Long overdue, I promised this review several months ago when others were being published. But this is a book worth an additional look and a reminder to read if you missed it earlier.
Yes, it is another book In Defense of the Second Amendment (unlike many, the title is quite specific). Why is one more worth reading in 2023?
First, there are seemingly eternal verities in the fight for our individual natural rights of self-defense and preventing tyranny. It is important to remind ourselves and society repeatedly that these truths never lessen with time and that our future (individually and patriotically) depends on maintaining them.
And those who oppose these rights constantly try new tactics against us who oppose them. Every year, in every political campaign (which now seem endless) we must fight anew the same battles and fight new battles more creatively.
Speaking of creativity, author Larry Correia demonstrates that at least some popular culture figures are on our side. Correia is a much published, widely read author, mostly known for his gripping sci-fi fantasy novels, especially the Monster Hunter, Son of the Forgotten Warrior and Grimnoir series. His writing talent makes this new 2A book an easy, interesting read. He’s also stuck his neck out on social media standing up for reason and rights against egoistic know-it-alls who advocate defenselessness.
Correia organizes his thoughts well, pretty much by subject. He shows an impressive grasp of his subject and American gun culture. He should, as he used to run a gun shop and has instructed and competed in shooting. These are subjects he’s “been studying for about thirty years.” Although there are no chapter titles, he did insert topic headings within chapters. Better yet, he created a good index with many footnotes and references for his points. So the book will be a helpful tool to delve into the subject further. That’s so much better than a typical polemic without references or a way to search within.
Not that Correia can’t do polemic. Here are some examples of his impactful style [I hate that word, but here it makes sense] delivering well-grounded truths:
On teaching good gunmanship: “Mandatory minimum standards get you a lot of mandatory minimum instructors producing mandatory minimum shooters.”
On suicide: “. . . anti-gun zealots . . . lump suicides in with murders and then call them ‘gun deaths’ or ‘gun violence’ . . . This is sleazy, disingenuous, and also ignores the fact that the methods of suicide are interchangeable. . . . It’s not about the tool used, it’s about dealing with whatever heartbreak brought them to that point.”
On the NRA as media “boogeyman”: “. . . they’ve got that totally backwards. Compared to the general sentiments of the gun culture, the NRA is moderate.”
On suppressors having been included in 1934’s National Firearms Act: “Firearms suppressors work like the muffler on your car. . . . Only for the shooter, it doesn’t feel like you’re getting hit in the ear canal with a hammer.” [All gun associations, anyone who’s fired a gun, the U.S. Marines, the Academy of Doctors of Audiology and DRGO all support full legalization of suppressors. Sadly, the American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery refuses even to address this.]
On the popularity of gun control: “. . . gun control zealots don’t care about stopping crime, any more than criminals care about breaking laws. It is about bossing around the little people they hate, like me and you.”
On culture: “There’s unified pressure from nearly every institution in society to destroy gun rights.”
Unvarnished, why some think we need guns: “’You must be compensating for your tiny d***.’ Yep. . . . I’m compensating for the fact that my p**** is incapable of accurately launching a 115-grain lead projectile at 1100 feet per second, and thus is insufficient for self-defense use.”
On reality: “. . . there comes a point where it would be super useful to have [a gun]. . . . nothing makes you examine your fundamental beliefs quite like the threat of dying for them.”
On government: “Does the Government own the people, or do people own their Government?”
You get the idea.
And Correia doesn’t just throw out his own bon mots. He readily quotes and shares information from many experts. He recommends “the Active Self-Protection channel on YouTube, where they have thousands of videos of real-life events to learn from.” And one of my favorites, from Dr. William Aprill, an expert on violent acts, violent actors and training: “Your understanding and consent are not required for someone to take your life, kill your loved ones and destroy all you hold dear.”
In Defense of the Second Amendment is a book you’ll enjoy (an easy read-through at 189 pages) but can also return to time and again thanks to Correia’s reference tools. Underneath the breezy writing is a multitude of hard facts and experience. We all need reminding of them as we do our parts to strengthen the Second Amendment’s value for all Americans. Larry Correia is a great wingman by our side in that effort.
.
.
— DRGO Editor Robert B. Young, MD is a psychiatrist practicing in Pittsford, NY, an associate clinical professor at the University of Rochester School of Medicine, and a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association.