jbtrader -
Japan - It's because the Yakuza don't tolerate all the pea brain criminals and ganstas screwing up their action that are allowed to continue breathing in the US
Seriously, there's clearly a cultural difference (not sure it's what you noted as much as a thousand years of isolation still ingrained in their culture even now). However, crime stats in Japan are also not reported the same as in the US and I wouldn't put a whole lot of stock in their being a fully accurate portrayal.
Switzerland is an interesting situation - no doubt part of it is long term cultural factors and another part is they don't have revolving doors on their prisons like we do in the US.
Might also be worth noting that most of the highest crime zones in the US also have the toughest local gun control laws - could that mean that since only the criminals have guns, they feel confident that their victims are unarmed?
Also worth noting that in the heart of the golden triangle, Singapore has virtually no drug issues - they just simply execute anyone involved in drug dealing. Same with anyone caught commiting armed robbery or similar capital crime. Except for the occassional big shot bust, we usually turn the local dealers, gangs, etc. back out in short order to keep dealing.
There's a whole lot more to solving the real underlying issues than the sophmoric oversimplification that the crux of all problems is that average citizens are allowed to own guns.
But then, the politicians, judges, etc. would have to actually get off their dead butts (typically where they also have their heads) and take meaningful and material actions instead of spouting supercillious slogans (on both sides of the debate) and hoping to do just enough to keep their phony baloney jobs long enough for them to pile up a bunch of kick backs and payola and then retire on their unearned fat retirement checks.
Gee, does that sound overly jaded about the crooks and goons in Washington?
