhound bus in Canada said that shortly after they re-boarded following a break, the suspect suddenly stabbed the man sitting next to him several dozen times as others ran away in horror. He then severed the man’s head, displayed it and began hacking at the body. The attacker then ate parts of the victim’s body. Vince Weiguang Li, who immigrated to Canada from China in 2004, is charged with second-degree murder in the death of 22-year-old carnival worker Tim McLean. Read the rest of this article »

The Danger of Gun Control Video Clip

This video clip discusses how almost overnight, the citizens of Britain lost their gun rights after 2 high profile shootings. Collectors with guns that were hundreds of years old and worth thousands of dollars were forced to turn in their firearms for destruction. Olympic target shooters were forced to travel to another country to practice their sport. Still others had to hand over firearms given to them by long-since-dead parents, to have the barrels and receivers chopped apart. This is a warning what can happen when the law abiding gun owners of a country sit idly by as their gun rights and heritage is legislated away in a very brief period of time… And making matters worse, the gun control laws only led to a thriving black market for guns, defenseless law abiding citizens, and preventable murders. Read the rest of this article »

ABC’s 20/20: John Stossel Links Gun Control to Higher Crime Rates Video Clip

In this video clip, ABC’s 20/20 discusses the myth that gun control laws reduce crime. Instead, of showing a reduction in crime, John Stossel finds that gun control leads to an increase in crime, prevents law abiding citizens from defending themselves, doesn’t deter criminals, harms the weaker members of society, and paves the way for school shootings. It is refreshing to see a major news outlet reporting these facts in a unbiased manner. Read the rest of this article »

Wrongful Gun Confiscation After Hurricane Katrina Video Clip

After Hurricane Katrina, various police agencies in Louisiana wrongfully and unlawfully confiscated the firearms of law abiding citizens, leaving them at the mercy of criminals who took advantage of the hurricane to commit crimes. This video consists of interviews with several law abiding victims of firearms confiscation, including a woman who was thrown to the ground and punched by police. Read the rest of this article »

Citizen Shoots and Kills Armed Home Invaders In Self Defense

As CNN reports, Houston police said three or four people broke into a home in the 10000 block of Foy Lane. The suspects were armed with guns, and at some point in the robbery they shot the home owner, who then managed to get a gun and return fire. One home invader was killed and another was injured. The home owner is expected to recover from his injuries. Read the rest of this article »

Politician Wants to Ban Barrel Shrouds But Doesn’t Know What They Are Video Clip

In this video clip, Congresswoman McCarthy went on TV to argue in favor of gun control, but didn’t even know what the so called “assault weapon” feature she wanted to ban looks like or does. When asked what a barrel shroud did, she first dodged the question, then incorrectly stated that criminals frequently use weapons with such a feature, then made a wrong guess as to what a barrel shroud does and where it goes on a gun. It is simply ridiculous, ignorant, and embarrassing to have strong opinions about guns (or any other issue) unless one is familiar with the issue. It is even worse to be a member of congress who introduces legislation to ban an object, without even knowing what the object is or does. Read the rest of this article »

British Police Bust of Gun Smugglers Shows Ineffectiveness of Gun Control Laws

As the Times Online reports, a British based gun smuggling ring was busted, and its leaders were sentenced to long prison terms. The operation was reportedly run by Madasser Ali, Agnius Malcevas, and his brother Edgaras Malcevas. Although this is being heralded as a victory in the war against “gun crime,” it should instead be seen as sobering proof that gun control just won’t work. Allow me to explain: Read the rest of this article »

Auto Assault 12 (AA-12) Automatic Shotgun Video Clip

I’ve added a new “video clips” section to LearnAboutGuns.com, and the first video clip featured is that of the Auto Assault 12. This is a drum fed, gas operated, fully automatic 12 ga. shotgun. Firing at 300 rounds per minute, this shotgun comes standard with a 32 round magazine. The AA-12’s gas system absorbs a large portion of the recoil generated by fully automatic shotgun fire. This combat shotgun is intended for military use, allowing soldiers to more effectively and safely clear a room: Read the rest of this article »

Chicago Considers Gun-Offender Registry – styled after sex-offender registries

As the Chicago Tribune reports, a committee of the Chicago City Council is considering a proposal to create an online database of gun offenders, complete with photographs and interactive maps. If approved, anyone convicted of a felony gun offense after the ordinance’s effective date would have to register with the city as a gun offender. Offenders would have to register within 48 hours of conviction or, if sent to jail or prison, their release from the institution. Conviction for failure to register could result in a 6-month jail sentence and $500 fine. Allow me to explain the problems with this firearms offender registry plan: Read the rest of this article »

Firearm information and politics from a gun rights perspective, with an emphasis on self defense rights.