The Munchkin Wrangler writes, “In a truly moral and civilized society, people exclusively interact through persuasion.” He then proceeds to explain why he believes that having an armed populace is essential for promoting the use of persuasion instead of force. Go read the whole thing. It’s very interesting.

When I read the line quoted above, I was reminded of something I’ve said in the past about communism. Communism, on paper, looks lovely. The problem is that it can’t be implemented without a radical change in humanity. Communism assumes that everyone is only interested in living for the community, and that selfishness never enters into the equation. Because selfishness always enters into the equation when large numbers of people are involved, communism doesn’t work on a non-voluntary large scale (smaller scale versions of communism, such as in voluntary communes, may work fine; I don’t know).

Whether you call them hoplophobes, GFWs, gun grabbers, or simply “gun control advocates”, those who believe that outlawing guns will curb violent murders are engaging in the same sort of wishful thinking that anyone who seriously believes that a communist government can work engages in. (Granted, they’re also engaging in wishful thinking because they think it’s possible to get the guns out of the hands of criminals, but let’s ignore that for now.) The nature of the human beast is such that if we have a large difference in the physical capability to defend one’s self, the strong will (as a general rule) bully the weak*.

Guns help to minimize the advantages that an aggressor might have over their victim. Do they negate those advantages completely? No, and they introduce other advantages and disadvantages for both parties, but they do minimize the physical strength advantage, at least. As Kevin Baker once said, “How is an 85 year-old woman – with a heart condition – going to effectively defend herself from one or more burglars in a society that does not allow its citizens defensive firearms, nor even pepper spray? What weapon is allowed to her that will keep assailants out of contact distance?”

* Yes, there are those exceptions who would engage in violent-but-protective behavior (instead of violent-and-predatory), but for the most part, the strong will bully the weak.