As reported, Charles ‘Johnny’ Johnson is 91 years old. He has been married to Berlie Mae Johnson, who is 90 years old, for the last 72 years. At around 4pm, two home invaders broke in to their Ocoee, Florida home. One of the home invaders placed a gun to the head of [...]...

Given the recent comments from an Oak Park newspaper writer, I thought this would be a good opportunity to mention the other interactions I’ve had with local news media: The emails from Oak Park’s local newspapers: On November 24, 2008, John Huston, a reporter with the Pioneer Press sent me the following email: Hi there, I stumbled onto...

The Brady Campaign, an anti gun rights organization, has rankings of gun control laws in each state.  Interestingly, the states with the strictest gun control laws don’t seem to be doing well when it comes their murder and crime rates: Low crime rates and lax gun control laws North Dakota had exactly 2 murders in 2008, and [...]...

As reported, the Brady Campaign is suing the Department of the Interior in an attempt to prevent concealed carry from coming to national parks.  I think this lawsuit may actually be a good thing for gun rights: One of the biggest hurdles that I think we face in the fight for gun rights is overcoming the [...]...

As reported, a Buffalo, NY woman was walking down the street when two men forced her into a car and searched her pockets for valuables. After taking $110 from her, they pushed her out the car and shot her once in the shoulder. As I’ve discussed before, complying with a criminal’s demands is no guarantee [...]...

Roland Burris was appointed to fill Barack Obama’s Senate seat, which Obama will vacate in order to serve as president.  Although Obama will be gone from the senate, Burris will continue Obama’s anti gun rights tradition: Burris has campaigned for a national handgun ban for years. Burris organized Chicago’s first gun turn in pro...

As reported, Marvin Oldham was shot twice, after he forced himself into his ex-wife’s parents’ Tennessee home and threatened the occupants. Betty Hale, the mother of Marvin Oldman’s ex-wife, first shot him in the shoulder with a .22-caliber pistol, which didn’t stop him. An elderly man who was visiting the home then shot [...]...

About once a week, I discuss the gun related crime in Oak Park, IL, which is one of the few municipalities that still has a handgun ban.  I get most of the crime reports from the Wednesday Journal, one of Oak Park’s local newspapers.  Bill Dwyer writes the Wednesday Journal’s crime reports, and he doesn’t [...]...

As reported, David Garrett, 47, of the 5100 block of West Potomac Avenue, was found dead of a gunshot wound to the head on the 100 block of Green Street around 2:15 am on January 1, 2009. A second person was also reportedly shot during the same incident, and is in serious to critical [...]...

I’ve been debating whether to write this article for a while, but the comments on a recent article have convinced me to go ahead and do so.  So, here are my thoughts on open carry (as opposed to concealed carry). The benefits of open carry 1. Having a gun for self defense. 2. Possibly changing anti-gun social norms [...]...

As reported, the village of Oak Park, IL has suffered additional armed robberies this week, as criminals continue to ignore the handgun ban.  However there was one piece of good news that came out of these armed robberies. An Oak Park woman was robbed at gunpoint inside her garage on Christmas night. The woman had just [...]...

SayUncle found an armed robbery news story that is rather interesting, and had a nice outcome: A masked man robbed the Washman Carwash on NE 81st Avenue [in Portland, Oregon] Saturday morning, but his gun fell apart in the middle of the heist. The suspect approached an employee at about 10:45 a.m., pulled a gun out [...]...

As reported, 22 year old Ben Aenchbacher was returning home from work at about 8:00pm. An armed robber was waiting in the driveway, and forced Ben Aenchbacher into his home at gunpoint, then demanded money. Ben ran from the robber, who chased after him and opened fire. Ben was hit once in [...]...

There have been over 500 murders in Chicago this year, a great many of which were committed by criminals who ignored the decades old handgun ban (plus the laws against carrying a loaded gun and committing murder).  Rather than recognizing that more gun laws won’t stop the violence, and that the true causes of crime [...]...

As reported, Chicago police responded to a call of gunfire at the Ford City Mall on Chicago’s south side.  It turns out that a chair fell over, and a panicking shopper called 911 to report that someone had opened fire in the mall: I think this goes to show that many people have an extreme and [...]...

Anti gun rights groups push for gun registration because such registration allows the government to know who owns guns, so that they can later be wrongfully confiscated.  Recent events in Tennessee, along with other trends, show that gun owners are at risk not only from overt gun registration requirements - but back door registration schemes [...]...

