Making a Killing: The Business of Guns in America

by Tom Diaz

As gun-related law suits hit the headlines, a shattering expos of this secretive industry. The gun industry is the last unregulated manufacturer of a consumer product in America, with a level of secrecy that makes the tobacco industry look like a model of transparency. Making a Killing blows away the smoke and offers a provocative new analysis of gun violence in our society. The real story behind the steady rise in gun violence in America, argues Tom Diaz, is the systematic increase in lethality by manufacturers. Diaz shows how over the last two decades the gun industry has sought to reverse declining prots by dramatically increasing the killing power of its products; designed and distributed guns with more ammunition and greater concealability; and aggressively sought to build a wider market by collaborating with the "gun press" and by targeting women and minorities as vital new consumers. Making a Killing explores the fascinating but little known business side of this $1.4 billion-a-year industry, revealing the inner workings of what one gun executive described as "a little money-making machine." Finally, it outlines a series of practical regulations that would help clean up the mess.

Genres: Politics, Nonfiction, History

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

Reviews

[Atif Taj · Rating 4 out of 5]

Guns are inherently dangerous. Gun companies, regardless of its public health cruelty, keep on churning firearms with more lethality and concealability. No state regulation can be effective due to interstate commerce. Federal government and its regulatory body ATF needs to be involved similar to CPSC regulates the safety of consumer products, FDA oversees the food supply and evaluates drugs and medical devices, and EPA ensures that unreasonably dangerous chemicals that threaten our health or environment.

Due to saturation of white men market, gun industry new target market is women, kids, and minority.

Gun industry is inherently racist. Out right racists Jeff Cooper, Ted Nugent, and Charlotte Heston are members of gun community. The only reason gun industry became less racist is pure business deal “Gun Industry Must Become Less Racist to Survive in the 21st Century” Jan 1997 in Shooting Sports Retailer by Bob Hausman.

[Jennifer Stout · Rating 3 out of 5]

If only this book was updated to the current time. I learned quite a few things including that firearms are not regulated. This book goes very in-depth into the gun industry.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

An informative, well-researched, thought-provoking story about the gun industry.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was very interesting and also heartbreaking because it was published in 1999. So much has not changed and perhaps gotten worse. Very informative though.

[Raimo Wirkkala · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book makes an important (although somewhat dated) contribution to the American gun debate. Diaz obviously knows his stuff and mixes in just enough passion to enliven the earnestness with which he approaches his work. My quibbles with the book are that, having been published in 1999, some of it seems quite dated and Diaz, at times, buries the reader in arcane minutae that makes those sections very dry reading.

[Drick · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book gives background to the financial and political workings of the gun industry, particularly the NRA, and the weapons manufacturers. While the data is a bit dated (1998), the overall picture he paints is comparable to today, and chilling.

[Autumn · Rating 2 out of 5]

The language was do over the top and biased that I had a hard time even listening. There are some good points in here if you can get past all the hate spewed everywhere. Can't take the author seriously.

[Brian Lobue · Rating 3 out of 5]

Facts are facts, but some of the inferences are obviously biased against gun ownership. It's too bad, as I was looking for a more balanced viewpoint from a well researched resource.