Gun Control Myth Seven: Killing and other violent crimes were prevalent in the Old West because guns were so plentiful
John Wayne killed a lot of men in many Westerns, as did Clint Eastwood (although for the record the World War II film Where Eagles Dare had the highest body count of any of his films). The point is that Westerns suggest that everyone was packing guns and it was a dangerous place.
However, Hollywood and history are not the same thing. Not even close. First, about the only Eastwood film that is likely close to accurate is the film Unforgiven, where the hero can’t even hit a can without resorting to a shotgun. That’s a far cry from Eastwood’s “Man with No Name” character shooting a rope from several hundred yards away in The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.
But violence wasn’t really as common as movies and TV make it seem. Morgan O. Reynolds notes in his study Myths About Gun Control notes:
“From 1870 to 1885, the era of the Wild West when ‘everybody wore a gun,’ arrest rates per 100 residents were much lower in the West than in eastern cities.”
He adds that the Western frontier was more civilized, more peaceful and safer than much of America today. For example, Virginia City, Nevada; Leadville, Colorado and Dallas, Texas had no homicides in 1880 – whereas Cincinnati had 17.
Additionally because everyone carried or possessed firearms and was willing to resist there were few robberies, thefts or burglaries. The truth is that a few legendary exceptions are now accepted as the rule.
Who Guards The Guards: Police Pull Guns in Two Unrelated Incidents!
Talk to any anti-firearm zealot and they’ll likely tell you that if guns were banned, no one would ever have to stare down the barrel again. But what if the police are still armed? Couldn’t a police officer then break the law and aim a gun at you – say in a bar? Well, this happened not once but twice this past weekend.
The Associated Press, via The Dallas Morning News reported:
“An off-duty police officer is accused of hitting two bar workers and pulling a gun on them because they refused to let him back inside after closing. Sgt. Hector Roa, 37, was charged Sunday with two counts of aggravated assault, Dallas police said.”
Meanwhile, to the north, in Tulsa, KTUL noted:
“A Tulsa Police officer is suspended with pay after he pulls a gun near a bar. It happened early Saturday morning at a bar near 17th and Boston. According to arrest reports, 33-year-old officer Thomas Fees was asked to leave the bar after a disturbance.” Read more
