October 17, 2013
Professor Jeff McMahan
"Guns, Crime, and Self-Defense"
At 7:00 pm on Thursday, October 17, 2013, Professor Jeff McMahan, Professor of Philosophy, Rutgers University, gave a public lecture titled "Guns, Crime, and Self-Defense". The talk was hosted in the Library Concourse on Utica College's campus at 1600 Burrstone Rd., Utica, NY.
Professor McMahan discussed how advocates of private gun ownership sometimes defend their view by appealing to claims about consequences. They argue, for example, that widespread private gun ownership reduces crime by making criminal activity riskier. But many gun advocates also appeal to claims about individual rights. They argue that to prohibit a person from owning a gun is to deprive him of the most effective means of self-defense, thereby violating his right of self-defense. He challenged both of these claims.
Media:
Public lectures delivered at The Applied Ethics Institute at Utica College can be accessed at:
