Age of the high-powered handgun? WTF? Talk about ignorance on display and total credibility killer. Which high-powered handgun would they be referring too? 9mm, .38, .357 mag, .44 mag, .40, .45ACP, .22, .22L, .380, .32..... Which ones are new in this "age"?
In the "olden" days of which I assume the author is thinking, back when there was no gun violence (or maybe in the wild west where cowboys squared off in the dirt streets on a daily basis at high noon), there were guns that were just as lethal as today.
(I know there were not duels in the "wild west" except on very rare occasions.)
475 Linebaugh or S&W 500 Magnum. The Magnum Research BFR in 45-70 is satisfactory too. Honorable mention to S&W 460 Magnum. The rest are CCW items.