Artificially increasing our murder rate is a bad thing...... makes us all look bad. 
Hmmm, I'm not so sure...
I consider myself extremely fortunate just to live here in the US. If the murder rate is so blasted high, then maybe I'm extra fortunate- in that I haven't been murdered yet.
So having the murder rate inflated could actually make me feel better about myself. As in "I consider myself
extremely fortunate to
still be alive here in these
dangerous United States! Maybe non-US folks will look at us and think "Boy, those folks must be super-elite survivors, somehow managing to make it to adulthood in a country where firearms are legal and common..."
I may be desensitized to the danger-level of my environment though, since I can't even remember dodging all the bullets that must have been flying around me this morning on my way to work. Rural Wisconsin may look peaceful, but when you realize what percentage of us have firearms (that we regularly use...) it must amaze the world that we can even have a sustainable popluation of breeding humans in these parts. Cripes, if you toss in all the alcohol consumed here...
MtnMan