Gun Country: Gun Capitalism, Culture, and Control in Cold War America
- Downloads：8227
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2023-10-23 15:22:10
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Andrew C. McKevitt
- ISBN：1469677245
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
Just as World War II transformed the United States into a global military and economic superpower， so too did it forge the gun country America is today。 After 1945， war-ravaged European nations possessed large surpluses of mass-produced weapons， and American entrepreneurs seized the opportunity to buy used munitions for pennies on the dollar and resell them stateside。 A booming consumer market made cheap guns accessible to millions of Americans， and rates of gun ownership and violence began to climb。 Andrew C。 McKevitt tells the history of this gun boom through the dynamics of consumer capitalism and Cold War ideology， the combination of which resulted in a vast number of Americans arming themselves to the teeth and centering their political identity on their guns。
When gun control legislation emerged in the 1960s， many Americans， accustomed to the unregulated postwar bounty of cheap guns and fearful of Soviet invasion， domestic subversion， and urban uprisings， fiercely challenged it。 Meanwhile， gun control groups were diverted from their abolitionist roots toward a conciliatory， fundraising-focused strategy that struggled to limit the stockpiling of firearms。 Gun Country recasts the story of guns in postwar America as one of Cold War and racial anxieties， unfettered capitalism， and exceptional violence that continues to haunt us to this day。
When gun control legislation emerged in the 1960s， many Americans， accustomed to the unregulated postwar bounty of cheap guns and fearful of Soviet invasion， domestic subversion， and urban uprisings， fiercely challenged it。 Meanwhile， gun control groups were diverted from their abolitionist roots toward a conciliatory， fundraising-focused strategy that struggled to limit the stockpiling of firearms。 Gun Country recasts the story of guns in postwar America as one of Cold War and racial anxieties， unfettered capitalism， and exceptional violence that continues to haunt us to this day。
Reviews
Noah
，
Gun Country is a book about the explosion in gun ownership numbers after the second world war， and the various movements and people that have influenced it。 A recurring theme is that of gun consumerism — ways in which the ownership of guns is more linked to the need for people to own more and more， and the market to supply that ravenous desire。 A personalizing story included throughout the book is that of Yoshihiro Hattori， a Japanese exchange student who was shot and killed in Louisiana in 1992 Gun Country is a book about the explosion in gun ownership numbers after the second world war， and the various movements and people that have influenced it。 A recurring theme is that of gun consumerism — ways in which the ownership of guns is more linked to the need for people to own more and more， and the market to supply that ravenous desire。 A personalizing story included throughout the book is that of Yoshihiro Hattori， a Japanese exchange student who was shot and killed in Louisiana in 1992， prompting widespread grief and shock from Japanese citizens。The initial arc of the book discusses the mass amounts of importation of weapons — initially wartime surplus， transitioning somewhat to purpose-made （and incredibly cheaply made） imports。 This ties into both the Kennedy Assassination （using an imported， surplus， mail-order Carcano rifle） as well as Saturday Night Specials — cheap， accessible， throwaway handguns。 In this situation， racial fears prompted action to control imports that was supported by the NRA （as inconceivable as that may seem to a modern reader）。 Consistent with the themes of gun consumerism， McKevitt then tracks the evolution of interpretation of the second amendment from one conferring a responsibility on armed civilians to one providing an absolute right to every individual to be armed to the teeth with no accompanying responsibilities。 This shift is paired with the development of pro-gun and pro-gun-control organizations in a feedback loop — gun control advocacy groups prompt a response from pro-gun groups （both the NRA and grassroots） which in turn prompts a response from gun control advocates。 Gun Country provides context for these developments in great detail。I believe this book is a welcome addition to the ranks of scholarship on gun culture in the US。 It provides context and forgotten players for a number of aspects and developments in the post-WWII American relationship with firearmsMy thanks to the University of North Carolina Press and NetGalley for providing an advanced reader copy。 。。。more
Mike
，
