Murder and Morality

Forty seven deadbeats living in the back street
North, east, west, south all in the same house
Sitting in a back room waiting for the big boom
I'm in a bedroom waiting for my baby
--Escape Club

Prof Williams lends some reasoned thoughts to offset recent gun-related emotional capture. Some mortality statistics:

Vehicle deaths where alcohol is involved: about 30/day
Deaths due to stabbing or hacking: more than 1500/yr
Deaths due to shotgun or rifle: about 550

If the thinking is that comprehensive background checks would reduce rifle related deaths, then why aren't federal background checks and waiting periods required for purchasing a car, for getting a driver's license, or for buying a knife?

Williams also observes that gun availability is far more limited now than in the past. A 1902 Sears catalog included 35 pages of firearms that could be purchased by mail. In the 1940-1960 period, magazines were full of gun ads directed at both adults and youngsters. Few states had advertisements on buying guns, and firearm transfers to juveniles was largely unrestricted.

His point is that current levels of murder, mayhem, and other forms of anti-social behavior are no more gun-related than they are car- or knife-related. Uncivilized behavior increases when moral standards decrease. And moral standards have been under siege in the US for more than half a century.

Because morality is the first line of defense against anti-social behavior, Williams argues that problems of murder et al. will continue until we regain our moral footing.