Scott Vogel is the Communications Director for the “Freedom States Alliance,” a (misnamed) anti gun group dedicated to disarming the law abiding citizens of the United States.  In his interview on BuzzFlash.com, he made a great many untrue statements regarding gun rights.  However it is the one-sided, anti gun rights, interview questi...

An excellent reader comment in the Florida Time-Union responds to those who blame guns or a particular ethic group for inner city violence.  The article points out that blaming guns is intellectually lazy, and that blaming one ethnic group for gun-related crime is also misguided and has no basis in fact. A small snippet of [...]...

I’ve noticed that many of the gun control arguments have some rather degrading and sexist/racist undertones. A few such examples: Sexism On the sexism side, I’ve seen people suggest that guns have no self defense value for women.  For example, this commenter said the following: Do you know of any women personally, who fought off an att...

Some anti gun individuals will complain when a law abiding citizen exercises his or her right to carry a gun to a soccer game or other social event, arguing that guns have no place at such social gatherings.  Yesterday’s events in a suburb of Los Angeles help point out the flaws with such an argument: A [...]...

I just wanted to take a moment to say “thanks” to various people, as today seemed like a good day to do so: In the early months of 2008, I started this website with the goal of putting my thoughts on gun rights online.  I only intended to write a dozen or so articles in total, [...]...

As reported, a woman in the San Francisco area was jumped by four men, taunted for being a lesbian, repeatedly raped, and left naked outside an abandoned apartment building.  The 28-year-old victim was attacked after she got out of her car, which bore a rainbow gay pride sticker. I’ve discussed the problem of hate-motivated attacks before, [...

I was looking through my server logs when I noticed that several people had arrived at LearnAboutGuns.com after searching for phrases such as “can i carry a fake gun” or “Illinois fake gun law.”  It would seem that these individuals were looking for information on the ramifications of carrying a fake gun gun.  Let me [...]...

Traveler’s Notebook ran an interesting article discussing things that are generally legal in the United States, but severely punished in various other countries.  For example, consuming alcohol Saudi Arabia can earn a person a public lashing, while slaughtering cows in India can land a person in prison for 5 years.  Number 12 on that list, ...

I write about Oak Park, IL a lot, because it is one of the few municipalities left in the United States with a ban on handgun ownership - a ban which criminals ignore as they rob, pistol whip, and shoot Oak Park’s defenseless citizens.  However there is good news this week, as one of the [...]...

A couple of gift ideas for this holiday season: 1.  A Gun.  I’ve seen some people deride the idea of giving a gun as a gift, but I see no problem with giving a responsible person such a gift.  A gift of a gun is the gift of safety, as armed citizens can defend themselves from [...]...

Since the Supreme Court held gun ownership to be an individual constitutional right in D.C. v Heller, anti gun groups have redoubled their efforts to find new and creative ways of preventing law abiding people from enjoying the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms.  These people miss the point, as finding a creative [...]...

A few weeks ago, terrorists in Mumbai, India set out to kill as many people as they could, mainly by using guns.  India has some strict gun control laws, however such laws obviously don’t deter people who are bent on killing as many people as they can before dying. Fox Forum ran a great article [...]...

As reported, there were a pair of armed robberies in Oak Park, IL this week, despite the handgun ban.  One was a bank robbery, while the other was an armed robbery committed near a Green Line (train) station: A pair of criminals entered the Charter One Bank, located at 6020 Roosevelt Rd around. One grabbed a [...]...

As reported, Chicago’s Mayor Daley stated that he will host a conference in January of 2009, with the goal of finding new way to restrict gun rights, despite the Supreme Court’s pro gun rights holding in D.C. v. Heller.  The conference will include anti gun politicians from around the country, and people who have been [...]...

I’ve previously discussed the benefits of concealed carry, and how concealed carry permit holders can defend themselves against criminals, instead of being victims.  However the problem with concealed carry permits is that the permit process can be abused by the government. That abuse can take the form of wrongful revocation, or a decision ...

As reported, District Court judge Milton Shadur upheld the Chicago handgun ban. However this should not be seen as truly bad news.  The District Court judge stated that he felt bound by a previous Court of Appeals ruling that upheld the ban.  As the NRA liaison for Illinois stated, “[i]t was expected. We went to court [...]...

As reported, 21 year old Brittany Zimmerman was a University of Wisconsin college student who planned to become a doctor.  She lived in an off-campus apartment with her fiancée , Jordan Gonnering.  Brittany was home alone when a criminal, believed to be a stranger, broke in to her home through the door.  She grabbed the [...]...

One of my hobbies is scuba diving.  As a responsible scuba diver, I make especially sure to stay current on my tetanus vaccinations, due to the heightened risk of puncture injuries on sharp objects (there are lots of sharp and rusty object in and around the water, and spending time in water makes one’s skin [...]...

