Lumpy wrote:
Today's Star Tribune had an article on a drop in crime across American that has the experts baffled. I wonder: has the expansion of "shall issue" and greater respect for gun rights in general contributed? The article noted that New York City did not share in the general decline- and of course New York still has restrictive carry laws.
Lott's studies makes it clear that there's some contribution, but that it's not nearly as dramatic as the actual drop that we're seeing. What's really causing it? I don't think anybody knows, although there's pretty clearly a lot of factors. Carry reform is among them, but it's probably a very small part of the picture . . . although not to anybody who has ever used a gun in self-defense.