Gun control in Brazil - does it work?; Rio De Janeiro Gun Control Massacre v. Ismail Ax Massacre

Brazil has one of the world's strictest gun control laws.

Permits will be issued only to police, security guards and others in high-risk professions - but they must be at least 25 years old.

Anyone else caught carrying a firearm will face up to four years in prison.

So Brazil should not suffer from incidents like Virginia Tech's Ismail Ax Massacre, right? But yesterday I noted a mass shooting in which 19 people were killed in Rio De Janeiro.

But police say they are terrified of being outgunned by heavily armed and well-financed gangs that control the cocaine trade in the seaside city, a favorite of tourists.

Gun control doesn't work any better in the U.S. than it does in Brazil.

On this blog, April 17 will always be remembered as the anniversary of the Rio De Janeiro Gun Control Massacre.