water cannon

[baronWastelan]

let us know how that works out for y'all

[Skoshi Tiger]

I'd expect folk would be mighty polite to each other in that neighbourhood. As they should be!

[Sternjaeger II]

the good ol' "keeping peace by means of a superior firepower"

You know what, I lived here in the UK for some years now, and I still can't get my head around the obstinate "guns are evil!" policy: the result is that people aren't safe in their homes and that events like the ones of the last days go out of control.

Besides, all this coming from one of the countries which constructed their empire with the use of guns is a bit silly

I have a nice collection of WW2 and WW1 guns, but left them all in custody in Italy, since it's a massive ballache to bring em here..

[McFeckit]

I was born and bred in the UK and have only ever seen one gun in my life, a Magnum as it happens, which I loaded using a spring loader. Once it was loaded the rather simple mechanical device took on a whole new meaning. It was rather scary to be holding a device that could blow someone's head off with a simple click.

I for one am very happy with the UK's no guns policy and have never felt unprotected whatsoever. If you need to kill someone then do it online. And if you feel you 'might' need to kill someone then move country.

Tuppence anyone ?

[CharveL]

So as long as the criminals play by your standards and rules then everyone will be safe and happy!

[Querer]

Originally Posted by Skoshi Tiger

I'd expect folk would be mighty polite to each other in that neighbourhood. As they should be!

And if not, they get shot and most probably killed. Welcome to the 21st century... Fits the rest (debts, infrastructure, social support, scholar system and and and...).

[Sternjaeger II]

yeah, I think people fail to understand that the sense of protection they're given by their home walls is just an illusion. What happened in London and other UK cities was just a mild teaser of what would happen in case of massive riots, caused by anything out of the ordinary.

Sometimes I wonder what would happen to the all British "we know it better" attitude the day shit really hits the fan and they find themselves on the wrong end of a 12"..

[unreasonable]

A "we know better" attitude is hardly confined to the British!

The point is that if everyone is allowed to have a gun, then it rapidly becomes necessary for everyone to have one, as an arms race between criminals and citizens sets in. While if no-one has one, this is a common good. I agree that it makes burglary more common - but it also reduces the lethality of muggings.

There is also the accident rate to consider - I am too lazy to look it up but I would make a wager that the rate of deaths by accidental shooting in the US is higher than the UK's entire murder rate, whether inflicted with gun, knife or horrible food (eg the "Great British Sausage").

I would prefer to live in a society free of handguns and assault rifles, (although I am quite familiar with their use), but I recognize that this is not a realistic option for the USA given the NRA and the sheer number of guns in circulation.

[Skoshi Tiger]

Originally Posted by McFeckit

It was rather scary to be holding a device that could blow someone's head off with a simple click.
...
Tuppence anyone ?

Whats the old saying 'Guns don't kill people, people kill people!"

Maybe the scaryness was a reflection of your own soul? A deep down fear that all that hate and anger from being put down for all those years would rise to the surface and you wouldn't be able to control your self...and now in your very hands you had the means to take revenge?

....

No wait a minute! That was me!

Only joking, seriously, If you swapped the guns for cricket bats, you could take that photo anywhere in the UK or Australia and you'ld see a regular bunch of fun loving blokes coming to gether in an expression of their community spirt. I don't know the background for the above photo, could be after Katrina? Any way at least they've got a sense of humor.

Cheers!

[Sternjaeger II]

Originally Posted by unreasonable

A "we know better" attitude is hardly confined to the British!

tis true, but they invented it

The point is that if everyone is allowed to have a gun, then it rapidly becomes necessary for everyone to have one, as an arms race between criminals and citizens sets in. While if no-one has one, this is a common good. I agree that it makes burglary more common - but it also reduces the lethality of muggings.

erm, yeah, that in a ideal society, where criminals are abiding the law (?). The truth is that criminals still will find ways of having firearms, so the government only disarms law abiding citizens, not criminals. That's an old bogus thinking which I've heard ad nauseam..

There have recently been changes to our laws here, now if you kill an intruder in your property, unless it's evident he/she was fleeing, you won't be charged with murder.

There is also the accident rate to consider - I am too lazy to look it up but I would make a wager that the rate of deaths by accidental shooting in the US is higher than the UK's entire murder rate, whether inflicted with gun, knife or horrible food (eg the "Great British Sausage").

yeah, and a tenth of the population of the USA?

I would prefer to live in a society free of handguns and assault rifles, (although I am quite familiar with their use), but I recognize that this is not a realistic option for the USA given the NRA and the sheer number of guns in circulation.

I am very familiar with the use of firearms, and I can tell you about other societies where firearms control was introduced for the "greater good": Nazi Germany, Ceaucescu's Romania, Franco's Spain and many other happy regimes..


Mind you, in the UK there is no complete ban, you can have bolt action rifles, rimfire semiautos and muzzle loaders, not to mention smooth bore guns, but it's the demonisation of firearms that is plain ridiculous. You need to think about ultimate protection for yourself and your family, cos there won't be anybody answering your 999 call (which is 666 upside down!) when the zombie apocalypse comes