http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=4706

Is a guy unloading his gun over his stereo OK? Probably not. But I don’t like the idea that seems to be in play here: “Well, as long as we came all the way out here, we might as well arrest *somebody*.” In fairness, I wasn’t there, so I don’t know what happened between the gun wielding homeowner and the police. Maybe they told him, “Hey, man, you can’t be doing that,” and were willing to let it go at that. And maybe he got belligerent, which landed him in jail. Maybe not. Maybe NOPD is going for the “broken windows theory.” I have no idea.

I lived in NO from 1988-1993 and still have a place in my heart for it. In some ways, it will always feel like home. NO has a way of doing that.

As for guns and gun control, though, I will always recall what a friend of mine explained many years ago. Whenever there is a gun-wielding maniac on the loose, on a killing spree, what is the ONLY way the person is ever stopped? The arrival of more guns.

Criminals don’t obey the law, but regular citizens do. So gun control laws only serve to disarm good people and keep the bad people as the only ones armed. If you’re interested, there is some fascinating research on this by…gah! I can’t remember his name right now…big time liberal/progressive/anti-gun professor of renown who set out to write a book about the wonder of gun control laws and in the course of his research he learned that his premise was horse-xit and came around to the other way, based on the data.

FYI Garvey doesn’t live in New Orleans now but he did once upon a time.

Do you feel safer in your neighborhood knowing that people can protect themselves with guns, or is this example of seemingly reckless behavior, 12 rounds fired over a stereo theft, a source for increasing uneasiness?

Is firing a gun, with the potential for unintended harm, over something as minor as a car stereo theft a suitable response? Do you think stricter gun control would lead to additional violent crime in your neighborhood, or a reduction? And if gun control would make things safer for you, XY, and Persephone, would restricting civil liberties in this manner be worth the added security?

I don’t know if Garvey lives in New Orleans. He gave an interesting and well considered response. But his answer seemed less personal, and more political than yours. I expected that living in New Orleans would elicit a more personal response like yours - one founded on your present experiences, instead of philosophically justified.

Of course, I would welcome further response from Garvey and any other as well. It’s an event worthy of a little more discussion, I think. But as you are a new father living in an inner city environment in a city with a unique culture and recent history, your answer interests me most.

Of course, if we’re not abolishing the state today, I’d like some universal health care please.

Funny how these posts take on a life of their own. I didn’t really think I’d be getting into a wide-ranging philosophical discussion when I posted this morning. But all of a sudden I feel like I’m sitting in the dorm room kicking the bong around.

Would you be willing to generalize this statement to other areas, such as health care, education, energy policy, etc.?

Liberty born in cynicism is still liberty!