Quote:
Originally Posted by ShadeTreeMech
In Britian it is illegal to carry a firearm.
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Oversimplification, you need to see
this. Its just much harder to get a gun legally, harder than the strictest US state for example, but it is possible. It is easier to get an illegal gun though which is something that needs more attention paid to it. Oddly it is easy to buy something like a crossbow, which is arguably just as dangerous although harder to conceal.
Laws are not a good indicator though. According to law as an Englishman I am required to own and practice the use of a longbow. I am also required to murder any Scotsman I find inside the city walls of York after dark. Thats what happens when you have >1000 years of laws not being reviewed often.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ShadeTreeMech
And by googling per capita crime rate by country I found this tidbit.... |
Interesting stats. I found
these on Wiki-bl@@dy-pedia from 2000 :
1 - % Homicides with Firearms
2 - Firearm Rate per 100k pop.
3 - Non-Firearm Rate per 100k pop.
4 - Overall homicide per 100k pop.
England and Wales
1 - 8
2 - 0.12
3 - 1.33
4 - 1.45
United States
1 - 46
2 - 2.97
3 - 4.58
4 - 8.55
Mexico
1 - 21
2 - 3.66
3 - 14.1
4 - 17.8
Switzerland
1 - 37
2 - 0.56
3 - 0.96
4 - 1.52
Note - Scotland is not included in the England and Wales figures so those would rise - Scotland has about 8% of the UK population but it has some crime hotspots in the cities.
From these I think I can conclude we have fewer murders with firearms than most, Switzerland's murder rate is lowest of these but more of them are shot than in the UK. More worrying is the overall murder rate difference between countries perhaps ? I know from news items we see here there are quite a few firearms 'incidents' in Switzerland although not all of them end in killings.
The example above about everyone "carrying" to go and buy/sell something is especially odd from my UK central point of view - its the same thought process that leads everyone to buy the biggest SUV they can because "might is right" and they are of course safer (except they aren't as we know from the crash tests).
I also don't buy the "I've had a gun pulled on me and now I carry" argument either. I was mugged and injured slightly as a teenager - the attackers used a knife. It had an effect on my for a while but it didn't make me want to carry a knife to defend myself.
Full disclosure - I do carry one, about 1/2 an inch long which is on my key-ring and I use for modelling and has a screwdriver / bottle opener bit 
I don't have a problem if people want to have a gun to defend themselves, its your choice and as long as it is within your laws its fine. Up to you. You take the risk and the consequences.
My original "Oh FFS" reaction was to the idea of pulling a gun on someone for road rage. The idea that a "cop buddy" would recommend shooting first is equally stupid - I would question whether this guy should be a cop with that attitude.
Anyway, on with tailgating
