Quote:I'm not missing anything. What you propose, a return to the Old West, where everyone is armed without restriction, registration or training, is madness.

 

I'm not sure how accurate it is but I read that many Old Western towns were relatively safe. It said that some of the "wildest" towns (Dodge City, Ellsworth, Wichita, etc.) had only 1 murder per year. I'm sure it isn't 100% accurate, but the same can be said for anything. Also, it spoke about towns that had highers murder rates also had almost nonexistent criminal activity (burglaries, robberies, rape, etc.). 

 

The idea that the Old West was lawless came when people sometimes got a punishment far exceeding the crime as a result of their own behavior. Think a drunk fighting someone with a gun and getting shot. 

 

Either way, assuming the murder rate is ... 20 times higher than reported, it'll still be safer than many of the safest places in the US today.

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