The most effective alarm systems I've seen are those that not only dial the telephone, but in addition, they turn on house lights and sound a loud audible alarm, both indoors and outdoors. The only drawback with these is if they go off inadvertently and there's no one at home to shut it down, it will drive the neighbors crazy until you come home and turn it off using the keypad code.

As for the guns, I've lived in towns where everyone had one, and their crime rate was lower than any city that does not allow them. Washington, DC is a good example--no guns allowed, murder rate off the charts, one of the highest crime rates in the nation.

Cheers,

Gary