Wacki, sorry that was kind of an emotional response and then I logged off to go do house work. I just get tired of our side using the "More Guns=Less Crime" argument because it is leaving ourselves open to "if less guns= less crime then gun control would be OK." Every time we put up data on places like Florida where the crime rate droped after CCW was allowed, the Anti's and the MSM publish tons of conflicting data (often manipulated) that confuses the sheeple.
Having the ability to carry a gun is a good thing and allows you to defend yourself against BGs. However, simply handing a gun to everyone in Compton or WA D.C. will not lower the crime rate. Safe gun ownership requires responsibilty and simply holding a gun does not grant it (if it did Gang members would be respected civic leaders). Look at some of the middle-eastern and central African nations where most adult males own guns; rape, murder, and inter-tribe violence is commonplace. In contrast you have nations like Switzerland and the Nordic countries which have realatively low crime rates. Their obviously have to be other factors than gun ownership.
From the list provided in the link:
#6 Mexico 0.130213 per 1,000 people Lots of GC, Lots of Crime
#24 United States 0.042802 per 1,000 people Moderate GC, Moderate-high crime
#43 Australia 0.0150324 per 1,000 people Lots of GC, Moderate Crime
#46 United Kingdom 0.0140633 per 1,000 people Lots of GC, Moderate Crime
#60 Japan 0.00499933 per 1,000 people Lots of GC, Low Crime
See, it all depends on which data you select. You could make a case for either more GC or less GC and, unless the public had access to the data they wouldn't know who to trust. So when Anti's claim that we need more GC to reduce crime, instead of firing back with statistics that might confuse the public and force them to vote on emotion, why offer other solutions that have been proven to reduce crime.
I am not going to look up data on all the social issuse that I listed, but here is the unemployment rates of the nations listed above.
http://www.bartleby.com/151/fields/72.html
Mexico urban - 3% plus considerable underemployment (2002)
United States 5.8% (2002)
United Kingdom 5.2% (2002 est.)
Australia 6.3% (2002)
Japan 5.4% (2002)
The fact is that their is no one "magic pill" to reduce crime and rates rise and fall due to a large amount of stimuli. What we as gun owners need to do is shift the discusion to social issues and away from infringing on people's rights. If we don't then some day a "Slick Willie" is going to pour out a lot of edited data and emotional arguments to pass AWB II before we can get their with counter data.
