Perspectives on gun control may well match with how one sees the issue of Populace Control as well.
Many in the COIN business speak of the need of government to "control the populace." Personally, I see populace control as a noun rather than a verb. Government should not set out to implement measures designed to control the populace (verb), rather, that government that does its job properly will serve a populace that is under control (noun). Its fall in the same bin with reintegration in that regard. If government is on track, it will just happen as a by product. Insurgents will reintegrate into society and the populace will be controlled Both, for that reason, actually far better metrics for COIN success than they do programs intended to produce COIN success.
Similarly, if one thinks the role of government is to exert control over the populace one is also probably more apt to believe that exerting control over firearms is a important aspect of the larger issue of controlling the populace. The problem with taking this path is two fold. No populace likes to be "controlled", and efforts to take away firearms will logically raise issues of trust among the populace as well. The COIN effects are apt to be the opposite of what is desired. And then there is always the critical issue of if one has rendered the populace powerless, who then is left to ensure that the government remains under control as well?
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