It is not gun culture. It is America itself. :S
We have gun-control here. Permit to carry license, permit to own, permit to purchase, stuff like that. My father has an M-16, a shotgun, and a revolver. I have seen it at different times, but we were never allowed to touch it. I have only seen dad use the shotgun once. On a really BIG king cobra on the front yard.
That said, we live on Mindanao. The most volatile island in the Philippines. Where the islamic separatists and the terrorists are. We are a prominent (in name) family here, and we have received threats before.
The guns are justified. It is there for protection.
However, I once had this high school teacher. Young (probably only in his early thirties when he started teaching). The son of a prominent member of the University. He was a 'bad boy' who 'found religion'. A prodigal son, you might call him. He carried a gun whenever he goes out drinking. On the fiesta of the nearest city here, he got angry at the comments of another guy. He was drunk. He attempted to pull the gun (a .45) from his holster with every intention of shooting the guy.
He was lucky. He fumbled and pulled the trigger. He shot himself in the leg instead (his thigh I think). Much much better than murder. He went MIA at school for 2 weeks, then when he came back he was on crutches. He acted like the victim, and he actually broke down in front of the class, apologizing and stuff. He was a prick. Nobody liked him.
America... is not a warzone. Why the need for guns? I doubt any 1984-esque government control is eminent any time soon.
Anyway, gun control is not the issue. It is public education systems over there. It encourages bullying, xenophobia, homophobia, social stratification. I have a childhood friend studying now in Texas, and she says the schools there are waaay different than it is here. The cliques are much more... umm... self-contained, everyone gets labels, and the teachers just don't care. Isn't it strange that almost all of the school shootings by students happen in America?
Until the schools there start educating children against hate crimes, or at least to be more accepting of diversity, school shootings, suicides, and murders will still continue. Gun control won't stop that alone.