2nd Amendment musings from a lifelong liberal gun owner's perspective. Quite informative. ( )

This book was interesting to read. It was written by a Democrat who happens to like guns. (He must be the one! :) ) His experiences throughout the book in traveling around the country and exploring different parts of the gun culture were fun to read about, although bearing no resemblance to my own experiences. I kept feeling throughout the book that he was missing the big picture overall, though. He wants gun owners to try to be nicer about things and yield "just a little". He does note that gun owners are vilified in this country and charged with having the blood of innocents on their hands, but doesn't seem to understand why that would make a class of people angry. ( )

I thought this book was interesting and entertaining. The author is a liberal democrat who has always liked guns, they fascinate him. He explores a lot of gun culture and I think does a pretty good job of giving a lay person a view of "gun guys". He goes through the process of getting a concealed carry permit and carries for an entire year. He discusses several gun shows he stopped by, gun stores he fell into, and online gun forums. It was a fun read. ( )

An investigation into gun culture in America. The reporter spends time inside the gun culture and tours the country being easily identified as a member. He analyses the divide between the two groups, and many of the problems of the gun owners are explained. They are ageing, and their lives often came a good deal short of their expectations. The effect of actually wearing a weapon, concealed or openly, are shown, and such effects can be far more far reaching than one expects. The statistics are also more equivocal than one might expect....And the USA may have reached the tipping point of it being a good idea to rely on one's own set of weapons for self-defense. But it is chilling to discover the immense holes in the social fabric that the last twenty years have torn. ( )

I deplore stereotypes, but I'll admit to being what I perceive to be a typical liberal. I didn't grow up using guns. I've never been tempted to hunt (though various relatives do). And I have a knee-jerk reaction when the term "assault weapon" comes up.
But real issues are never as black-and-white as we would like them to be. This book exposed me to various aspects of America's gun culture, and I can understand why all sorts of activities that don't interest me absolutely fascinate others.
The author (who describes himself as a New York City Jew who was totally lost at summer camp until he discovered he had a talent for target shooting) is a gun collector and occasional shooter who managed to get a book proposal accepted to examine our country's love affair with guns. This book details his year-long exploration, visiting gun stores and gun shows across the country and delving into related areas. Hunting. Machine gun enthusiasts (yes, it's possible to obtain a license for them). Gun collecting. Competitive target shooting. He even visits an armorer who rents firearms to movie studios for use in their films (and carefully supervises their use).
As part of his research, he applies for and receives a CCW permit and carries a concealed handgun most of the time for several months.
Finally, near the end of his oddyssey, he visits the headquarters of the National Rifle Association and of the Brady Center to End Handgun Violence. At the end of the book, he presents his take on the pros and cons of various aspects of gun control.
It's both a fascinating and an illuminating read. ( )