|
SOURCE: http://www.chrononhotonthologos.com/lawnotes/deathbygov.htm
The following table is from page 7 of the September 11th,
1999 issue of The Economist magazine, and is titled A League of
Evil. It shows that in the twentieth century, 170 Million citizens were
executed by their own governments, presumably for political reasons, while only
37 Million were killed in warfare. The next time you hear someone say that the
Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution refers only to the National Guard or
that guns should be possessed only for ‘‘sporting purposes’’, remember
this chart. The citizens of these countries did not have a Second Amendment.
Civilians killed by governments in the 20th century, excluding
war.
| Deaths Excluding War |
Millions |
Era |
| Soviet Union |
62 |
1917-1991 |
| China (Communist) |
35 |
1949-Present |
| Germany |
21 |
1933-45 |
| China (Kuomintang)) |
10 |
1928-49 |
| Japan |
6 |
1936-45 |
|
|
|
| Total deaths directly caused by governments
Excluding War |
170 |
|
| Deaths in War |
Millions |
| International |
30 |
| Civil |
7 |
|
|
| Total deaths in War |
37 |
Sources: ‘‘Statistics of Democide’’ by Rudy J.
Rummel
(With The Economist additions for recent wars) |
| ‘‘No free man shall ever be debarred the
use of arms. The strongest reason for people to retain the right to keep
and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against
tyranny in government.’’ |
| -- Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334 (C.J.
Boyd, Ed., 1950) |
|