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« Sen. Allen and carry in National Parks | Main | Just about sums it up »

History of GCA 68

Posted by David Hardy · 3 December 2006 12:32 PM

Just came across a legal history of the Gun Control Act of 1968, by Franklin Zimring. Zimring generally supports more gun laws, but his preface has an interesting note: "The study will be of little use to the most fervent friends and foes of gun control legislation. It provides data they do not need. Each group has already decided that the 1968 Act has failed, and each group uses the Act’s presumed failure to confirm views already strongly held. Enthusiasts for strict federal controls see the failure of the law as proof that stricter laws are needed, while opponents see it as evidence that no controls will work."

· Gun Control Act of 68

4 Comments | Leave a comment

Beerslurpy | December 3, 2006 4:10 PM | Reply

Whoa I take serious issue with the premise that GCA 68 was about crime control or that it failed. I have long been under the impression that it was a reaction to the race riots of 66-68 was really more about Negro Control than Gun Control per se.

By requiring guns to pass through a federally licensed storefront, it gave local jurisidictions the ability to shut gun stores out of urban black neighborhoods and generally raise the level of difficulty associated with acquiring arms. The other prong of attack was the destructive welfare programs of the 60s and 70s.

Am I really the only person to have observed this? If there isnt a paper on this already, someone should write it.

Beerslurpy | December 3, 2006 5:36 PM | Reply

Hmm, there is a lot of interesting stuff in there about sporting purposes and the impossibility of preventing transfers to prohibited persons. I thought the number of guns in the US was 300-400k rather than 100k.

If you look at it as a protectionist bill written with slight input from people who hate guns, it makes a lot more sense.

Beerslurpy | December 3, 2006 9:15 PM | Reply

That paper was written 31 years ago. Certainly explains the lack of post 70s data.

Interesting that the antis have been beating that same drum for so long- the familar old "it's not our social policies, its guns from out of state."

Kevin Baker | December 4, 2006 8:26 AM | Reply

Beerslurpy:

280-300 million guns, not thousand (k) guns.

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