Japan has the highest suicide rate in the world, and for all intents and purposes, firearms are illegal for the common man there.

Which is odd considering they make some Winchester rifles.

It's also about the gun culture. Guns are part of American culture. The idea of armed citizens is part of America. Japan and most of the Asian countries have never had the idea of individual citizens with means of practical self defense. Sure, they've had plenty of revolutions where the common man take up arms but in extreme cases and in modern times it isn't like China or Japan is going to have another revolution. Even Japan is not officially allowed to have a real military technically.

True, and further more, suicides are independent of means.

Japan is an interesting case study in regards to sucide, for the culture is not historically steeped in guns, mind you guns were originally outlawed there as a method to ensure the samurai were able to thier master's bidding unopposed, but also has a culture that, while it doesn't romanticize suicide, views it more favorably than western culture.

And the JSDF boys and girls are very good. They would have given the Soviets pause.

Currently any army can give the Russians pause.

Well, not the Georgian Army...

They have an army?

Eh, the Georgia defense force didn't just roll over.

They did pretty well with what they had.

Shot down a couple of Backfire's and exacted a fearful toll on Russian Frontal Aviation.

but, people seem to forget, the modern Russia army got a lot of experience in Chechya, and Putin has spared no expense in re-equipping them.

Not the shell of a force they were in the early 90s.

That's actually the #1 reason that the Philistines were able to keep the Hebrews their slaves for as long as they did: forbidding them from owning spears and swords.

If you take the right to bear arms from people they'll just find ways to rip you a new one without them.

That's kind of the reason Karate exists.

Hell, that's the reason gun control is so entrenched in Japan.

First off guns were considered western, which the ruling class didn't much care for, and it looks bad to the peasentry if any untrained farmer can knock your noble warrior class Samurai off his horse with one shot from behind a bush.