Gun Control & RKBA
In reply to the discussion: Estimating the Number of DGUs [View all]PropagandaProfessor
(2 posts)Reviewing the comments here again, I'm disappointed to see that there still isn't much in the way of productive discussion. As with virtually all of my detractors, the commentators here are reacting as if I were the one proposing beliefs instead of debunking them. I'm even more disappointed to see that there is a great deal of ad hominem bickering, but I suppose that's to be expected these days, alas.
I'm both amused and perplexed to see so much hyperventilation over my simple observation that my essay is "not a scientific study" -- which some have taken to be an admission that its approach is not scientific at all. But a scientific study is a series of controlled experiments backed by funding. And it doesn't take one scientific study to deconstruct another. The big problem with the DGU "studies" (and I take exception to the use of the word, since they're really polls rather than studies) is that they project numbers based on interviews of what gun owners CLAIM happened. The unreliability of this approach should be apparent from the astronomically wide range of variation in results -- from 65,000 to 2.5 million (some have even estimated 3.6 million) is, to say the least, quite a stretch. I wrote my post to suggest that it would be more accurate to project from a foundation of verified statistics instead. If anyone has an actual reason why this is not a good idea, I'd love to hear it. Just drop by my place and pull up a chair (or a soapbox).
Indeed, I'd urge you to look at the recent comments on the post in question to see what I mean by productive discussion. A commentator calling himself Frail Liberty has challenged my comments, but he has done so in an entirely adult manner: civil, intelligent, and informed. It's the kind of thing I wish I could see more of.