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New York

The New York Times (Saturday, May 13, 2006) published an article titled In a City Deemed Safe, Counting Murders which states that more than 90 percent of the killers had criminal records; and of those who wound up killed, more than half of them ((...)) men and boys were responsible for 93 percent of the murders ((...)) and in more than half the cases, the killer and the victim knew each other. ((...)) Stranger homicides now happen at almost twice the rate of 50 years ago, when about 14 percent of murders were committed by strangers. We understand that strangers means "people not knowing each other" because the very next sentence quotes an homicide expert saying Homicide use to be regarded as an acquaintance phenomenon with relative rare incidents involving strangers.

As far as we know New York revoked the right to carry a personal weapon.

Therefore:

most murders are perpetrated by convicts, who can easily obtain weapons. This implies that the unarmed citizen is an easy target. Ubiquitous personal weapons will let criminals realize that any citizen, victim or witness of a crime, may instantly turn into a fierce opponent). An armed nation is sure.
other murders are more and more done by people not knowing their victims, probably mainly after a dispute or during an armed attack (robberies?). When any culprit thinks that his victim or some witness may be armed he is less prone to grab his gun, and if he does he will more probably end up unable to do so again. An armed nation is a polite nation.

The real problem is personal defence. It does not resides in the question are citizens entitled to bear arms? but in their will to avoid being easy targets and in their efforts towards this objective.

A man on his way to Texas asked an Arkansas store owner if he thought he would need a gun. "Well," the store owner said, "maybe you will and maybe you won't, but if you do, you'll need it in a hurry." (quoted by Charley Reese).

Firearms and Crime Statistics

a-human-right.com

Penn & Teller Expose the Fallacy of Gun Control (video)

GUN CONTROL FACT-SHEET (2004)

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