zorn article

Should law-abiding citizens be allowed to carry concealed firearms in Illinois, as they are in most other states? The question is again before lawmakers in Springfield, and it gets to the heart of the gun-control debate.

Those in favor say a concealed-carry law will make ours a safer society. Opponents, who block it every year, say it will make life more dangerous.

To probe these positions, I've invited gun-rights advocate John Birch, president of Oak Brook-based Concealed Carry Inc., and Thomas Mannard, executive director of the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence, into the Rhubarb Patch. The Rhubarb Patch is this column's occasional feature in which a debate begins in the newspaper and continues on the Internet.

John Birch fires the first shot:

To Thomas Mannard:

With 666 victims in 2001, Chicago again became the murder capital of the nation. Concealed Carry Inc. estimates in 53 of those cases, the victim would likely have survived had he been armed. At concealedcarry.org we have already documented 18 such cases in 2002.

Currently, 32 states, including Michigan, Indiana and Kentucky, allow citizens trained in the use of firearms to obtain permits to carry concealed weapons, provided they have no felony convictions or serious mental-health problems. Another 11 states, including California, issue such permits at the discretion of local law enforcement. On average, these laws have caused an 8 percent drop in the murder rate. In states without such laws, we often see a moral disconnect between politicians and the citizens they are sworn to serve. Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley, for example, sees no hypocrisy giving anti-gun speeches while surrounded by an armed security detail. Aldermen allow themselves the right to carry concealed handguns, but leave their constituents to dial 911 and hope for the best.

The nurse leaving her night shift job at Cook County Hospital faces a terrible choice: Does she walk unarmed to her car and risk being assaulted by gangbangers? Or does she carry a handgun in her purse and risk being arrested and charged with a felony?

Opponents of concealed-carry laws say our streets will come to resemble the "wild west" if trained citizens are allowed to carry handguns. Wrong. The "wild west" is what we have now.

I ask this of Illinois residents: If you knew you were about to be attacked, would you rather have a gun in your hand or a telephone? Pick one. It's your life.

To John Birch:

Proponents of concealed-carry laws often describe the scenario of the man who stalks us at the ATM or is following a defenseless woman through a dark parking lot waiting for his opportunity to rob, rape or murder. These proponents claim a gun provides the most effective security in such situations.

However, the risks of having a gun actually far outweigh the benefits, particularly for women. According to FBI homicide data from 1998, 302 women were murdered in handgun homicides for every one time a women used a handgun to kill a stranger in self-defense.

Firearms experts know that armed citizens, even the ones who receive some firearms training, routinely make deadly mistakes when carrying a gun. Master firearms instructor and concealed-carry advocate Massad Ayoob talks about the human physiological and psychological response to mortal danger as the "fight or flight reflex," which he states in a training video will bring about "severe, dramatic, cataclysmic loss of fine motor coordination. Dexterity falls [away]"

This is a serious problem because, he says, "The firing of a gun is dexterity intensive. You can't change that." The effect of these unavoidable changes is well documented. The handgun owner is not only less likely to be able to effectively use the gun for self defense, but he is also more likely to endanger himself, members of his family and innocent bystanders.

Do incidents occur in which people effectively use guns in self-defense against an unknown attacker? Yes. However, compared to the total universe of gun crime and violence, such incidents are rare. The FBI tells us that out of the 7,875 handgun homicides reported in 1998, only 95 (1.2 percent) were justifiable handgun killings of an assailant previously unknown to the person defending themselves.

The debate continues at http://ericzorn.com/rhubarb

Email Eriz Zorn at: EricZorn@aol.com