On the topic of gun control and whatnot...Go see
"Bowling For Columbine". Interesting documentary about guns in the American culture.
As for England's crime rate approaching that of the US, that really has nothing to do with gun control. Getting rid of the gun controls will not do anything to stop a rise in crime. But it *will* make it easier for criminals and "borderline" criminals to get guns, and it *will* increase the number of non-crime related gun deaths.
As one who as lived in a country with gun control (Canada), and one without gun control (the US), I feel much, much, much safer walking down the street in the country *with* gun control. I'm less afraid of a criminal with a gun than I am the average Joe on the street with a gun, who might decide to intercede in a mugging and accidentally shoot me instead of the mugger, or who might get ticked off in a fit of passionate road rage, or who might use his gun in "self-defence", miss his target, and hit me.
If you're so concerned about self-defense that you think you need to carry a handgun, I'd recommend studying Jeet Kune Do, Krav Magda, or a similar martial art. The things that can be done with a stick, a blade, a half-dozen quarters in the end of a handkerchief, or just your own two hands (and legs) is astonishing, not to mention far more dependable and versatile than a handgun.