Voice of the Mid-Columbia | Kennewick, Pasco and Richland, Wash. |
 |
 |
 |
Ever wonder why the Herald does something? Or how? Or "what were they thinking?" Now you can find out. Executive Editor Ken Robertson and Managing Editor Rick Larson will do their best to explain what happens in the TCH newsroom - and why. |
Print
E-Mail
tool name
closeWednesday, Apr. 22, 2009
U.S. is more armed but also more polite
By Ken Robertson, Herald Executive Editor
The folks who believe guns are evil aren’t having a very good time lately. Though the Democrats are back in power, there’s no appetite in Washington, D.C., for new gun control laws.
Too many Democrats remember 1994, when pro-gun voters helped vote in a Republican Congress, a long-lasting majority that held on until 2006. Twelve years out of power is a long time.
In addition, despite a recent spate of high-profile multi-victim slayings, violent crime numbers have been falling nationwide since 1994, according to the Department of Justice and the FBI.
Department of Justice statistics show total violent crime peaked at 51.2 crimes per 1,000 people in 1994 and then fell steadily through 2005 to 21.0 per 1,000 people over age 12. FBI statistics indicate the trend has continued since, with population growth estimates easily outstripping a slight crime increase in total numbers in 2006, followed by a slight dip in 2007 to a level below the 2005 numbers.
While the two sets of statistics are not directly comparable because of the age breakdown, the trend still is clear.
Another interesting statistic to add to this mix is that earlier this month the FBI announced it had completed its 100 millionth instant background check on people who buy firearms. Since a substantial portion of those sales no doubt involved used rifles, pistols and shotguns, not all of those were for additional firearms held by our nation’s residents.
I couldn’t find a statistic from the shooting sports industry or the Department of Justice that offered a breakdown between new and used firearms. But this much is clear: In the time since the national background checks became law, millions of new firearms have been sold in the U.S.
And yet the crime rate has fallen steadily.
Seems like the anti-gun folks are, pardon the pun, out of ammo.
Robert Heinlein was right when he wrote, “An armed society is a polite society.”
Ken Robertson: 582-1520; krobertson@tricityherald.com
Stay updated with the latest news from the Tri-City Herald with an RSS feed: http://www.tri-cityherald.com/1309/story/97842.html
@Nyx.CommentBody@