Gun Control Duel Over Chicago

Those who would debate gun control, inside and outside academe, face a special problem when explaining what Chicago exemplifies. “Chicago is alleged by the gun lobby to be a festival of gun violence despite tough control) and where gun violence is fueled by imports of weaponry from neighboring Indiana, Wisconsin, and Missouri (all with very weak laws),” Hank Reichman alleges in the academe blog maintained by the American Association of University Professors (AAUP).

Every left-winger’s bete noire, the National Rifle Association, counters that, “First, trace data shows that Illinois is far and away the largest source state for guns recovered in Chicago; with double the number of firearms of the next highest source state. Second, without conceding to Chicago’s definition of ‘comprehensive,’ the geographers at Chicago City Hall might be surprised to learn that California abuts pro-gun states Arizona and Nevada, while New York is adjacent to Vermont and Pennsylvania. Yet, Los Angeles and New York City’s murder rates are a fraction of the Windy City’s.”