One of the arguments I frequently hear in favor of gun control is that Europeans enjoy lower crime rates as a result of more stringent gun laws. A recent Italian study [pdf] appears to contradict that.
Contrary to common perceptions, today both property and violent crimes (with the exception of homicides) are more widespread in Europe than in the United States, while the opposite was true thirty years ago. We label this fact as the ‘reversal of misfortunes’.
Indeed.
Notice that merry old England appears to be leading the uptick. It gets worse when violent crime is factored in.
Look at them around 1997, pulling right ahead of the pack. Lest we forget, that was the year they passed the Firearms Act, banning almost all handguns in the country. It was later amended to ban all handguns in the country.