The Myth of Defensive Gun Use **Note – This article appeared in Politico on 1/14/2015 In the early hours of Nov. 2, 2013, in Dearborn Heights, Michigan, a pounding at the door startled Theodore Wafer from his slumber. Unable to…
Data, Debunking Myths, Long Read
A Lott More Lies – Debating More Guns Less Crime
A Lott More Lies: Debating More Guns, Less Crime By: Devin Hughes and Evan DeFilippis John Lott and I had a debate on the David Pakman Show over the question of whether or not more guns decrease the crime…
Debunking Myths, History, Long Read
Shooting Down the Gun Lobby’s Favorite “Academic”: A Lott of Lies
By Evan DeFilippis and Devin Hughes More guns, less crime. Guns are used more in self-defense than in criminal acts. The vast majority of mass shootings occur in gun-free zones. Good guys with guns stop mass shootings. Guns make…
Had a long article published over at the Boston Review. The column is reproduced in full below: Why Did Chris Die? After his son Christopher was gunned down near the campus of the University of California, Santa Barbara on May…
Data, Debunking Myths, Long Read, Philosophy
Why Stop-and-Frisk Does Not Work
The Inconsistency of Our Outrage The stop-and-frisk debate is instructive in that it spotlights the inconsistency in outrage that both conservatives and liberals display over the violation of constitutional rights. Many conservatives appear completely insensitive to the empirical reality…
Debunking Myths, Long Read, Philosophy
Why Are They Punishing Me? Gun Control: Pragmatism, Not Punishment
Why Are They Punishing Me? There is this tenacious, although misinformed, belief among gun advocates that gun control regulation represents a form of “punishment” inflicted upon law-abiding citizens for the acts of criminals. This sentiment is often expressed as…
Long Read
Suicides: The Missing Movement- Why More Guns Means More Suicides
Billy and the Golden Gate Bridge “The Golden Gate Bridge is practically suicide proof. Suicide from the bridge is neither possible nor probable” –Chief Engineer Joseph Strauss, 1936 Billy was an 18-year old high school student. He attended a…
Guns don’t kill people, children do. Cassie Culpepper, age 11, was riding in the back of a pickup when her 12-year-old brother pointed his father’s pistol at her. He believed he had removed the bullets, and so jokingly pulled…
Data, Debunking Myths, Long Read
Less Guns, Less Crime- Debunking the Self-Defense Myth
Myth: Opponents of concealed-carry laws, such as Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York, insist that the presence of armed citizens at mass shootings would result in even more deaths because of crossfire. But armed civilians prevented mass shootings on…
Myth “The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.” – Wayne LaPierre Overview of Pro-Gun Arguments Guns are an effective deterrent against bad guys with guns. As you cannot…