What is your preferred way to be mass murdered?
Learning to think about substitution effects
Britain has gun control, so knives have become the preferred way for Brits to murder each other. This substitution of knives for guns has something to recommend it. A knife can kill fewer people per minute than a high-capacity gun. Gun regulation advocates make this argument often and it’s somewhat reasonable. Alas, it fails to consider substitution alternatives other than knives.
We seem to be seeing one such example in the increased use of vehicles to wage mass murder. This is still less efficient than a large magazine gun, but I think that’s only because we have so many (supposedly) gun-free zones.
If every possible venue of mass mayhem had at least a few decent citizens carrying firearms, a mass shooter could be taken down much quicker than a bulldozing car could be stopped.
The argument against large magazine guns also ignores even scarier substitutions. If you can’t imagine mass murder tools scarier than guns and trucks then you haven’t thought about it very hard. I have and it scares the hell out of me. I would list some of the terrifying possibilities, but I don’t want to give anyone ideas.
People who fulminate against gun ownership would do well to ponder the full range of possible substitution effects before they next express themselves.
Copyright © Perry Willis 2025
Perry Willis is the co-founder of Downsize DC and the Zero Aggression Project. He co-created, with Jim Babka, the Read the Bills Act, the One Subject at a Time Act, and the Write the Laws Act, all of which have been introduced in Congress. He is a past Executive Director of the national Libertarian Party and was the campaign manager for Harry Browne for President in 2000.
