Facts Don’t Matter to the Gun Ban Crowd: New book shoots holes in Gun Grabber arguments! Shooting Blanks
When you and other thinking Americans Read it… Firearms Haters Can Kiss Their Gun Ban Plans Goodbye!!Honesty, facts, and reason combine in this new must-read tour de force from the authors. Shooting Blanks, for the first time in just one book, shows how to shatter gun grabber fallacies with facts and logic. Fallacy and falsehood alike fall before the eloquent and logical fact-based analysis brought to bear by the authors. Written by the most prominent minds in the Second Amendment rights movement today.
Filled with examples, Shooting Blanks gives you the ammunition you need in discussions over coffee or testifying before the legislature and at all points between. See the bait and switch techniques of the gun banners, their subtle propaganda, and how they try to steal the high ground in every conversation – and how to keep that from happening.
NY Times Calls “Gunfight” Uneven
While many in the liberal media have praised Adam Winkler’s book The New York Times was less kind, offering this opening to its review:
“In ‘Gunfight,’ his provocative, highly uneven new book about the fight over gun control, the constitutional law professor Adam Winkler writes that ‘gun rights and gun control are not only compatible; they have lived together since the birth of America.’ He argues that ‘despite the controversy over the meaning of the Second Amendment, Americans have always had the right to keep and bear arms as a matter of state constitutional law. Today, nearly every state has such a provision in its own constitution, clearly protecting an individual right unattached to militia service.’”
The review adds:
“Such passages provide the reader with some illuminating historical perspective and try to project a balanced kind of reasonableness on the part of the author. But Mr. Winkler, who teaches at the University of California, Los Angeles, tries too hard in these pages to present himself as one of the few rational voices in a debate he says is dominated by hard-liners and hotheads on both sides. He suggests the debate over guns today is dominated by ‘strident groups: one set on getting rid of the guns; the other determined to stop guns from being restricted in even modest ways’ and that both sides are vociferous and loathe to compromise.”
While we think this review is still too kind for Winkler’s book, it is interesting to see that not everyone in the media is buying his argument.
Book Review: Chicks with Guns
When I first came upon the opportunity to preorder the book Chicks with Guns by Lindsay McCrum, which was released this month, I wasn’t sure what exactly to expect. I am always beyond excitement to see a book that portrays women gun owners in a positive way and gives me information about my fellow female gun enthusiasts across the country. Do not be fooled by the playful title of this coffee table book however, it contains portraits of 78 women gun owners from around the country. The women portrayed are as diverse as the guns they favor. The range of ages presented runs from the very young to women who have enjoyed decades of shooting – each with deep connections to gun ownership that began as early as the cradle and as late as mid-life.
There are fifteen to twenty million women gun owners in this country and, as the forward to the book states, photographing females with “ostensibly deadly weapons” challenges our preconceptions of the feminine or maternal role. The book breaks the masculine versus feminine barrier of gun ownership and showcases how commonplace and integral a connection to guns can be for many women across America. It is noted that when McCrum began the project, she began with mainly hunters and competitive shooters, however, the end product shows that there is a vast and varied population of women who own guns for pleasure, sport and defense – something woman gun owners already know. The photographer did not exploit the story that each photograph would tell about its subject. Each woman is artistically presented, with her gun, in an elegant manner, one that reflects the personality and gun culture that each woman is connected to. A short biography of a few paragraphs accompanies each photograph, in which the women detail in their own words such things as how they became involved with guns, some of their favorite guns to own, and in some cases, how they view the female relationship to gun ownership. It is a politically neutral presentation of gun ownership, the goal is biographical, not advocacy. Read more
American Prospect Review of Adam Winkler Book Just Call for Gun Control!
Here is the funny thing, Adam Winkler goes and writes a book, “Gunfight: The Battle Over the Right to Bear Arms in America,” and The American Prospect offers a review that basically takes aim at guns in general, noting:
“Adam Winkler misses the point that the only way to reduce homicides is to reduce the number of handguns.”
From that statement it should be apparent that this is a biased take on the issue. We think the best way to reduce homicides is to be tough on crime. We ask the question, how do you actually “reduce the number of handguns?”
