About once a month, Dave Kopel produces a free e-mail Newsletter containing short summaries and links to important new research and writing involving the Second Amendment and firearms policy. The newsletter also reports on Kopel's latest writing.
The content of this newsletter is produced by the Second Amendment Project at the Independence Institute, a think tank in Golden, Colorado. The newsletter is electronically distributed by the Second Amendment Foundation in Bellevue, Washington. Thus, the Second Amendment Foundation will be given your e-mail address.
Archive of past issues.
Dave Kopel's Second Amendment Newsletter. Feb. 28, 2002.
Dave Kopel's Second Amendment Project is based at the
Independence Institute, a free-market think tank in
Golden, Colorado.
http://www.independenceinstitute.org
Delivery of this newsletter comes courtesy of the
Second Amendment Foundation, in Bellevue, Washington
Please visit Dave Kopel's website, containing articles on
the Second Amendment and other freedom topics.
Table of Contents for this issue:
1. New Kopel articles: Major new Issue Paper on gun shows. Plus gun prohibition
in the Pacific, media bias, national ID card, Eleanor Roosevelt.
2. England
3. Terrorism
4. Bellesiles scandal
5. International news and research
6. Miscellaneous
7. Legal news
1. New Kopel material
a. Should Gun Shows Be Outlawed? McCain Bill Does Much More than Impose Background Checks.
Independence Institute, Issue Paper no. 1-2002.
http://www.davekopel.com/2A/IP/gunshows2.htm
b. Little Island that Roared. The story of Bougainville, and gun prohibition.
National Review Online. Feb. 6, 2002. With Paul Gallant & Joanne Eisen.
http://www.nationalreview.com/kopel/kopel020602.shtml
c. You've Got Identity. Why a national ID is a bad idea.
National Review Online. Feb. 6, 2002. With Linda Gorman.
http://www.nationalreview.com/kopel/kopel020502.shtml
d. Dailies shoot from hip, miss. Mischaracterizations of D.C. gun-control group
bespeak sloppy reporting, editing at newspapers.
Rocky Mountain News/Denver Post, Jan. 27, 2002.
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/news_columnists
/article/0,1299,DRMN_86_952474,00.html
e. Her Own Bodyguard. Gun-packing First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt.
National Review Online. Jan. 24, 2002. With Paul Gallant & Joanne Eisen.
http://www.nationalreview.com/kopel/kopel012402.shtml
f. Coming soon on National Review Online: SHOT Show report; review of "Death by
Gun Control: The Human Cost of Victim Disarmament"
2. Making England safe for Violent Criminals
a. If the state fails us, we must defend ourselves
26 February 2002
(London) Telegraph, online opinion
By Simon Heffer
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml;
$sessionid$JXECJWYAAHR4PQFIQMGCFFWAVCBQUIV0?xml
=/opinion/2002/02/24/do2401.xml
b. NEWS RELEASE FROM THE LIBERTARIAN ALLIANCE
London, Monday, 19th February 2002
For Immediate Use
Contact Details: Dr Chris R. Tame, 07957 644519, chris@libertarian.co.uk
"DROP ALL CHARGES AGAINST HOUSEHOLDER WHO KILLED BURGLAR. THIS MAN IS A HERO", SAYS FREE MARKET AND CIVIL LIBERTIES THINK TANK
58 year old John Lambert, of Spalding, Lancashire, has been released on
bail following two days of arrest after the death of one of two burglars
who had broken into his home and put a knife to the throat of his wife,
according to press reports.
During a struggle to defend himself and his wife Mr. Lambert killed the
burglar with his own knife. Rather than suffering the indignity of
arrest and police inquiries Mr Lambert should be hailed as a hero and
public benefactor. So claims the Libertarian Alliance, Britain's most
radical free market and civil liberties think tank.
