&gt; <i>Just bear in mind that one of the social costs of disarmament is that women are denied an effective tool for self defence.</i><p>This is just sloganistic nonsense. If this were the case, then here in &#x27;disarmed&#x27; Australia, rape would be rife. Whereas over in the US where self-defence is a frothy notion, there isn&#x27;t much difference in rape rates, a four-times higher murder rate, and a six-times higher incarceration rate. Meanwhile, over in South Africa, where there are guns aplenty, rape has a runaway crime rate.<p>The idea that guns make you safe isn&#x27;t born out when you do comparisons like this.<p>But regarding Kleck, he&#x27;s pretty much the go-to guy for the pro-gun lobby. And the pro-gun lobby in the US is pretty aware that good studies will show the flaws in what they say - which is why they apply pressure on the government to refuse to study the problem. If the numbers really would show a consistent story for the pro-gun lobby, they&#x27;d be welcoming studies with open arms. But as it stands, when someone posts a study supporting the pro-gun side, there&#x27;s a better than even chance that you&#x27;ll find Kleck&#x27;s name on it, I find.