If you lived in a neighborhood where crime was commonplace and police were slow to respond, would you buy a gun?

Considering these circumstances, I might. I’ve never owned a gun of any kind and have really only fired a gun a few times. Living alone, I’ve thought about purchasing a handgun and going through the proper training for owning one. I just haven’t done it.

If I had kids, I would likely think twice about it, for fear of them accidentally getting their hands on the weapon. But with it just being myself, I might feel a little better about it.

And this may be something I’ll have to consider sooner than later, anyway. The city has decided to build a new bus station a couple of blocks away from my apartment building. Statistically speaking, crime is significantly higher in the area surrounding the current bus station. I imagine that criminal element will follow wherever the bus station is moved. And since the new bus station is being built directly across the street from the parking garage where I park my car… Well, let’s just say I’m not looking forward to that two block walk from the garage to my building at night once that bus station is open for business.

But what would you do? If you were in a less than safe neighborhood and couldn’t trust the police to protect and serve, would you be likely to have a weapon for protection? Let me know your thoughts down in the comments!

*The Question of the Week can be found in The Book of Questions by Gregory Stock, Ph.D.