Libertarian Alliance spokesman and Director, Dr Chris R. Tame, says:
"It is a sign of a morally corrupt society that Mr Lambert should have
been held by the police for two days and is even now facing the insult
of further police inquiries. In a free and moral society the individual
has the complete right to self defense, including the use of deadly
force, against those who attack and rob them. Any one who invades the
home of another constitutes a deadly threat to its inhabitants, and
should be dealt with accordingly. Mr Lambert has behaved both honourably
and morally in defending himself, his wife and his property - and is a
public benefactor by ridding society of one more predatory looter who
threatened the safety of us all.
Yet again it is quite clear that the police, like all nationalised
industries, have no real interest in their "customers", but would rather
persecute both those who defend themselves and other easy targets.
Whilst the restoration of law and order in this country depends upon
many things - including the removal of legal impunity from children and
adolescents, the restoration of strict sentences and real punishment for
real crimes, the return of capital punishment, full restitution by
criminals to their victims, the abolition of victimless "crimes" and
pointless persecution of politically incorrect lifestyles, and the
overthrow of the culture of socialist excuses and social determinism - a
great step forward would be the full legal recognition of the right of
individuals to defend themselves and others - and indeed, the
restoration of their right to do so with firearms and other weapons.
A message must be sent to the criminal vermin that the workers of this
country are not prey, that people will fight back, and that the police
and the judicial system will no longer side with the predator rather
than the victim."
ENDS
Note to Editors
(1) Dr Chris R. Tame is the founder and Director of the Libertarian
Alliance. A prolific writer and lecturer on many topics in sociology,
economics, philosophy and the history of ideas. He is also the author of
"Freedom, Responsibility and Justice: The Criminology of the New Right"
in the book "The Politics of Crime Control" (Kevin Stenson & David
Cowell, eds., Sage Publications, London, 1991), which can also be found
reprinted at
(2) Dr Tame can be contacted for further comment at 07957 644519 or by
email at chris@libertarian.co.uk
--
This news release comes from The Libertarian Alliance
25 Chapter Chambers, Esterbrooke Street, London SW1P 4NN
Director: Dr Chris R. Tame
020 7821 5502, http://www.libertarian.co.uk
Released by Sean Gabb <sean@libertarian.co.uk
========================
3. Terrorism
a. Alert customer shoots terrorist in Efrat supermarket
By The Jerusalem Post Internet Staff
February 22, 2002
http://www.jpost.com/Editions/2002/02/22/News/News.43961.html
b. Save Lives — Arm Pilots
FrontPageMagazine.com
February 5, 2002
By: Tanya Metaksa
http://frontpagemag.com/columnists/metaksa/2002/metaksa02-05-02.htm
c. Assertive Disarmament
FrontPageMagazine.com
By: Lowell Ponte
February 13, 2002
http://www.frontpagemag.com/columnists/ponte/2002/ponte02-13-02.htm
Discusses people who want to disarm American citizens but not
disarm international terrorists.
4. Bellesiles Hoax
a. The Historian Who Couldn't Shoot Straight
The Weekly
Standard
February 25, 2002
by David Skinner
http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/000/911xuovl.asp
b. The Triumph of Ideological History
FrontPageMagazine.com
February 1, 2002
by Ronald Radosh
http://www.frontpagemag.com/columnists/radosh/2002/rr02-01-02.htm
c. Guns and Poses
Michael Bellesiles's work is charming and disarming--but sloppy and maybe
fraudulent.
Wall Street
Journal, opinionjournal.com
By Kimberley A. Strassel
February 22, 2002
http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/kstrassel/?id=105001670
d. Historians criticize author's gun research
Boston Globe
David Mehegan
Jan. 29, 2002 http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/029/living/
Historians_criticize_author_s_gun_research+.shtml
Details from the forthcoming issue of William & Mary Quarterly
e. College Plans to Question Historian
Historian Will Undergo Inquiry From Emory University for
Book on Role of Guns in U.S.
