Drug War provides another end-run around citizens rights

[Tinker]

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/01 ... purchases/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

If you have ever used drugs, you are not allowed to use a gun. You can be a drunk and buy a gun. Hell, you can be drunk WHEN you buy a gun. But if you ever smoked pot, no gun.

[May O'Naize]

So, let me get this straight.....I can't buy a gun because of general experimental/social drug use but I could still be elected president?

[jerryberry]

Is that Lebron? Big fan.

[Milo]

Hell that's it's reason for existence!

http://goo.gl/ylmO7

[Tinker]

[Demon of Undoing]

Right now , they don't even mention getting pinned to a wall with a gun. It is assumed in everything.

[Tinker]

[Demon of Undoing]

Just looking really quickly at that article I see some methodology gaps , and if I notice them , there are likely more.

For instance , correlating it to tighter gun control is a great idea , but the three laws they constituted as evidence of such control is off. None of those three pieces of legislation have had significant impact , and two of them ( trigger locks and storage requirements ) aren't gun control bits so much as measures designed to cut down on kids accidentally shooting themselves ( which while tragic is not something that occurs often , statistically speaking). As to the AWB , I don't see them having much of an effect because of the patchwork nature of both enforcement ( Arizona never gave a damn about flash hiders , and they are right next door) and even the subject of the ban. The same rifle could be had as long as it had a different stock and mo bayonet lug. How that makes people safer , or makes sense , is beyond me.

[Tinker]

It was stated explicitly that he was tracking correlation, not causation. No one thinks that voting for McCain causes gun violence.

[Demon of Undoing]

[Tinker]

I think his points about the lack of correlation between certain things and gun violence was interesting. As you note, he gave more serious weight to poverty than he did to other stuff.

Of course, 10 murders out of 100,000 people is not very much. If only we could have a rational argument about diminishing returns in relation to the loss of rights.

[noddy]

a broad brush correlation between drug use and killing people is the correct path away from avoiding conversations on broad brush correlations between guns and killing people.