E-mail letter dated 2-16-11:

Winston,
I just finished reading “More Guns Less Crime” by John Lott.  It is a very dense statistical analysis of crime trends in relation to concealed carry laws.  If you can tolerate the densely boring statistics it is a very compelling case for relaxing gun control laws anywhere there are people by an independent University of Chicago economist.  He has updated it twice (most recently last year) with new statistics.

For example, the massive increases in violent crime rates in England (over 300%) and the logarithmic increase in murder rates in Ireland after the institution of severe gun ownership restrictions provide  remarkable insight to the folly of gun control laws to me.  It is stunning how misinformed emotional responses, ignorance and superstition can lead to governments doing exactly the wrong thing.  In fact, I am convinced most gun control argument and legislation is motivated largely by superstition and “belief” rather than an understanding of the statistical relationships between the deterrence effect of increasing the number of law abiding citizens with guns on criminal activity.

The folly of governments restricting human rights because someone might abuse them is a ludicrous invasion of our constitutional prerogatives: whether applying this to gun control or our ability to sell peanut butter.  The fundamental purpose of government has become almost intolerably perverted by the politically correct fringe.

I would forcefully recommend the book as an addition to the library of anyone, like yourself, who has a strong interest in fully understanding and debating the effect of faulty logic and emotion on gun control legislation.

KA