Changes

Studies by [[John Lott]] and others indicate that gun control causes higher crime rates<ref>http://www.johnrlott.com/</ref>.  [[Washington, D.C.]] has one of the highest crime rates in [[America]] even though it completely bans private handguns <ref>http://www.disastercenter.com/crime/dccrime.htm</ref>.  Lott demonstrates that in [[Britain]], [[Australia]] and [[Canada]], increased gun control in the late 1990s led to increased crime, the exact opposite of what the [[liberal]] proponents of the gun control promised.<ref>http://johnrlott.tripod.com/op-eds/IBDGunConFailure.html</ref>

Studies by [[John Lott]] and others indicate that gun control causes higher crime rates<ref>http://www.johnrlott.com/</ref>.  [[Washington, D.C.]] has one of the highest crime rates in [[America]] even though it completely bans private handguns <ref>http://www.disastercenter.com/crime/dccrime.htm</ref>.  Lott demonstrates that in [[Britain]], [[Australia]] and [[Canada]], increased gun control in the late 1990s led to increased crime, the exact opposite of what the [[liberal]] proponents of the gun control promised.<ref>http://johnrlott.tripod.com/op-eds/IBDGunConFailure.html</ref>

[[image:Australia crime.gif|thumb|300px|right<br /><small>(The vertical line represents the timing of the gun control http://www.gunsandcrime.org/auresult.html)</small>]]

[[image:Australia crime.gif|thumb|300px<br /><small>(The vertical line represents the timing of the gun control http://www.gunsandcrime.org/auresult.html)</small>]]

In [[Australia]], where gun ownership was less widespread and the gun control measures were less strict, there was still an unmistakable increase in robbery and armed robbery after the gun control went into effect in 1996 (see the figure to the right).  Other data are less clear, but there is no evidence supporting the promised decrease in crime from gun control.<ref>[http://www.gunsandcrime.org/auresult.html Results of the Australian Gun "Buyback" & New Gun Laws], October 2001</ref>  But the gun control did have the predictable long-term political effect: voters became more reliant on the government and by 2007 candidates favoring bigger government won in a landslide.<ref>http://www.abc.net.au/elections/federal/2007/</ref>

In [[Australia]], where gun ownership was less widespread and the gun control measures were less strict, there was still an unmistakable increase in robbery and armed robbery after the gun control went into effect in 1996 (see the figure to the right).  Other data are less clear, but there is no evidence supporting the promised decrease in crime from gun control.<ref>[http://www.gunsandcrime.org/auresult.html Results of the Australian Gun "Buyback" & New Gun Laws], October 2001</ref>  But the gun control did have the predictable long-term political effect: voters became more reliant on the government and by 2007 candidates favoring bigger government won in a landslide.<ref>http://www.abc.net.au/elections/federal/2007/</ref>