冰島にて殺人が少ないこと - Living, Loving, Thinking, Again

Andrew Clark “Why is violent crime so rare in Iceland?” http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-22288564

Andrew Clarkは米国の大学院生（法学専攻）。何故アイスランドでは殺人などの凶悪犯罪が少ない、というか殆ど存在しないのかを考察する。

Violent crime was virtually non-existent. People seemed relaxed about their safety and that of their children to the point where parents left their babies outside and unattended.

According to the 2011 Global Study on Homicide*1 by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)*2, Iceland's homicide rate between 1999-2009 never went above 1.8 per 100,000 population on any given year.
On the other hand, the US had homicide rates between 5.0 and 5.8 per 100,000 population during that same stretch.

理由その１。平等性、特に平等の主観的実感。殆どの人間が自らを中流であると認識している；

First - and arguably foremost - there is virtually no difference among upper, middle and lower classes in Iceland. And with that, tension between economic classes is non-existent, a rare occurrence for any country.
A study of the Icelandic class system done by a University of Missouri master's student found only 1.1% of participants identified themselves as upper class, while 1.5% saw themselves as lower class*3.
The remaining 97% identified themselves as upper-middle class, lower-middle class, or working class*4.

またアイスランドには「ハードなドラッグ」が殆ど浸透していない；

In addition, there are, comparatively speaking, few hard drugs in Iceland.
According to a 2012 UNODC report, use among 15-64-year-olds in Iceland of cocaine was 0.9%, of ecstasy 0.5%, and of amphetamines 0.7%.

米国では凶悪事件が起こる度に銃規制の議論が強まるが、実はアイスランドには銃が溢れている；

Crimes in Iceland - when they occur - usually do not involve firearms, though Icelanders own plenty of guns.
GunPolicy.org estimates there are approximately 90,000 guns in the country - in a country with just over 300,000 people.
The country ranks 15th in the world in terms of legal per capita gun ownership. However, acquiring a gun is not an easy process -steps to gun ownership include a medical examination and a written test.
Police are unarmed, too. The only officers permitted to carry firearms are on a special force called the Viking Squad, and they are seldom called out.

銃は沢山あるのに犯罪が少ない。これはマイケル･ムーアの『ボウリング･フォー・コロンバイン』*5で（米国に隣国カナダを対置して）指摘されていたことだろう。