Gun control – why it fails

Gun control – why it fails
By Terry A. Hurlbut
In the wake of yet another school shooting, the Twitter influencer “Dom Lucre, Breaker of Narratives” released a thread dedicated to debunking the premises of gun control. In twenty-five tweets, Mr. Lucre discusses not only the failures of gun control but also how guns in civilian hands prevent crime.
Gun control – the usual arguments
Criminals, and criminal gangs, are an unfortunate side effect of civilization. Even ancient Rome had its gangs – which some politicians actually used to devastating effect. In the days of the Western frontier, gun control hardly existed and certainly not in the frontier. Tales of citizens defending themselves and their towns from criminal gangs abound. The most famous is the Battle of Coffeyville, Kansas, between town residents and the notorious Dalton Gang.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uXQ6XenM3s
But then came Prohibition, and criminal gangs inside major cities, organized to satisfy the demand for intoxicating liquor. Because these gangs filled a popular demand, law enforcement left them alone – or took their bribes. And the people shrugged – especially those who went to the Speak-easies. The most notorious gang leaders were even celebrities – like “Scarface” Al Capone.
But on February 14, 1929, matters came to a bloody head. Several of Al Capone’s men, disguised as Chicago Police, “raided” a garage that rival “Bugs” Moran used. They stood the men inside against a wall – and then systematically executed them. This “Saint Valentine’s Day Massacre” turned public opinion against the gangs. “Do something!” shrieked a public recoiling in horror at the reports of blood on the walls.
The Miller Decision
That something culminated in the National Firearms Act of 1934, and the case of U.S. v. Miller (307 U.S. 174, 1939). Jack Miller had challenged the National Firearms Act on Second Amendment grounds. But when the government petitioned for Supreme Court review, Jack Miller was nowhere to be found. Thus gun control won by default. That decision said that:
Only weapons that have a reasonable relationship to the effectiveness of a well-regulated militia under the Second Amendment are free from government regulation.
Who can tell how differently the Court might have decided that case, had Jack Miller followed through and paid for a Supreme Court response? In fact, absolutely any weapon can find a “reasonable” use by “a well-regulated militia.” But this toxic precedent drove the entering wedge for gun control, and for all its consequences. Including, to paraphrase Franklin, a society that has sacrificed essential liberty to temporary safety.
Donald J. Trump has lately changed the composition of the Court, so that now the Court is more inclined to protect the Second Amendment. See for example New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen, 597 U.S. ____ (2022). But stubborn “gun grabber” State governments have responded by defining virtually every place in an organized city as “sensitive.”
Bear this in mind when evaluating Dom Lucre’s latest thread.
The thread
Remember that Dom Lucre always begins his anchor tweets sarcastically. The real meat always follows – and this one has a lot of it.
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834323682152450
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834328757170177
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834332985008129
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834339716968450
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834343613415426
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834348151709698
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834351389704192
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834357043642372
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834360843665408
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834366405238785
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834370448572418
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834373846024192
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834378317045762
Of course, gun control still has its apologists. One of them tried to show that “gun restrictions have worked in every other country.” Several users said the obvious: bad actors switched to other weapons. But some people refuse to let facts convince them, as this debate shows:
https://twitter.com/DJRumspringer/status/1640840141093601281
https://twitter.com/DJRumspringer/status/1640847048751579136
https://twitter.com/DJRumspringer/status/1641078955720560640
https://twitter.com/casanovakilo1/status/1641139455946784779
Other users had more simple answers to this user:
https://twitter.com/desertveteran/status/1641493775867424770
https://twitter.com/CliffGarland3/status/1640891499163557888
https://twitter.com/OUMick/status/1640848520813879297
Another user made this direct reply to Lucre, citing statistics strengthening his case:
https://twitter.com/Whisky_Coffee21/status/1640841063114895366
This thread addressed the recent school shooting, pointing out that the shooter first tried another school. It was a hard target, so she attacked the Covenant School. That led to a discussion of a point we raised yesterday: does someone prime, groom, arm, and train school shooters?
https://twitter.com/neilwalker37/status/1640840946840489986
https://twitter.com/Pain1776Tom/status/1641016375765245952
https://twitter.com/lehilgs/status/1641460829139730441
Analysis: gun control has a history of failure
This valuable thread shows all the reasons gun control does not work as advertised. The question then becomes: does it “work” for reasons no one in authority would dare advertise?
Lucre doesn’t say that officially, but recall his pointing out the “diverse” groups of people now arming themselves. He also points out that, historically, these groups have traditionally come under attack most often. Only recently have armed gangs attacked “nice” neighborhoods. And the one thing that would prevent that, would be to allow all citizens and lawful residents in good standing to arm themselves. (Judges exist to determine “good standing.” The right to keep and bear arms is a liberty subject to “deprivation” only through due process of law.)
Some of the apologists for gun control seem to have reading comprehension problems. Had they actually read the thread through, it would have answered every question they raised.
Benjamin Franklin’s obvious quote finds direct relevance here. So also does this quote, attributed to Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto of the Japanese Imperial Navy:
You cannot invade the mainland United States, [because you would find] a gun behind every blade of grass.
Whether he said it or not, events have proved it. President John F. Kennedy recognized the basic principle, though he could never have imagined that fears of tyranny in these United States would become real.
Link to:
The article:
https://cnav.news/2023/03/31/foundation/constitution/gun-control-why-fail/

Dalton Gang video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uXQ6XenM3s

National Firearms Act of 1934:
https://www.nraila.org/get-the-facts/national-firearms-act-nfa/

US v. Miller:
https://www.loc.gov/item/usrep307174/

The thread:
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834323682152450
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834328757170177
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834332985008129
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834339716968450
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834343613415426
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834348151709698
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834351389704192
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834357043642372
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834360843665408
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834366405238785
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834370448572418
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834373846024192
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1640834378317045762

Reaction:
https://twitter.com/DJRumspringer/status/1640840141093601281
https://twitter.com/DJRumspringer/status/1640847048751579136
https://twitter.com/DJRumspringer/status/1641078955720560640
https://twitter.com/casanovakilo1/status/1641139455946784779
https://twitter.com/desertveteran/status/1641493775867424770
https://twitter.com/CliffGarland3/status/1640891499163557888
https://twitter.com/OUMick/status/1640848520813879297
https://twitter.com/Whisky_Coffee21/status/1640841063114895366
https://twitter.com/neilwalker37/status/1640840946840489986
https://twitter.com/Pain1776Tom/status/1641016375765245952
https://twitter.com/lehilgs/status/1641460829139730441

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