The Associated Press
Feb. 7, 2002
http://www.abcnews.go.com/wire/US/ap20020207_1431.html
f. New paper by Clayton Cramer on Bellesiles.
30 pages long.
http://www.claytoncramer.com/TheImportanceOfFootnotes.PDF
***g. Bellesiles gets a $30,000 grant from federal tax dollars to write
another book on gun control!
Arthur Kellermann comes to Bellesiles's defense.
Read installments 27 and 28 of Larry Pratt's series on Michael Bellesiles.
http://www.gunowners.org/optb.htm
5. International news and research
a. Canada Parliament Bill C-42. Proposed biological weapons law includes major new restrictions on gunpowder, ammunition, and reloading.
Bill status:
http://www.parl.gc.ca/37/1/parlbus/chambus/house/status/status1-e.html
Legislative Summary:
http://www.parl.gc.ca/common/Bills_ls.asp?lang=E&Parl=37&Ses=1&ls=C42&source
b. Simon Fraser University Honours Professor Gary Mauser
for his research on gun control
On February 15, 2002, Simon Fraser University honored Professor
Gary Mauser during the Annual SFU Awards Ceremony. Professor
Gary Mauser is the recipient of the 2001 Nora and Ted Sterling
Prize in Support of Controversy for his research on gun control,
which was presented to him in October 2001.
http://www.sfu.ca/mediapr/sfnews/2001/Oct18/mauser.html
http://www.sfu.ca/mediapr/Releases/News/2001/October2001/Sterling.html
Summary of Mauser's research:
http://www.sfu.ca/mediapr/sfnews/2001/Nov15/mauser.html
c. Registration: The Nazi Paradigm
American Rifleman
June 2001
By Stephen P.
Halbrook
http://www.stephenhalbrook.com/registration_article/registration.html
d. Assault rifles for Annan guards investigated
Washington Times
Feb. 21, 2002
By Stewart Stogel
http://www.washtimes.com/world/20020221-14729320.htm
Prohibition advocate violates New York City gun laws.
6. Miscellaneous
a. "Gun Facts." version 3.1.
Debunks various gun prohibition myths
http://home.attbi.com/~guys/guns.html
b. PollingReport.com
Collection of media polls on guns
http://www.pollingreport.com/guns.htm
c. Creating
Criminals in Chicago
FrontPageMagazine.com
January 29, 2002
By Tanya Metaksa
http://frontpagemag.com/columnists/metaksa/2002/metaksa01-29-02.htm
Abusive enforcement of gun registration laws
d. Citizen of the year denied OK to carry gun
Washington Times
Jan. 29, 2002
By Margie Hyslop
http://www.washingtontimes.com/metro/20020129-865799.htm
"Gun Safety" in Maryland
7. Law
a. Bean v. BATF.
Supreme Court grants cert. on whether federal judges have the authority
to restore Second Amendment rights of a felon. Case will be heard next fall.
Fifth Circuit decision:
http://www.ca5.uscourts.gov/opinions/pub/00/00-40304-cv0.htm
b. Second Amendment Foundation handgun carry suit in Ohio.
c. Trinen v. City and County of Denver (Colo. App. Feb. 14).
Court of Appeals rules 2-1 that Denver restrictions on
open and concealed carry are legitimate. Dissent
argues that some of the restrictions are overbroad.
http://www.courts.state.co.us/ctappeals/opinion/00CA2126.doc
d. Sturm, Ruger & Co v. City of Atlanta (Ga. App. Feb. 13).
Atlanta's abusive lawsuit against gun manufacturers is held
to be preempted by state law.
http://www.nssf.org/releases/021402.htm
e. House Speaker Presses Judge on Case
Washington Post
By R.H. Melton
January 25, 2002
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A35227-2002Jan24.html
Judge who upheld local restriction on concealed carry draws ire of
pro-rights legislator.
f. Harvard Law School Target Shooting club
http://kuznets.fas.harvard.edu/~volokh/guns.html
Al Qaeda delenda est!
