America's Gun Wars

Book excerpt: This book examines the controversies surrounding gun control, which are less about whether it "works" and more about whether the nation should prioritize traditional values of rugged independence or newer values of communitarian interdependence. America's Gun Wars contends that an understanding of America's gun controversy cannot be found in statistics documenting the rise (or fall) of violent crime, or in examining trade-offs between societal needs and personal safety, or in following the political maneuvering of advocacy groups such as the National Rifle Association or Everytown for Gun Safety. At heart, the gun controversy is a values conflict involving how people see themselves and how they make sense of the world they live in. Understanding this controversy requires a deep analysis of the profoundly different cultures inhabited by pro- and anti-gun activists, lawmakers, and voters. Written by a social scientist who has spent his life exploring how values and self-perceptions impact behavior, this book explores the origins and evolution of cultures in American society; the beliefs, experiences, and principles that guide the behavior of members in both camps; and the triumphs and failures that the two sides have experienced from colonial times to the present day.