The review offers this passage, trying to answer the question, “what can we do:”
“…we used to have means for reducing gun violence significantly, but that may no longer be the case. Substantial political support for gun control has disappeared. The National Rifle Association and right-wing candidates still play Paul Revere, riding through the countryside to spread the alarm that “gun-ban politicians” are on the march. John Bolton, for example, ominously warned attendees at the NRA’s annual meeting in April that if Barack Obama is re-elected, they should expect gun control ‘at the federal level and the international level’ to be at the top of the president’s agenda.”
This is practically an outright lie. Has there ever actually been “substantial political support for gun control,” and once again the NRA is simply cast as a nefarious organization that works outside the system. The other part is that the NRA’s warning did come after Obama said to Sarah Brady that gun control was being worked on “under the radar.” That sounds very much as if he’s up to something, be it the federal level or the international level.
The American Prospect also offers this passage, which clearly shows an anti-gun agenda:
“WHAT ACCOUNTS FOR the strange death of gun control? Paradoxically, the story begins with two supposed victories for the gun-control movement, both during the Clinton administration. The first was the Brady Act, which established a five-day waiting period for handgun purchases, to be replaced by instant background checks when a system for those checks was developed (which occurred in 1998). The second victory for gun control was the assault-weapons ban, which prohibited domestic manufacturers from producing 19 specified models of guns and other weapons with certain characteristics such as bayonet mounts and pistol grips. The NRA argued that the assault-weapons ban was largely cosmetic because while assault weapons look more fearsome than other semi-automatic rifles, there is no functional difference between the two. That argument had some merit, but the assault-weapons ban did have one critical provision: It prohibited the manufacture of gun magazines holding more than ten rounds.”
These were “victories” to those supporting gun control, but they were in fact warning signals that woke up the pro-gun movement. The truth is that this was a rallying call, and it got people worried about their Second Amendment rights. The fact that this article notes “victories” shows the bias loud and clear!
Washington Times Suggests Adam Winkler Half-Cocked With Anti-Gun Book
While we at FirearmsTruth.com haven’t read Adam Winkler’s book “Gun Fight: The Battle Over the Right to Bear Arms in America,” we’ve followed Winkler enough to know that he isn’t one who lets the facts get in the way of his passion. Unfortunately his passionate view is that guns are bad, and no amount of logic or the truth will change his minds.
The Washington Times thus saved us the trouble of reading the book – and don’t get us wrong, we do try to read the views of the “other side,” which is why we’re here. The truth is also that we will try to read the book, and make sure it finds a place in our library alongside the other books on gun rights.
But based on what reviewer Frank Miniter has to say, we won’t rush out to read Winkler’s book. Miniter notes that Winkler plays loose with the facts, going so far as to suggest that Timothy McVeigh was motivated by “opposition to gun control” and that the gun rights groups “bore no responsibility for McVeigh’s treason,” as well as suggesting that gun rights groups “are linked by an unreasonable view of the Second Amendment that casts nearly any gun safety measure as an infringement of the sacred rights of individuals.”
That much information proves to us that passion is what motivates Winkler, and while we credit his dedication to his principals, the truth is that he does no one a service by trying to spread this misinformation and all out lies. Kudos to Miniter for saving us from having to read this book now, and for letting us know what to expect when we finally pick up a copy. We’re just going to wait until it is in the bargain bins – no sense wasting good money on this work of fiction.
Recommended Reading: Right to Bear Arms
Many books over the years have presented the “reasons” why the Second Amendment exists, and there is no shortage of books that make the case for the “right to bear arms,” but Rachel Howie takes up the cause in a children’s book.
Right to Bear Arms (Howwee, Inc.) is no doubt the first book aimed at children that explains the meaning of the Second Amendment. She does so while offering a tale of the Snow Bears, soft cuddly creatures who live near Santa Claus down the road from the North Pole. These bears must protect their lands and property from bad people and do so by being bears who bear arms! But rather than an adventure tale or one where animals are thrust into danger, the book takes a novel approach of just stating the facts and reasons why.
In a world where children are exposed to violent entertainment on TV and video games, this book also offers a positive message of gun safety, instructing the young readers that guns are not toys, and shouldn’t be treated as such. There is no unnecessary violent shootout with the bears, nor are guns objects that are treated casually. Instead guns are tools that the bears bear and hope to never use!
The result is one that should make for good bedtime reading with interesting characters, while teaching a positive message about guns at the same times.
