After living in Australia for three years, I had almost been convinced by Australian media that the United States was a primitive country with gun fights daily in the streets and mass murders occurring on nearly a weekly basis. My recent visit back to the US provided a helpful reset button to the hype that I feel is due to a combination of Australian nationalism and media amplification. Note that in the link underlying media amplification, other countries in the Americas are left out.
Did any violence occur while I was in the US?
Yes. During a week in Miami Beach, a stabbing occurred and police gunned down a mentally ill man. The stabbing made international headlines; the police video went viral, but didn't make mainstream national news. Both were within blocks of where we were staying. While I was in Indiana, 14 people were killed and 22 seriously injured in San Bernardino, California. That situation evolved into being described as an act of terrorism.
Did I personally witness any violence?
No.
During my month there, did I ever feel threatened?
No.
It's been said, and I agree that firearm ownership plays a big role in American culture. I think attitudes have evolved (and not for the better). My own family illustrates a range of attitudes. My siblings and I grew up being taught responsible gun ownership. While the crazy neighbor boys were shooting each other in BB gun fights, our parents used BB guns as a test of our level of responsibility (*manufacturer now recommends for ages 10 and older). Toy guns were toys, but if we could treat a BB gun as if it were a real weapon, we could graduate to a 22 caliber rifle or shotgun. I left home while my sister was still young, and don't think she went through the gun training process, but she now owns a handgun (she didn't know what caliber). One of my brothers was never into hunting, but one of his sons is an avid deer hunter. My other brother has guns, but it doesn't seem that any of his sons are into firearms. I had guns when I was young, but when I joined the military and started traveling around, it seemed too much of a hassle to bring firearms and keep them secured. Thus, I haven't owned guns for over 30 years. I've also lived in urban areas where firearms are more clearly the cause of major problems.
My parents live in a poor, rural area with known drug dealing going on in the neighborhood. The police wanted to install a surveillance camera on their garage. They consented, but then the police realized they would need to cut a tree, and my parents objected. No camera. My father owned primarily hunting guns but was concerned that someone in the neighborhood might steal them - so he sold them. Better to get the money than have them stolen, and he spends his time fishing rather than hunting. An attempted burglar walked into my sister's house once when my brother-in-law was home. The attempted burglar was a casual thief, and after an awkward conversation with my brother-in-law he left. Their house now has security cameras and my sister sleeps with a gun in a safe next to the bed - with the key nearby. It's easy to understand why she wants a gun, and she keeps it secured to prevent either thieves or her children from getting their hands on it.
When I was growing up, firearm ownership was more about hunting. My father taught us about rifles and shotguns, but for safety reasons, didn't want us to have handguns. Since guns were all about hunting, handguns were somewhat irrelevant. The shift in attitudes that I perceive in the United States is that as natural areas have been converted to suburbs, firearms now seem to be less about hunting and more just a hobby, about gun rights, or for personal protection.
As I mentioned, my father sold all of his firearms, but the stories he mentioned drove home why so many people in suburban and semi-rural areas insist on owning firearms for protection. We went for a drive by the house of a man who worked from home as a gunsmith and was killed by burglars. Over time, a FedEx delivery person learned the nature of his business, and returned after hours with accomplices, killing the man and stealing weapons from the house. I noticed one version of this story decided to be kind to FedEx; leaving their name out of the story. My parents mentioned another home invasion story where a pregnant woman was killed by two home invaders. Both situations happened in 2015, and if you look at the stories (linked in previous sentences), they reinforce fears that those living in predominantly white areas have about race.
Those who are against gun ownership point to statistics showing that people or their family members are more likely to be killed when there's a firearm in the home. It's interesting the different attitudes between the generations of my family. In the face of possible burglary, my father sells his guns; my sister purchases a gun. I think part of this is the change in attitudes regarding firearms for hunting versus for protection. Another part of it is that my parents see the daily activities of their neighbors as perhaps misguided, but they don't feel particularly threatened; whereas my sister, based on prior experience does.
None of my family members live in urban neighborhoods where gangs and gun violence are a frequent occurrence - they see this as something "out there" in neighborhoods that they avoid. There is also the notion that the overall statistics include a lot of people who don't have appropriate training and are not keeping firearms secure - people who leave guns where they shouldn't be. And so, in the spectrum of attitudes about guns, the dichotomy is largely one between urban and rural lifestyles, with the sprawling suburbs being a grey zone depending on one's roots and experiences.
