The Propaganda Professor made this wonderful post about six months ago. To my mind there has never been a better, more thorough and convincing explanation of this subject.
He concludes:
This is not a scientific study, just a suggestion or two about how one
might be conducted. My figures may not be precise but they are, if not
in the ballpark, at least on the right planet. If I had to wager whether
the true DGU tally is closer to (a) 2.5 million, (b) 65,000 or (c) 500
to 1000, I’d bet the deed to the Ponderosa on the latter.
What's your opinion? Does it bring to mind my recent suggestion that there are about 500 a year? Many pro-gun folks thought I was kidding, saying it for effect. I wasn't.
The Professor uses the expression, "(assuming these incidents are all genuine non-duplicates)" when referencing some of the standard sources. I'm not quite that generous. I do not assume they are all genuine, as I've frequently pointed out. Here's the most recent false DGU, it's of the brandishing kind. And everyone remembers the recent event in Washington State where a lady drew down on a pervert in the park and threatened to kill him. Both of those were counted by the gun-rights crowd.
No, I'm afraid any list of so-called DGUs is chock full of criminal acts which were disguised as defensive and legitimate. That's how we can be sure the true number is as low as 500, give or take.
What do you think? Please leave a comment.
