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Virginia Tech shooting - attn: Wilbur
I know that this is off topic but it is very saddening to hear of yet
another mass killing in America. I had thought of making a quip about yet another "Christian terrorist" but the thought of the parents, siblings, grandparents and friends unconsolable grief at this time would make it too flippant and in poor taste. Wilbur, and those others of you who support your "constitutional right to bear arms" consider this as an example of why you should not make owning hand guns so easy. I could have bought any weapon during my 5 day sojourn in Florida recently. A friendly policeman with whom I was having coffee - real coffee - Cuban, not that brown dishwater that poses as coffee that Americans seem to prefer, explained that after three days of making an application I could walk out of a store with any type of weapon I desired, even an M-16 which is standard issue to Malaysian Customs. Why a citizen would want such a weapon is beyond me. They are not a hunting rifle. They are an offensive, not defensive weapon for killing people. In New Zealand, it is illegal and virtually impossible for anyone to possess a hand gun. The police do not even carry weapons. Most do not even bother to carry their batons. They have access to them when required as well as training in their use, but the armed offenders squads seldom shoot to kill; they usually disable the offender by shooting the legs. Don't think that we don't have violent crime and robberies in God's Own, we do. It's just that the criminals generally don't have access to handguns. If procuring one was as easy as in the U.S., then no doubt the situation would be diferent. We also have a law that makes it an imprisonable offence (at the worst) if a citizen does not go to the aid of a policeman who requests it or who fails to help if they see a policeman in trouble. Our police are also well trained in unarmed defence. At 16 I acquired a licence to own a rifle which I used to hunt deer, pigs and goats in our forests. You cannot have an automatic weapon, there is no need for this in hunting. Handguns are made to kill human beings, not rabbits or other species. The Virginia Tech. killer used two pistols, one a 9mm automatic. I have one of these as part of my uniform. It usually is kept locked in a desk drawer. My belt holster is a good place for cigarettes. After the initial cocking, each pull of the trigger will fire a bullet and with 15 bullets to a clip, you can shoot them all in about 15 seconds. Why would a private citizen need a weapon like that? In Malaysia it is a capital offence to possess an unlicenced firearm. Robbers must therefore resort to knives. I am a loss to understand how you can be so strident in defence of your "constituational right" to carry a firearm when you didn't even raise a murmur at the Patriot Act which removes more of your rights and freedoms. Frankly, I would be afraid to live in a country where any psycopath or inadequate person could pull out a gun and "get even" with me over some minor imagined slight, but then I have issues with those wanabe Rambos who aim paintball guns at other humans. I know that this is off-topic but I wanted to express my saddness. cheers Peter Hendra |