How easy is it to get a concealed carry permit in Connecticut, and what does this reveal about gun access?

Despite Connecticut being the site of the Sandy Hook disaster, obtaining a concealed carry permit is surprisingly easy. It typically requires a one-day gun course and passing basic background checks for felonies or restraining orders. This highlights a system that, in many cases, legally arms individuals who may later commit atrocities, as it primarily relies on past criminal history rather than mental state.

What is Sam Harris's nuanced view on gun ownership and the Second Amendment?

Sam Harris is critical of the 'religious cult' surrounding the Second Amendment and the NRA's political influence. However, he also believes that responsible gun ownership is a legitimate means of self-defense, arguing that a world without guns disproportionately favors the physically strongest. He advocates for more restrictive gun policies, akin to pilot's licenses, but acknowledges the political intractability of such changes.

Why do mass shootings, despite their horror, represent a small percentage of overall gun violence in the U.S.?

While mass shootings are horrific and provoke public outrage, they account for a 'rounding error' in the overall problem of gun homicide in the U.S. The vast majority of gun deaths, including homicides and suicides, involve handguns, not 'assault weapons' like the AR-15.

What are the limitations of banning AR-15s and high-capacity magazines in addressing gun violence?

Banning AR-15s is largely symbolic, as handguns are used in 99% of gun crimes and are rarely considered for bans politically. Handguns can also be easily concealed and are effective at close range. While high-capacity magazines offer a brief tactical advantage, a trained shooter can reload quickly, making their ban less effective than often assumed.

What are the psychological impacts of school shooting drills and discussions on children?

Making schools resemble prisons through drills and security measures disproportionately harms children by amplifying terror and concern, making them think about violence. Such measures might also increase the psychological availability of perpetrating violence. Instead, an emphasis on running away and maintaining an open, positive school environment is suggested.

How can civilians respond effectively in an active shooter situation when escape isn't possible?

For older children and adults, if running away isn't an option, the recommended response is to 'swarm' the shooter. Drawing parallels to post-9/11 airplane hijacking protocols, the idea is that an unarmed crowd acting in unison can overwhelm even a well-armed individual.

What went wrong with the Uvalde police response, and what lessons should be learned?

The Uvalde police response was catastrophically delayed, with 19 officers waiting in a hallway for 78 minutes while children were being killed and calling 911. The failure was a deviation from trained active shooter protocols, which prioritize immediate neutralization of the threat. The lesson is that law enforcement must always confront an active shooter immediately, without waiting for backup or treating it as a barricade scenario.

What role do social isolation and video games play in the rise of mass shootings?

The recent jump in mass and school shootings may be linked to increased social isolation and video game use. Video games can serve as outlets for rage or deepen isolation, leading some individuals down extremist paths or to fantasize about violence, as seen in the Buffalo and Uvalde shooters' profiles.

Why is a gun buyback program, similar to Australia's, unlikely to succeed in the U.S.?

A large-scale gun buyback in the U.S. faces immense cultural and political obstacles. With 400 million guns in circulation, the cost would be exorbitant, and many gun owners view their firearms as integral to their identity and self-defense, making them unwilling to surrender their weapons at any price.

Key Moments

Gun Violence in America: A Conversation with Graeme Wood (Episode #283)

Sam Harris

Science & Technology3 min read95 min video

May 30, 2022|154,273 views|2,856|2,665

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Key Moments

TL;DR

Discussing the complexity of US gun violence, focusing on mass shootings and potential, though difficult, solutions.

Key Insights

The US experiences a unique and intractable problem with gun violence, far exceeding other developed nations.

Focusing solely on assault weapons like AR-15s overlooks that handguns are the primary tool in most gun homicides and suicides.

Responsible gun ownership is possible but requires significant training, vetting, and safe storage, akin to obtaining a pilot's license.

Mass shootings, while horrific, represent a small fraction of overall gun deaths compared to daily homicides and suicides.

Effective responses to mass shootings should prioritize escape routes and decisive action against perpetrators, rather than defensible lockdowns.

Addressing underlying issues like mental illness, ideology, social contagion, and isolation is crucial but complex and difficult to implement at scale.

