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re: Gun control has been on my mind since this happened
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I often wonder if the Wild West was as wild, or as heavily armed, as Hollywood would have us believe. In the nineteenth century, firearms were relatively very expensive, and I doubt if there would have been more than one per household on the average, and that probably a rifle or shotgun, an all-around farm tool rather than just a weapon for personal dueling. The picture of every man walking around with a six-gun on his hip is probably exaggerated. Personal gunfights were relatively rare (most killings occurred by ambush, just like today), or in formal duels. The movie High-Noon showdown is entirely a fictional artifact. Even as earliy as colonial times, most men went about unarmed, even eschewing the gentleman's sword or pistol as uncomfortable and bulky, although no doubt most homes, particularly in rural areas, owned a musket, fowling-piece (primitive shotgun) or even a rifle.

The current flood of firearms is due primarily to the fact that they are relatively inexpensive. And now there are so many in circulation, that even those who can't afford legitimate ones can get them through theft or the black market.

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