David E. Petzal - The Gun Nut

Whether I ask for them or not, I am sent e-mails from the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence, and sometimes they contain interesting stuff. The latest one informed me that California's legislature has passed a law requiring that all automatic pistols sold in that state after 2010 have their breech faces and firing pins microengraved. This process would stamp the serial number of a gun on the case of any round it fired, enabling the police to trace the firearm from brass left at the scene of a shooting.

August 7, 2007
The Hon. Carolyn McCarthy
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515

Dear Representative McCarthy:

I am writing to you because in all of Congress, no one has taken a tougher stance on gun control, and I have become aware of a situation so out of control that only you can handle it.

I was recently taken to task by chuckb, a regular reader of this blog and an astute observer of politics, for the way I--and many of you--get on Hillary's case. Hillary, he says, makes all the politically correct noises about gun control, but she doesn't have any real plans. The person who does is Rep. Caroline McCarthy, (D-NY).

And the winner is ...

It occurs to me that seldom in recent memory have there been so many anti-gunners yowling and yammering at us, and so, in the great tradition of bloggery, I think it's time to take a poll: Who is the worst of them all?

In order that this project be conducted to the highest scientific standards, I'd like you to consider three factors in making your decision:

1. Extremism of views.
2. Ability to do us real damage.
3. General loathsomeness of personality.

And so, here is your list of candidates. Please choose only one, and keep your remarks brief.

*Mayor Michael Bloomberg
*Sen. Chuck Schumer
*Sen. Hillary Clinton
*Rep. Nancy Pelosi
*Rosie O'Donnell
*Sarah Brady
*Sen. Diane Feinstein
*Sen. Ted Kennedy
*Rep. Caroline O'Connor McCarthy
*A dark horse of your choice

Have at it.

In 2002 film maker and professional pain in the ass Michael Moore presented the world with Bowling for Columbine, a "documentary" on the gun culture in the U.S. that took its name from the shootings at Columbine High School in Colorado. It won an Academy Award that year for Best Documentary, and I saw it, but have forgotten just about all of it, except for one scene:

The Coalition to Stop Gun Violence just sent me a summary of a study done by Dr. Garen J. Wintermute, who is Director of the University of California (Davis campus) Violence Prevention Research Program. Dr. Wintermute has visited 28 gun shows in California, Arizona, Nevada, Texas, and Florida.

The report is lengthy, highly detailed, and written in the brain-coagulating academic prose that nearly got me flunked out of college. I don’t have the space to discuss it in detail, so I’ll have to limit myself to comments on just a few of his points.

When one of the big constrictor snakes squashes something for supper, we tend to think of rib cages cracking and eyeballs bugging out of skulls. But the reality is a much subtler process; every time the victim exhales, the snake tightens just a little. With each contraction of the serpent, there is less and less room to inhale, and finally there is none at all.