THE UNIQUE AND INTRACTABLE NATURE OF AMERICAN GUN VIOLENCE

The conversation highlights the deeply entrenched and complex nature of gun violence in the United States, which stands as a stark outlier compared to other developed nations. Despite recurring tragedies like the Uvalde massacre, effective solutions remain elusive due to a variety of deeply rooted cultural, political, and practical factors. The status quo is deemed unacceptable, yet resistance to change is formidable, suggesting that simplistic solutions fail to grasp the multifaceted reality of the problem.

HANDGUNS AS THE PRIMARY PROBLEM, NOT ASSAULT WEAPONS

A crucial insight is that the public discourse, especially after mass shootings, often fixates on assault weapons like AR-15s. However, statistics reveal that handguns are overwhelmingly the weapon of choice for homicides and suicides in the U.S. This focus on long guns, while emotionally charged, distracts from the more pervasive issue of handgun violence, which is politically far more challenging to address and represents the vast majority of gun-related deaths.

RESPONSIBLE GUN OWNERSHIP AND THE NEED FOR STRICTER REGULATIONS

While acknowledging that responsible gun ownership exists and can even enhance personal safety, the discussion emphasizes that acquiring a firearm, especially for self-defense, should be a more rigorous process. The anecdote about obtaining a concealed carry permit in Connecticut illustrates how easily firearms can be acquired without thorough vetting. The ideal proposed is akin to obtaining a pilot's license, requiring extensive training, background checks, and demonstrated competency, making gun ownership a much more non-trivial undertaking than it currently is.

MASS SHOOTINGS VS. THE BROADER SCOPE OF GUN VIOLENCE

The conversation distinguishes between the dramatic but statistically smaller problem of mass shootings and the larger issue of daily gun violence, including homicides and suicides. While mass shootings, particularly school shootings, generate intense emotional responses, they constitute a fraction of total gun deaths. Addressing the pervasive handgun violence in urban areas and the significant number of suicides by firearm are essential for tackling the overall problem, even if they garner less media attention.

EFFECTIVE RESPONSES TO ACTIVE SHOOTER EVENTS

In the context of active shooter events, especially in schools, the discussion critiques the 'shelter-in-place' or 'lockdown' protocols, arguing they can be detrimental. Instead, the focus should be on creating open campuses with ample escape routes, facilitating rapid dispersal like a 'flock of birds'. For those unable to flee, the emphasis shifts to immediate, decisive action against the perpetrator, drawing parallels to the post-9/11 hijackings. This approach prioritizes neutralizing the threat quickly and creating an environment where active shooter events are less likely to succeed or cause mass casualties.

UNDERLYING CAUSES AND THE CHALLENGE OF INTERVENTION

The discussion delves into the complex and often overlapping root causes of gun violence, including mental illness, extremist ideologies, social contagion, and increasing social isolation, exacerbated by factors like the pandemic and online culture. While identifying individuals at risk is crucial, effectively intervening at scale presents immense challenges. The conversation questions the feasibility and efficacy of large-scale monitoring and intervention programs, ultimately suggesting that focusing on points of human interaction, like responsible gun sales and fostering a culture of immediate response, may offer more practical, albeit difficult, avenues for mitigation.

Mentioned in This Episode

●Products

●Software & Apps

●Companies

●Organizations

●Books

●People Referenced

Common Questions

Graeme Wood grew up in Texas, where gun culture is prevalent, and has experience with responsible gun owners. His journalistic work on terrorism and counterterrorism has shaped his perspective on reactive policy-making, making him skeptical of simple solutions after tragedies like Uvalde.

Topics

Mental Health & Psychology Society & Philosophy Cultural Issues Social Contagion Gun Control Politics & Policy Mass Shootings School Safety Law Enforcement Response Mental Illness And Violence

Mentioned in this video

People

Council on Foreign Relations

An organization Graeme Wood is a member of.

John Correia

A 'gun celebrity' on YouTube who curates videos on self-defense acts, providing real-world evidence of successful gun use in defensive situations.

John Wayne

A cultural icon representing fantasies of self-defense, which Sam Harris argues are not always irrational for responsible gun owners.

Ted Cruz

US Senator who suggested having a single door for school entry and egress as a security measure, a proposal critiqued as obviously flawed.

Graeme Wood

Staff writer of The Atlantic, member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and teaches at Yale University. Has reported extensively on terrorism and counterterrorism, influencing his views on gun violence.

