Daylia: At 10:40 a.m. you provided a nice overview of the basic thesis of Franklin Zimring and Gordon Hawkins referenced in Ira's article, at least as to the homicide rates, and parroting their argument that handgun ownership increases the fatality rate of violent criminal activity.

However, you then go on and tie that legitimate argument in a support for the more mushy-headed proposition that Ira (with no originality, btw) that Americans are culturally prone to and accepting of violence.

Yet, in supporting the mushy headed Ira this way, you fail to mention Zimring and Hawkins' own observation that American crime rates, are similar to and in some regards lower than their UK and Canadian brethren. They point out that the lethal crime rate is much higher (attributable to guns laws, they say), but I can't tell whether the violent crime rate (lethal AND non-lethal) is so much higher, which is your real point. If it WAS so much higher, they would be detracting from their own conclusion about guns.) Do you have the stats to back up your real point?

http://www.oup-usa.org/isbn/0195131053.html

Ira should know that Bush, as a surname, is capitalized, and that a spell-check program won't catch this.