Column: Gun control is not the issue in the Dawson shooting:
Date: Sep 25, 2006 11:33 AM
PUBLICATION: Montreal Gazette
DATE: 2006.09.25
EDITION: Final
SECTION: Editorial / Op-ed
PAGE: A21
BYLINE: LIONEL ALBERT
SOURCE: Freelance
WORD COUNT: 767

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Gun control is not the issue in the Dawson shooting: Some studies show
allowing people to own guns freely actually cuts crime

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Like Beverly Akerman (“The solution is simple: No more guns!” Opinion,
Sept. 19), I am closely acquainted with members of the Dawson College
community.

Does the recent shooting episode teach us anything? The simple answer is
that gun control did not help at all. It neither saved Anastasia De
Sousa’s life nor prevented the injuries to 20 others. The killer had
acquired all three of his weapons properly and had complied with the
stringent federal gun-control system.

In all the 700-odd words of Akerman’s article, this fact is not
acknowledged. She does, however have a solution, namely a complete ban
on guns. That this would not be any more effective than the complete ban
on cocaine does not concern her. Nor should it, as we are dealing with
an argument from emotion rather than logic. Indeed, that is where the
writer is most convincing. She tells Prime Minister Harper, “If you
persist in your intended dismantling of the gun registry instead of
making it harder for people to own guns, there will be hundreds of
thousands of us marching in the streets of Montreal.”

Why do people ignore the evidence against gun control? One answer is
that they are ill-informed. For example, there are many studies showing
that allowing people freely to own guns decreases gun crime (mainly
because potential perpetrators fear that potential victims might be able
to fight back). There are opposing studies, but those who cast doubt on
gun control are rarely reported or are presented in a very negative
manner.

Interestingly enough, when reality breaks through it is often accurately
reported in the local media. The Gazette quoted Dawson College security
guard Vince Pascale, “the gunman had carte blanche. There was no one
near to stop him and he was fully loaded with weapons. … Who was going
to stop him? Nobody is armed over here, so he could have done what he
wanted.” Pascale’s insight did not make it into the national media.

An American example of manipulation in the national media occurred in
2002. On the campus of the Appalachian School Of Law in Grundy, Va., a
disgruntled student opened fire, murdering the school’s dean, a law
professor and a student. As reported locally in the Charlotte Observer,
the regional daily newspaper, two men who helped bring the murderer
under control were ASL students Mikael Gross and Tracy Bridges, both
North Carolina law-enforcement officers. The report stated, “Gross ran
to his car, parked about 100 yards away, without dropping the gunman
from his sight, grabbed … a gun from under his front seat. While the
man pointed his gun at fellow students, Gross and two others ran toward
him from different directions. One of the others … also had his gun
… When the gunman saw them … he put his weapon down and his hands
up.”

A Lexis-Nexis search revealed 88 stories about those murders and only
two mentioned that Bridges and Gross were armed. On the NBC Nightly
News, Tom Brokaw noted Virginia State Police were crediting law students
“for preventing further loss of life, saying they overpowered the gunman
and held him until police arrived.” No mention that two of these
students were armed. The CBS Evening News noted only “students tackled
the suspect.” Again, no mention of any students being armed. And Public
TV’s News Hour said nothing about students doing anything, reporting
only “the suspect was captured.” In a lengthy interview on CBS’ Early
Show, co-host Bryant Gumbel spoke with several people – including Tracy
Bridges – regarding the ASL murders. All Gumbel said was that Bridges
was among a group of students “who took the gunman down,” who “helped
pin him down.” No mention of Bridges having a gun. In a story of almost
1,000 words on the ASL murders, the Washington Post reported, “three
students pounced on the gunman and held him down until help arrived.”
The Post noted Bridges and Gross “helped subdue (the murderer) until
sheriff’s deputies arrived.” Again, no mention that Bridges and Gross
were armed.

Gun control is part of the culture of helplessness. May the students who
marched back into Dawson be given information sufficient to match their
determination.

Lionel Albert writes on a variety of subjects. He lives in Knowlton.