Bruce Schneier

Cryptographer and security engineer whose maxim 'a security system that fails well' is cited in the context of school security design.

Chris Rock

Comedian whose routine about taxing bullets at $1 million each is recalled as a humorous, yet possibly insightful, idea for limiting ammunition.

Sam Harris

Host of the Making Sense podcast, expressing strong opinions on gun control, self-defense, and the political intractability of the issue.

Charles Whitman

Notorious sniper who shot people from the clock tower at the University of Texas, illustrating a scenario where rifles have a terrifying advantage.

Media

Minority Report

A film referenced to describe a 'pre-crime' approach to gun violence, highlighting the fraught nature of intervening before an illegal act occurs.

John Wick

A fictional character representing highly trained gun users, contrasted with the average concealed carry permit holder.

Organizations

New York City Police Department

Referenced in a hypothetical scenario of law enforcement intervening in the lives of potentially dangerous individuals flagged by social media data.

Yale University

A university where Graeme Wood teaches.

Norway

Mentioned as an example of a well-resourced society where a killer using a bow and arrow was 'undetected by the system,' highlighting the difficulty of pre-crime detection.

The Atlantic

A magazine Graham Wood writes for, publishing his pieces on gun violence and a profile of gun celebrity John Correia.

National Rifle Association

Criticized for its 'outsized influence politically' over the years, though Sam Harris points out that most gun owners, even NRA members, support comprehensive background checks.

ISIS

Terrorist group that unusually claimed responsibility for the Las Vegas shooting without apparent evidence, contributing to the mystery of the event's motive.

Finland

Cited as another heavily armed society with low gun abuse, attributing this to its territorial defense plan and military training.

New York Times

Mentioned in the context of their opinion columnists' stance on gun ownership being fatuous.

Locations

Rhode Island

Mentioned as a neighboring state to Connecticut with potentially harder concealed carry permit processes.

Buffalo, New York

Site of a racist-motivated mass shooting, differing in character from Uvalde but contributing to the debate on gun violence.

Texas

Graeme Wood's home state, where gun culture is deeply embedded and the Second Amendment is highly valued.

Australia

Referenced as a country that successfully disarmed its society after a mass shooting, initiating a gun buyback program.

Connecticut

State where Graeme Wood obtained his concealed carry permit, finding the process surprisingly easy despite its history with Sandy Hook.

United Kingdom

Referenced as a country with low gun violence, suggesting America could resemble it if a gun buyback program were successful.

Massachusetts

Mentioned as a neighboring state to Connecticut with potentially harder concealed carry permit processes.

Israel

Described as a heavily armed society where weapons are common, used effectively for self-defense, and rarely abused, suggesting a strong gun culture.

New York

Mentioned as a neighboring state to Connecticut with potentially harder concealed carry permit processes.

Canada

Referenced as a country with low gun violence compared to the US.

Uvalde, Texas

Site of a mass shooting discussed in the podcast, highlighting the unique character and intractability of gun violence in America.

Companies

Facebook

Mentioned in a hypothetical scenario where its user profiling capabilities could be used to identify dangerous individuals, raising privacy and intervention concerns.

YouTube

A platform where 'gun celebrity' John Correia curates videos demonstrating self-defense shootings, challenging common assumptions about gun use.

Software & Apps

SamHarris.org

Website where listeners can subscribe to support the podcast.

Books

The Way of the Strangers: Encounters with the Islamic State

A book written by Graeme Wood on the Islamic State.

The Riddle of the Gun

An article written by Sam Harris nearly 10 years prior, expressing his complex views on gun ownership and violence.

Legislation & Policy

Red flag laws

Discussed as a potential remedy to identify individuals who pose a risk of violence before they act, particularly for those with mental health entanglement.

Second Amendment

The constitutional right to bear arms in the U.S., which Sam Harris notes has inspired a 'religious cult' and contributes to the intractability of gun violence issues.

Products

AR-15

A type of rifle often the focus of discussion after mass shootings like Uvalde and Sandy Hook, but its role in point-blank range catastrophes is debated.

Las Vegas

Site of the deadliest mass shooting in American history, which Sam Harris notes was "memory holed" quickly, possibly due to its unusual nature and other political events.