Philadelphia and Firearms

While I'm happy the Philadelphia Inquirer printed my letter today in their Sunday edition, they did chop the hell out of it (not unexpected). I had already kept the letter brief and succinct but they removed my best supporting arguments. Here is the entire letter I sent them:

xxx xxxxxxxxxx Avenue
Lansdowne, Pa.19050
January 11, 1998
(xxx) xxx-xxxx

TO: Inquirer.editiorial@phillynews.com
Editors
Philadelphia Inquirer
P.O. Box 8263
Philadelphia, Pa. 19101

In your article of Sunday January 11, "Philadelphia and Firearms", the authors have opted to ignore the most basic of facts in order to further an anti-gun agenda. In Pennsylvania:

1) There are more guns per-capita OUTSIDE of Philadelphia than within.

2) There are more Pennsylvanians with concealed weapons licenses per-capita OUTSIDE of Philadelphia than within.

Yet, there is more violent crime within Philadelphia than without. This would tend to point to a conclusion quite the opposite of the one that this article's authors are trying to lead the reader to. Indeed, peer-reviewed scientifically validated studies such as that by Professor John Lott of the University of Chicago have proven the connection between liberalized concealed weapons laws and reduced violent crime rates nationwide. Philadelphia's problem is not guns. It is a small group of violent people and the inability or unwillingness of the city's leadership to deal with them.

Jim Henry
jim@AirPower.com

* 1st 2.00 ~ Handgun Control, Inc.- The rapist's greatest ally

(Jim Henry)
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