Where to Buy:
Right to Bear Arms at Amazon.com
Book Review: Fine Shotguns – The History, Science, and Art of the Finest Shotguns From Around the World [Hardcover]
Guns are often called tools, and for many modern handguns and rifles this is very much the case. As such you don’t want the item to get scratched or dinged, but you know it comes with using it. Tools are meant to be used as tools after all. But there is an entirely different breed of firearms, those that are true pieces of art.
Author John M. Taylor explores these in his new book Fine Shotguns: The History, Science, and Art of the Finest Shotguns from Around the World (Skyhorse Publishing). Through 256 pages, which include dozens of color and black and white photographs he presents what makes a fine shotgun, exploring models from the United States, Austria, Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. Taylor offers a concise history of the firearms, and offers expert advice on evaluating and purchasing a high-end gun, including tips on how to avoid pitfalls.
He further looks at accessories that are available and gives advice on how to choose the perfect traveling case. The book, whilst aimed at collectors, offers enough applying information for those who do more window shopping that shooting. And for those on a budget this holiday, this book is the next best thing to a well-stocked collection.
$60
256 pages
Hardcover
B&W and Color Illustrations
Published: December 15, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-61608-089-1
Where to Buy:
Book Review: THE GUN
The history of the AK-47 has been told countless times, but with each telling the story has seemed to change a bit. Likely much of this is to do with the fact that the gun was designed and developed in a top secret facility deep within the Soviet Union during the brutal regime of Josef Stalin. But much of this is also because the firearm has developed its own cult of personality, it is a weapon that was once an iconic symbol of the Soviet Red Army and today is recognized as much as the de facto gun of extremists, terrorists, insurgents and gang bangers.
In his book THE GUN (Simon & Schuster, $28.00), author C.J. Chivers delves into the story of the AK-47, looking at its origins. Unlike many past writers he acknowledges that the tale begins much earlier. Not just with the StG44/MP-44 – the infamous Sturmgewehr – the German World War II assault rifle to which the AK-47 bares more than a passing resemblance. Chivers takes the story way back actually to the great grandfather of modern fully automatic firearms, namely the Gatling Gun.
This might seem an odd choice, but Chivers describes the history of the development of Gatling’s gun, as well as other early attempts to make rapid fire weapons. This works as an ideal starting point, especially for those who might not understand the great complexities of firearm design and development. From this point the book jumps ahead and tells the even more bizarre tale of Hiram Maxim and his efforts to create the first successful “machinegun.” Chivers goes into so much detail with the Gatling and later with the Maxim at points that readers may wonder if the book will actually get to the AK-47. But in fact when he does, this previous background makes it clear why the AK-47 is such a notable step forward. Read more
Book Review: Gun Trader’s Guide: A Complete Fully-Illustrated Guide to Modern Firearms with Current Market Values (Thirty-Second Edition) [Paperback]
Author Stephen D. Carpenteri, former editor of Game & Fish, has provided yet another must-buy book for gun collectors. The Gun Trader’s Guide remains the de facto standard reference guide for gun values. Now in its 32nd edition, the book provides up-to-date information on prices, and comes in a large book suitable for study or causal reference.
The book has listings for handguns, shotguns and rifles, from popular brands such as Remington, Colt, Browning, Winchester and Berretta. The information is concise and easy to read, yet informative enough to aid the experienced as well as novice buyer. The book is well-organized for quick checks of prices and other relevant information. Read more
Book Review: The Shooter’s Bible: The World’s Bestselling Firearms Reference (102nd Edition)
One hundred is quite a milestone, so the fact that the Shooter’s Bible is actually in its 102nd edition is a really big deal. The book, which has been published since 1924, began a mail-order catalog of the Stoeger Arms Corporation.
This year’s edition includes new production information, as well as updated specifications and current prices on thousands of firearms and related equipment. The book is a must-own for hunters, sportsman and gun collectors, as it offers up-to-date handgun and rifle ballistic tables, extensive charts of bullets and projectiles for handloading.
The new products catalog further is worthy of a Christmas Wish Book with the latest items including firearms, ammunition and optics manufactured in 2010 or planned for 2011 from companies including Winchester, Cooper, Howa, Ruger, Benelli, Remington, Kimber, Smith & Wesson, Bushnell, Nightforce and Swarovski. The book isn’t light on photos either, and includes a good mix of color and back and white photos. Happy reading!
$29.95
608 pages
Paperback
B&W and Color Illustrations
Published: October 15, 2010
ISBN: 9781916080877
Where to Buy:
