J Tyran said:
Either way that data is not detailed enough to make any conclusion about the effect firearm control had over murder rates.
Keep clinging to your delusions if it makes you happy, I suppose.
The data shows what the data shows, and if you want more in depth data, follow the link provided to the source.
Gun control increases -> homicides increase. Not that this is a causative link, just a correlative link, but the fact that that is the case definitely undermines the position that more gun control = fewer homicides.
Finding similar long-term data on method of homicide in the UK has proven somewhat difficult, to be honest, but what I
have been able to find in the post-97 (handgun ban) data actually supports your idea that people in the UK mostly didn't use firearms for homicides anyway.
Though again, it showed a definite upward trend
after the ban, corresponding with the general spike in murder rates in the UK for that period.
The point, however, is that even if you ban the guns, people will still find ways to kill each other.