Moral equivalency
Triggerhappy,
When I was a prison guard in Texas, an inmate saw my military belt buckle, and wanted to know if I had ever killed anyone in a war. I told him that in my two tours in Vietnam, I had killed several enemy soldiers. To which he gleefully replied, "Then you are a murderer, the same as me!"
I told him that there was no equivalency when comparing someone who kills a little old lady for her Social Security check, so he can buy drugs, and a soldier fighting for freedom for citizens of a foreign country. He couldn't see the difference!
The criminal justifies his self-serving violence, and considers it to be the same as protecting others and trying to ensure their freedom.The professor equates the soldier to the terrorist. Faulty logic from the criminal and the professor.
Another Texas inmate gave me a clear insight into the criminal attitude toward gun control. It was the year Texas Governor Ann Richards (D) was approached about the possible enactment of Concealed Carry laws for the citizens of Texas. She said if the legislature passed such laws, she would veto it. She also refused to allow a non-binding referendum to be placed on the ballot of the upcoming elections.
Since the issue of CC was getting so much news media coverage, I knew the inmates were seeing it discussed on the TV's in their dayrooms, so I started taking a little opinion poll among the inmates about the subject. None of the inmates liked the idea of armed citizens, and one of them summed it up with this statement:
"It ain't no fun to hunt when the rabbit's got a gun!!!"
To a man (I must have discussed the issue with 30 or 40 inmates), they all said they would continue to carry guns when they were released from prison, even though they would be guilty of "Felon In Possession Of A Firearm", a felony crime punishable with a 5 to 20 year prison sentence. They all said they needed to carry a firearm to protect themselves - the same reason a law-abiding citizen wants to carry!
To summarize, the criminal:
1) Intends to keep his guns
2) Wants "the rabbits" to be helpless (disarmed)
These are not theories, they come from face-to-face conversations with actual convicted felons in a medium security prison.
P.S. Ann Richards lost her re-election bid - she was defeated by George W somebody!!! He encouraged the Texas legislature to pass a CC law, which they did, and he promptly signed it. Now, about 300,000* Texas "rabbits got guns", and violent crime has been reduced (murder down 52%, rape down 22%).
*These are not exact figures.
To prepare for the professors next attempt to humiliate you, go to these web sites:
www.concealedcampus.org/arguments.htm
www.ncpa.org/oped/dupont/dup060100
You can also do a google search for rising crime rates in Britain, and Australia, due to gun bans. Violent crime against homeowners has skyrocketed in both countries as a result. Also, search for stats on Washington DC crime rates being the highest in the nation due to gun bans.
In short, in only about half an hour on the internet, you should be able to discover and print out a ream of info discrediting gun bans. Give all members of your class a copy of 3 or 4 of these internet articles, and the professor will have very little rebuttal available - other than typical liberal emotional panic and fear mongering, IMHO