I guess this is as good a time as any to post this.
For a while, I've been debating with myself whether carrying a gun really does anything to deter crime. I've posted on here how I got rid of all of the guns I had in my house when I had kids (short story - it'd take too long to retrieve them from the guns safe, remove the trigger locks, retrieve ammo from the regular safe, and load the guns - by then, the criminals would have done whatever they were going to do). And, although I'm licensed to carry and have the proper training, I still don't want to carry a gun on my person all the time.
The other day, I went to Gendusa's Italian Market in Kenner, LA (small suburb of New Orleans). The front door had a sign saying something to the effect of "Please feel free to open carry a firearm in our establishment . . . all of our staff do!" Furthermore, all of their cups had the slogan "Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli". Obviously, this is a very pro-2nd Amendment place (and the food was pretty good, too).
But, I found myself thinking, "No criminal in his right mind would try to stick up this place!" Which kinda answered my question, "Does gun ownership deter crime". Yes, yes it does.