I am very happy to report that my second academic article on gun culture was published today in the journal Sociology Compass (my first was on religion and gun ownership). Thanks to a generous grant from Wake Forest University’s ZSR Library and the Office of Research & Sponsored Programs, “The Sociology of U.S. Gun Culture” …
I love whisk(e)y. My love knows almost no boundaries. American, Canadian, Indian, Irish, Japanese, Scotch, Texas. Barley, corn, rye, wheat. Neat, rocks, mixed. To fuel my love I have been reading Reid Mitenbuler’s recent book, Bourbon Empire: The Past and Future of America’s Whiskey. Early on, Mitenbuler introduces the first alcohol distiller among the British …
Chapter 3 of Jennifer Carlson’s book on legal gun carriers in Michigan explores the role of National Rifle Association trainers and training courses in the construction and dissemination of the ideal of armed citizenship she calls the “citizen-protector.” Put briefly, the “citizen-protector” accepts the responsibility of using lethal force in defense of innocent life as …
The problem with averages is that there is no “United States of America” when it comes to guns, violence, and crime, but many Americas. Some of these Americas – like my neighborhood in Winston-Salem – are more like our first world counterparts in the OECD, and some of them are more like the third world …
In light of several self-defense shootings in Tulsa, Oklahoma, I am going to review some points I’ve already made in a few posts, but obviously bear repeating. Despite the concern about a rising number of civilian justifiable homicides, and criticisms of “Stand Your Ground” laws as allowing people to “shoot first and ask questions later,” …
I recently completed the Massad Ayoob Group’s MAG-40 course, “Armed Citizens’ Rules of Engagement,” co-sponsored by Derby Guns of Scottsdale (shout out to Kate and Jim Kreuger!). This is the course Ayoob used to teach under the auspices of the Lethal Force Institute in New Hampshire. (A review of the LFI course written in 1999 …
For the first 42 years of life, I had never even handled a real gun, much less shot one. My experience was limited to shooting BB guns as a teenagers. We would usually shoot at cans, but one day I took aim at a bird that was too far away to hit, pulled the trigger, …
If you say “hand cannon” today, the typical gun owner is likely to think of an extremely large handgun like the Desert Eagle or .500 Smith & Wesson Magnum, guns that make “Dirty Harry” Callahan’s .44 Magnum revolver seem small by comparison. But the term hand cannon has deep roots in firearms history, going back … Continue reading
For the chapter of my book which will cover the guns and gear of Gun Culture 2.0, I am doing some background work on the history of firearms. What’s been constant and what has changed over time, especially with the evolution from Gun Culture 1.0 to Gun Culture 2.0? While thinking about how best to … Continue reading
Visiting my daughter in Wilmington, North Carolina recently, a local “lifetsyle” magazine, Cape Fear Living, caught my eye. Many cities have these to promote local business and civic affairs. Look at the cover below and it will be obvious what drew my attention. Look at those GUNS! Flipping through the magazine I was actually surprised … Continue reading
According to a gun control group I have never heard of until this media campaign, the companies underwriting the new NRA Carry Guard “insurance” plan, Chubb and Lockton, are actually selling “murder insurance.” And they should stop doing so. (Not sure why Guns Down America is not all over Lockton Affinity for also administering Second … Continue reading
Fake Recoil Magazine cover courtesy of Gun Free Zone this morning. Of course, most humor is grounded in some reality. Here the reality is drama in the gun training “community” or “cottage industry” (as Tom Givens called it) about who, what, where, when, why, and how gun training should take place. These debates — much … Continue reading
That which has been is what will be, That which is done is what will be done, And there is nothing new under the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:9). Reading year after year of The American Rifleman, this well-known passage from the Tanakh ring ever so true. Two examples below are similar to others I have found, … Continue reading
Brought to you by CCI-Speer Lawman ammunition, American Rifleman (February 1979). Continue reading
