RE: Sensible Gun Regulations and Disarming the Police
Separating the police into a security force and a police force seems like a great idea.
As for guns - it seems sensible to have people learn how to properly use, clean, and store it. I know how seriously myself and other gun owners I know take gun safety - it is of the utmost importance.
This post reminded me of a study I read a while back, done by people at Harvard. (And yes, I actually read the study, not just someone else's interpretation of the study). The purpose of the study was to answer the question Does more guns result in more violence? After analyzing many stats, their answer to this question was a resounding "no". Availability of guns did not result in more violence. When guns weren't available, people just used a different weapon.
The purpose of the study wasn't to answer the question do more guns result in less violence? However, they did have quite a bit of language in there that suggests those results.
Just for clarity, I am not advocating fewer guns. I am advocating fewer guns in the hands of police though. And fewer guns in the hands of people who don't know how to safely and appropriately use them. The key isn't to get fewer people to own guns per se, but to get the people who do to be better trained.
As for the study, I have read studies that suggested the opposite is the case. Although, I've always thought that the apparent correlation stems from a multitude of factors (lack of training requirements, etc.), so the findings are limited. I'd be interested in seeing the particular study, if you happen to have a link. The findings that you described are more like what I would expect if there was a way to control for variables.
I'll try to find it for you tonight or tomorrow.