As our nation continues to contemplate the horror of the Fort Hood shootings, one revelation about Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan caught my eye. In 1996, after completing his official "NRA Personal Protection Course," he was issued a permit in Virginia to carry a concealed weapon. Virginia is one of...

We know that individuals can defy the law. Can a state legislature defy the law? When it comes to the gun issue, apparently it can.

I refer to the extraordinary legislation passed into law by the states of Montana and Tennessee declaring that guns or ammunition manufactured and...

I noticed a recent article in the Washington Times (which is to print what Fox News is to TV) that had me thinking, "Here we go again."

The article, headlined "U.S., after long ban, quietly begins to study gun safety," reported, with barely-concealed alarm, that the National Institutes of...

Recently the press reported two items of good news in the fight against gun violence, but even good news reminds us of how far we need to go.

The Seattle Times reported that Brian Borgelt, the former owner of Bull's Eye Shooter Supply, the notorious Tacoma, Washington gun shop...

It is no surprise that the Supreme Court has decided to hear the so far unsuccessful constitutional challenge to the Chicago handgun ban. The Court's ruling last year in District of Columbia v. Heller, discovering a new Second Amendment right to personal gun possession unrelated to militia service, determined...

"Appeasement." What word better describes the current attitude of the Obama administration, and many in the Democratic Party, toward the gun lobby?

The word recently was invoked by syndicated columnist Marie Cocco referring to the approach of the White House to the gun issue. "Obama and the Democrats haven't...

Every so often, we get a picture -- with crystal clarity -- of the kind of country the radical "gun rights" crowd wants America to be. It allows us to understand just how much is at stake in the gun control debate.

It apparently is not enough for opponents of...

The BBC recently ran a story that explains much about why the rest of the industrialized world has long been puzzled and horrified at U.S. policies toward guns. The story reported that, in the space of twenty-four hours, two young American children had been shot by their young siblings....

The National Rifle Association is not known for fighting battles it cannot win. But its opposition to the Sotomayor nomination was destined to be an exercise in futility. Many observers are puzzled as to how the NRA could make such an obviously misguided strategic decision. Senator Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.)...

We've all heard the gun lobby's refrain, "Guns don't kill people. People kill people." This clever slogan has long been used to suggest that because guns don't become a problem until they are misused by dangerous people, the only sensible approach to gun violence is to punish violent criminals, not...

In May, the Senate voted for an amendment (to the credit card reform bill) pushed by the National Rifle Association allowing individuals to carry loaded guns in national parks, as long as they are in compliance with state law. One purpose of the amendment, according to its sponsor, Senator...

The "gun rights" community is in full-throated opposition to the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court and the pressure is building on the National Rifle Association to join the party. Last week, 26 well-recognized pro-gun partisans signed a letter opposing her nomination, led by former NRA...

When House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) was asked about legislation to ban assault weapons, she responded, "On that score, I think we need to enforce the laws we have right now."

When President Obama was asked by Bob Schieffer on Face the Nation about whether he plans...

Should suspected terrorists be blocked from buying guns before they commit a violent crime? The gun lobby apparently doesn't think so.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently made the astounding discovery that, in the five years ending in February, 2009, 865 individuals on the government's terrorist watch list were...

Gun control frequently is referred to - alongside issues like abortion and gay rights - as a "cultural" issue. Indeed, it is fashionable in some quarters to refer to the cluster of cultural issues as "God, guns, and gays." The Obama Administration has taken some heat for its failure to...