Also while in Memphis, Harnden reported on soaring gun sales in the wake of Barack Obama's election as president.
After talking to a couple of local gun-shop owners, Harnden touches on the differences in attitudes about gun ownership here in the South and in the Midwest vs. those on the coasts:
I can hear the arguments now: innocent bystanders could have been killed; unarmed robbers could have wrestled the gun from him; pulling the gun could have encouraged the robbers to fire; he would have got the insurance money anyway.
But all this is beside the main point. The salesman had a legal weapon and used it to protect his livelihood and maintain law and order. He also made sure that two armed robbers were taken out of circulation, possibly permanently. And perhaps some of their fellow criminals will think again next time.
Take away the power of an ordinary citizen to control their own destiny in a situation like this and the US is no longer the country that it is.
While you're checking out the stories, be sure to read the comments. Several readers point out that while personal firearms are exceedingly rare in Britain, even among law enforcement, crime has been surging over there in recent years, while it has generally been falling in the U.S. in the past couple of decades.
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