PARIS - A half a century after U.S. president Dwight Eisenhower named and denounced the military-industrial complex's ever-increasing influence on world affairs, the arms trade thrives more than ever, with African states frequently being the destination. Although figures are hard to come by, the development advocacy group Oxfam estimates that, every year, sub-Saharan African governments spend around 18 billion dollars on weapons and defence, roughly the same amount as... (GunPolicy.org)

Just because Americans have the right to bear arms shouldn't mean that public-health experts stop studying ways to reduce the risk of deadly gun violence. That, however, effectively has been U.S. policy since the mid-1990s. That's when the National Rifle Association went ballistic over a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which found that having a gun in the house for protection actually made a family less safe. As spelled out in a front-page... (GunPolicy.org)

Asked about a plan to do away with restrictions on carrying concealed weapons, Gov. Rick Snyder's spokeswoman said this week that Snyder was focused almost exclusively on the economy and hadn't heard about it. Whether the governor's office was really unaware of the bill sponsored by state Sen. Mike Green, R-Mayville, or just ducking the issue, legislators should take the hint. With hundreds of thousands of Michiganders out of work and municipalities in crisis, they... (GunPolicy.org)

ST. CROIX - Amid the dramatic court proceedings surrounding the murder trial of Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Agent William Clark, a V.I. Police Department firearms examiner learned he was one of 12 people nationwide accepted into the ATF's National Firearm Examiner Academy, police said. Police Tool Mark Examiner Reynold De Souza was scheduled to begin training in a 17-week course that is offered once each year in Washington, D.C., on Monday,... (GunPolicy.org)

The renewed Republican hold on the Iowa governor's office and the Iowa House carries a radical agenda, possibly moving Iowa further right and obviously seeking to repeal all vestiges of any progressive agenda. Gun rights enthusiasts are hoping to move the radical agenda their way. This includes the National Rifle Association (NRA), which sends a lobbyist to the Iowa Legislature when the association feels the opportunity for change its way has come along. An NRA... (GunPolicy.org)

WASHINGTON — Administration officials say that President Obama, largely silent about gun control since the Tucson shooting carnage, will address the issue soon, potentially reopening a long-dormant debate on one of the nation's most politically volatile issues. The officials did not indicate what measures, if any, Mr. Obama might support; with Republicans in control of the House and many Democrats fearful of the gun lobby's power, any legislation faces long odds for... (GunPolicy.org)

There can be little doubt a week into the 2011 Legislature that lawmakers like their guns. Love them, really. Lawmakers opened the session praising Utah weapons pioneer John M. Browning, celebrating a day honoring the state's founding father of firearms and then moving to designate Browning's M1911 as Utah's official gun. And a House committee approved a bill that would require hotel owners to allow patrons to keep guns in their rooms. "I think the reason you see so... (GunPolicy.org)