Andrew C。 McKevitt， a history professor at Louisiana Tech， traces the beginning of the United States' gun culture/fetish back to the Cold War period。 During that time， the US was a dumping ground for cheap European made WW2 guns。 Mix in the 1960s with its counterculture and racial unrest and you have all the "fear" needed to foment a grass-roots gun rights movement that continues to this day。 McKevitt discusses the 1992 murder of a Japanese exchange student in Louisiana to demonstrate how the gu Andrew C。 McKevitt， a history professor at Louisiana Tech， traces the beginning of the United States' gun culture/fetish back to the Cold War period。 During that time， the US was a dumping ground for cheap European made WW2 guns。 Mix in the 1960s with its counterculture and racial unrest and you have all the "fear" needed to foment a grass-roots gun rights movement that continues to this day。 McKevitt discusses the 1992 murder of a Japanese exchange student in Louisiana to demonstrate how the gun culture manifests itself。 McKevitt also discusses Sam Cummings， a central character in the spread of the gun culture， as well as attempts at lobbying for and attempting to pass gun control legislation。 This book provides a great overview for the reader curious about how guns of all types have become commonplace in this country。 Thank you to the University of North Carolina Press and Net Galley for providing a review copy。 。。。more
J Earl
，
Gun Country by Andrew C McKevitt takes as his starting point the influx of cheap leftover firearms from WWII coupled with the changing culture（s） in the United States during the Cold War period， with a brief discussion of after the Cold War。Don't make the mistake some do and misread the book as centering the Cold War aspect， it is one part of the dynamics， albeit a major part。 As the book description itself states fairly clearly， it "recasts the story of guns in postwar America as one of Cold Wa Gun Country by Andrew C McKevitt takes as his starting point the influx of cheap leftover firearms from WWII coupled with the changing culture（s） in the United States during the Cold War period， with a brief discussion of after the Cold War。Don't make the mistake some do and misread the book as centering the Cold War aspect， it is one part of the dynamics， albeit a major part。 As the book description itself states fairly clearly， it "recasts the story of guns in postwar America as one of Cold War and racial anxieties， unfettered capitalism， and exceptional violence。" In other words， this is about what happened here during the Cold War but isn't exclusively about or even centering the Cold War。The biggest point， and this is consistent throughout if you're an active reader， is the role of consumer capitalism， where the various concerns such as fear of attack and racial unrest are used， largely unethically and manipulatively， to scare people into buying ever more guns。 Which changed the meaning of the 2nd amendment from its original intent to a consumer's right。 Namely， a scared consumer's right who compensates for， um， shortcomings by becoming ammosexual。 Thus where we are today。The connections McKevitt makes draws a clear line from surplus war weaponry to consumerism with no ties to the responsibilities that originally went along with the rights。 The message has largely become fear anyone not like you， "they" are armed to the teeth so you must be also， and anyone who says you have responsibilities that accompany gun rights is trying to take your guns and keep you from buying more。 This is an excellent look at how we became the gun country。 It doesn't so much replace a lot of the history of guns as it offers a view of the tremendous growth that takes capitalism into account as a driving force and not just a byproduct of gun rights。Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley。 。。。more
Brandon Westlake
，
There have been a few recent books published in the area of "gun studies"- many of which try to explain America's 2nd Amendment debate in a historical context。 Some focus on the NRA， some have looked at the threads of American individualism that is tied to firearm ownership。 McKevitt's book places the debate in the context of the Cold War and the threat to public safety that， while starting at a national level， trickled down to a local and personal level。 However， he doesn't consistently keep th There have been a few recent books published in the area of "gun studies"- many of which try to explain America's 2nd Amendment debate in a historical context。 Some focus on the NRA， some have looked at the threads of American individualism that is tied to firearm ownership。 McKevitt's book places the debate in the context of the Cold War and the threat to public safety that， while starting at a national level， trickled down to a local and personal level。 However， he doesn't consistently keep this context in the center。 He does hint at individualism， sometimes more overtly than others， but then pulls back in some of the Cold War culture （such as Oswald's Russian made rifle）。 The fear of crime in the 1970s parallels the fear of Communist subversion， and one way Americans could protect themselves was to start packing。 He makes a good case in linking gun ownership to the civil rights movement when it comes to crime （Black Panthers， of course）。 This individualism really doesn't appear in his argument until the 1970s， but it's hard to make the case that it wasn't present before。His exploration of Sam Cummings is important， and was a story I had never read of prior to this book。 Cummings shows the agency of history here， and how individuals play an important role in helping craft a larger narrative。 McKevitt agrees with other historians that the Gun Control Act was an important flashpoint in history， summoning the 2nd Amendment supporters to rally in defense of their arms。 A little uneven argument， but very readable and informative if this is a reader's first introduction to this topic 。。。more
Tag
-
gun country gun capitalism culture and control in cold war america