Two things, and I admit that I haven't read either Halbrook's new book nor the article. But I have had the "Jewish gun" debate before with a professor of German history, who has explained to me that the Nazis had to impose FEW gun controls---the WEIMAR REPUBLIC had alerady outlawed all "hunting guns, sports clubs," and virtually all private ownership of weapons, in, I think 1926!
I'll be interested to read Halbrook's book, then. In our zeal to blame the Nazis, it is worth remembering that at the very least, the FOUNDATIONS for gun control were laid in the DEMOCRATIC WEIMAR REPUBLIC.
Second, and equally important "lesson" that the author doesn't address or appears to gloss over is that the way Hitler gained power was through threatening to shut down the German government. (Where have we seen this threat before? Maybe 1995?)
My point to students when I teach this is that whenever your government gets so big that you can't live without it (save for national security-type issues), you are already in trouble. Yes, Hindenberg and the others let Hitler in, but the fate of Germany was sealed the moment that, in response to a threat to "shut down the government," the German people could not say, "Go Ahead! Be MY GUEST!"
The pathetic part is that the Democratic German Government put the gun control in place to "protect themselves" from the Nazi thugs and gangs. Worked really well didn't it!
All the Nazis had to do was "reinterpret" the existing laws to disarm anyone that wasn't a Nazi party member. Sounds a little like the 1989 assault weapons "regulation" change doesn’t it?
The only gun control that has ever worked for the law-abiding public is the ability to hit what you aim at...