the only thing to blame
I'm not an absolutist by any means. I believe gangbangers have easier access to guns in the US, but I don't believe they would be at a loss to substantially make up that should far greater restrictions be put in place. They have no trouble doing so with substances like illegal drugs. Guns are, if anything, much easier to smuggle than drugs due to their physical properties even if they weren't already present by the millions.
I do believe that the presence of self defense firearms helps keep down the spread of crime outside of the primary gangland operating areas. The criminals themselves agree that they fear an armed victim more than the police. Casual robberies, even if they involve a firearm, seldom involve a shooting. They typically occur in areas where the victim is unlikely to be armed. Home intrusions are virtually unheard of, perhaps because a lot of people who don't carry a concealed firearm on the street have one in the nightstand. In any case, they primarily only shoot other criminals that are similarly involved in the dangerous but lucrative illicit drug trade. There is no reason to shoot a casual mugging/robbery victim, or in many cases to use a gun and in many cases a knife would be optional since the goal is to target the weaker members of the herd. Gangland turf wars require a different level of force, and one that is typically only experienced by those "in the trade."
I think that politicians that concentrate on the guns vs. the social issues are taking the easy way out, and a way that will not substantially impact the danger or quality of life in those worst of neighborhoods. They lack the courage and leadership to take on human problems, and find blaming the gun and not the trigger puller to be the easy and politically safe way out.
Charon
