I think it's more the horse long gone over the hill than beating him, craig. Laws have no meaning if they're not faithful expressions of the people who made them. All the laws in the world can't stop violence (or spitting in public places) if they're acceptable within community values. The US violence seems within accepted parameters of safety and personal freedom, depending on where Americans live. Are the New York City signs still forbidding "expectorating" on public transit?