But, posters outside the US are still wondering what is it that makes US society so different (and more violent) than theirs.
I do agree that the problem is not necessarily guns, but a socio-economic problem.
Look, no one can deny that the US has more poor people per capita than other developed nations. Also, the US spends more on its military. We even spend more on education and health care (per capita) than any developed nation. We also are a more multicultural country than any other nation except Canada, and that causes problems in and of itself.
A small example that shows how violence happens in the US: during the 1990s, Clinton funded a lot of after school programs for teens. In the last 7 years, these programs have been shut down for lack of funds. On my side of town (West side of Buffalo) you see a lot of teens hanging out in the street. Crime is way up on the West Side, and this is happening while Buffalo is finally experiencing a resurgence of investment and new business after three decades of neglect. invariably, the people doing the shooting on the West Side are 14 and 15 year old, sometimes 16, but 90% of it is most definitely by teens under 17. They are bored. And poor. And they're trafficking drugs.
In Europe, you have to wonder, what would the poor parts of your cities look like if there were a ton more poor people. Imagine a lot more ILLEGAL guns on your street. Then people take up arms to protect themselves, and the vicious circle begins. I think a European would start to understand what it means when the genie is let out of the bottle.
I do agree that the problem is not necessarily guns, but a socio-economic problem.
Look, no one can deny that the US has more poor people per capita than other developed nations. Also, the US spends more on its military. We even spend more on education and health care (per capita) than any developed nation. We also are a more multicultural country than any other nation except Canada, and that causes problems in and of itself.
A small example that shows how violence happens in the US: during the 1990s, Clinton funded a lot of after school programs for teens. In the last 7 years, these programs have been shut down for lack of funds. On my side of town (West side of Buffalo) you see a lot of teens hanging out in the street. Crime is way up on the West Side, and this is happening while Buffalo is finally experiencing a resurgence of investment and new business after three decades of neglect. invariably, the people doing the shooting on the West Side are 14 and 15 year old, sometimes 16, but 90% of it is most definitely by teens under 17. They are bored. And poor. And they're trafficking drugs.
In Europe, you have to wonder, what would the poor parts of your cities look like if there were a ton more poor people. Imagine a lot more ILLEGAL guns on your street. Then people take up arms to protect themselves, and the vicious circle begins. I think a European would start to understand what it means when the genie is let out of the bottle.
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