A recent article in the U.K. Times Online addressed the issue of school-aged children being mugged on a regular basis, sometimes at knife point. According to the article, there were 24,000 muggings of children aged 11-16 last year. This is just one of a series of articles over the past few years demonstrating how crime in the U.K. has spiraled out of control since private ownership of handguns have been banned. The situation in the U.K. proves, yet again, what gun rights advocates have been arguing for years: More guns = less crime.

The question is whether or not gun-banners will take responsibility for their position and admit that strict gun control actually puts children at greater risk of violent crime. One or two law abiding "subjects" in possession of a handgun and concealed carry permit would pretty much end the muggings in any given area allowing children to walk to and from school worry-free. Common sense dictates that a potential mugger would flee the scene upon sight of a societal defender with a gun. In the unusual event that the perpetrator did not back down and forced the gun owner to act, the end result would still be better than allowing children to be mugged on a regular basis.

People in the United Kingdom are looking to government for help in reducing the incidences of muggings. The government created this situation in the first place by banning gun ownership. The government was nowhere to be found when it came to keeping 24,000 children safe last year. The government appears to be nowhere when it comes to catching criminals. There seems to be a direct correlation between the lack of gun ownership and the lack of personal responsibility.

The dramatic increase in crime after the gun ban also proves that guns do not cause crime. A point that any person with common sense already knows. We may never know exactly what leads one person to commit criminals acts while another person of similar circumstances does not. We do know, however, that we can reduce instances of criminal activity be reducing the number of potential victims in society. We can reduce the number of potential victims by giving them the means to defend themselves.

Jennifer Freeman is Executive Director and co-founder of Liberty Belles, a grass-roots organization dedicated to restoring and preserving the Second Amendment.
http://www.libertybelles.org
jennifer@libertybelles.org