I usually talk about the armed robberies in Oak Park, IL, which occur despite the decades old handgun ban, and village officials who make the flatly untrue claim that Oak Park is “gun free”.  However this week there was a different kind of (very sad) gun abuse reported: Through a shop window on Lake Street, a [...]...

CNN has provided a nice world map of gun related crime.  What is interesting is that the gun related crime doesn’t seem to be strongly correlated with lawful gun ownership.  For example, the USA has some of the least restrictive gun laws in the world, and has a “medium” level of gun crime, while Brazil [...]...

Some recent news reports of hate crimes, across the world, underscore the need for armed self defense.  Sadly, some supposed civil rights leaders ignore this fact: In New York, Jose Suczhanay was reportedly beaten and kicked to death by men who yelled anti-Hispanic and anti-gay racial slurs. In Germany, two neo-Nazi suspect reportedly stabbed pol...

There remains a lot of confusion about what the Second Amendment meant to the founders’ of the United States, despite the Supreme Court’s clear statement that it protects the individual right to keep and bear arms, independent of service in the militia.  Some of this confusion is the result of intentional misinformation on the part [.....

As reported, Eric Devictoria, a pizza delivery man in Florida, was confronted by an armed robber.  Devictoria was unarmed, but he did have a hot pepperoni pizza, which he threw in the armed robber’s face.  The temporarily blinded robber fired one shot, which missed the delivery man, who was able to escape unharmed.  Police later [...]...

A while back, I was discussing gun rights with a friend, when the issue of paranoia versus reasonable concerns came up.  This friend suggested that gun ownership for home defense was not needed, due to the relatively low risk of a home invasion, and that therefore only a paranoid person would feel the need to [...]...

A “study” commissioned by anti gun group Mayors Against Illegal Guns suggests that gun control leads to crime reductions.  When I heard this claim, I was rather surprised, given the fact that the most violent areas have the most restrictions on gun ownership, while areas with fewer gun restrictions have less crime.  I was preparing [....

I’m generally not a fan of presidential pardons, due to the fact that they can be abused so readily.  However there are cases where our justice system fails, innocent people suffer, and a pardon can help set things right.  It is hard to find better examples of individuals who deserve a pardon more than Border [...]...

The NRA recently ran an excellent article discussing a newer gun control tactic, which attempts to ban owners, rather than banning guns.  This approach has existed in Canada for quite some time, and is now moving to states such as New York.  You can read the article below: The Supreme Court’s decision overturning the D.C. handgun [...]...

As reported, two masked criminals entered Big Bob’s Liquors just before 10:00pm.  One one of the criminals drew a handgun and pointed it at one of the two clerks, threatening his life.  The other clerk drew his handgun, for which he had a concealed carry permit, and fatally shot the armed robber.  The second robber [...]...

Although it seems obvious, I thought I would go ahead and say that handguns belong in holsters, rather than tucked into waistbands. A holster keeps keeps the handgun secure, preventing it from falling or shifting.  A holster may also cover the trigger, helping to prevent unintentional pulls of the trigger.  Sadly, some people have missed [...]...

In keeping with the weekly tradition of discussing handgun related crime in “gun free” Oak Park, IL, I must sadly report that there were 2 armed robberies over the last week: A man was walking when an SUV that pulled up alongside. A criminal exited the vehicle and displayed a small silver revolver, saying “I saw [...]...

Google has updated its AdWords policy to allow the advertisement of spiked drinks, and other indirect means of promoting hard liquor.  Sadly, the ban on promoting lawful gun ownership for self defense purposes remains.  Google apparantly changed its hard liqueur policy in response to feedback, so perhaps if law abiding gun owners contact Google, ...

As I’ve previously discussed, it is a long since settled principle of American law that the police are not liable for failing to protect a citizen - even when the police are grossly negligent.  However a particularly tragic case in North Carolina has the potential to change this rule of law: How the Police Failed Vernetta [...]...

As reported, St. Louis, MO Alderman Charles Quincy Troupe’s ward has one of the highest homicide rates in the city. Recognizing that the police can’t be everywhere at once, Alderman Troupe has advised his constituents to get a gun and learn how to use it responsibly.  So far, about 40 people have expressed interest in [...]...

In previous articles, I’ve alluded to the way that some countries treat people who defend themselves worse than violent criminals.  There is a case from a several years back in the United Kingdom that serves as a perfect example: Facts of the Tony Martin case Tony Martin was a farmer, whose remote farmhouse had been broken in [...]...