A recent Star-Bulletin story noted that Honolulu residents are purchasing guns in ever-increasing numbers. Last year, according to HPD, gun registrations increased 23 percent, and are poised to increase further in 2009. This is in keeping with a national trend. The Wall Street Journal reports that legal firearm sales soared 27 percent in the first three months of 2009.

Part of the reason for the increase in gun sales is the possibility the Obama Administration will revive provisions of the Brady Bill hated by firearms enthusiasts, particularly bans on certain forms of semi-automatic rifles often called “assault weapons.” Yet this is probably not the whole story. After all, your average gun owner isn’t necessarily interested in owning an AR-15 or AK-47 in the first place. So why are everyday citizens choosing to arm themselves in increasing numbers?

Fear plays a part in the equation, and not just fear of an Obama gun ban. With the economy in various stages of implosion, there are reports of even rich, pampered Ivy League types suddenly developing an interest in self-sufficiency, “living off the grid,” and other matters previously considered only relevant to the loony militia crowd. One longtime investor with extensive experience in the oil business told The Economist that he was learning to grow his own food, just in case things got really bad. Closer to home, the Ala Moana Barnes and Noble recently featured a display of books dealing with survival issues.

In Hawaii, a revamped Brady Bill wouldn’t affect us quite as much as many mainland states, as our gun laws are already fairly strict. Yet we are not immune to fear and legitimate concern for our future safety. Leaving aside the global issues of the economy, terrorism, environmental degradation, and – most recently – the threat of a swine flu pandemic, trends in the Islands lend to a sense of ill-ease. Looking around, we see vagrants taking over public parks, graffiti everywhere, street racers on our roads, broken bottles on our beaches, and other signs of urban decay. As anyone familiar with the “broken windows” thesis of James Q. Wilson and George L. Kelling can deduce, such disregard for social order leads to a sense of lawlessness. If people begin to feel as if they are living in a lawless environment, they will naturally become afraid. Combine those seemingly petty offenses with the major crimes that seem to happen too frequently – from shootings to stabbings to the scourge of crystal meth – and it seems crazy not to be a bit fearful and take advantage of our constitutional right to “keep and bear arms.”

As long as a vague sense of lawlessness pervades Hawaii, there will be an accompanying vague sense of fear. And as long as people are afraid, they will justifiably seek to reassure and protect themselves. Thus the reasons for so many Islanders choosing to arm themselves is obvious. Less obvious are the reasons our elected officials and law enforcement have allowed the situation to deteriorate so much in the first place.

-GIR-

GRIH Consultant Brandon Bosworth is a graduate of Chaminade University with a degree in Political and Historical Studies. Bosworth is a former Associate Editor at The American Enterprise magazine.