O.k. UK, WTF?Follow

I'd argue that posessing a weapon would lend a certian deterrent factor. Someone armed would present a less inviting target and therefore make the assailaint, assuming we are talking a robbery, more likely to break off the attack than they would if they thought you were unarmed.

I assume the UK will be banning scuba diving because of divers knifes, also all construction (someone might have a battery powered circular saw and go kill everyone with it) Fishing (fillet knives) hunting (Cutting up large dead animal knives) and tea (butter knives could be sharpened and used for nefarious purposes.) Sicissors (people could run with them)

Your society either has enough trust of its members on average to allow them some freedoms and realizes that nearly anything can be a weapon given the right set of circumstances, or it doesn't and tries to ban everything.

We're guilty of it over here too, California morso than most (haha stupid californians with no weapons! Washington will invade you and steal your beaches!)

Actually, you could carry a chainsaw around all day and the police wouldn't care in the least. Now if you took that chainsaw and even looked like you were going to threaten someone with it, they would shoot you.



So if someone happens to attack you you should what, let them just kill you? Im sorry, but if somoene attacks me, weapon or no, their wellbeing will be the last thing on my mind. especially since so many of those attacks around here are drug related.

I used to run security for a hydro-power plant and this discussion came up alot. While I do advocate carrying weapons under the right conditions, there was one guy who was quite adamant about it. He came in with an interesting article one day. It was a study with correlation between people defending themselves with a knife and people defending themselves with a gun. With a knife, people were more likely to hurt themselves or have the weapon taken and used against them.

The mind set was that they were "less lethal" so people felt they didn't need training for them. I'm gonna search around and try to find that article and post it here for you guys. Not only is it relavent to the discussion but it was an interesting read.

So I say ban all knives and give children 10 or over guns...wait...no I don't. lol. What I'm saying is that if you are properly trained you should be able to lawfully carry weapons. I have a gun permit as well as a concealed weapons permit. I don't carry it everywhere but I do carry it when I have the inclination to do so. I have a lock box under my seat that is bolted down. If I go somewhere that I'm not supposed to have it, I'll put it in the box and lock it. As someone said there is a point when you have to trust your citizens.

There is also an interesting article about a robbery in Florida I'm going to try to find. It was a case where a guy was robbing a fast food joint. He was hearding everyone into the bathroom and talking about he was going to shoot them. The last guy he went to put in the bathroom happend to be carrying ( legally) and shot the guy. Tell me any one of those people won't say there wish that guy didn't have a gun that day.

I used to carry a huge heavy wrench around with me when I was a kid for protection. I was told from my g/f's dad (a cop) at the time that it was illegal to carry something around AS a weapon no matter what it is.
granted I could be on my way to my garage... or were I carrying a baseball bat down the street I MIGHT be on my way to a baseball game.. but I believe that police have legal right to stop and question you about it.

actually a few years back a friend and I WERE arrested and taken to jail for carrying swords. Someone told the cops we were walking around with swords and the arrested us. I was not amused.

Edited, Apr 6th 2008 6:48pm by Kelvyquayo

There's just such a difference in culture and social norms between USA and UK.

Here, only the armed forces and certain police officers are legally allowed to carry offensive weapons.
On that basis, the argument of "In case I need it for self defence" holds no water. Carrying a weapon can justifiably be assumed to be nefarious.

As a country where it's legal to carry guns, blades etc., USA has a more complex attitude.

All I know is the incidence of shootings and stabbings here is a tiny fraction of that in the US of A.

Enjoy

Nobby you've hit on an interesting point. The social norms are quite different here than they are over on your side of the rock. I do believe you have less incidents of stabbings/shootings, but you also has to look at it per capita. I know that the last time I looked was for a report I was doing for a criminal justice class about 4 years ago. Per capita, The United Kingdom wasn't far behind us good ole violent Americans. I think being a society able to carry weapons might have some impact, but not that much of a difference. I'm running short of time with two papers and two projects coming due this week, but I'll try to look up the other article as well as find some of my sources for when I did the project.

After having seen that youtube clip of the Baltimore cop, I'm not so sure...

When someone gets shot in UK it's news.

True, but its still tiny. What Nobby said is right, though. Even the police don't carry a proper weapon. And yet, we've had between 0 and 1 police officer getting killed in action a year, in the whole of the UK, for the last 10 years or so. I'd rather only a tiny handful were armed, rather than a majority.

Seriously, you should see most town high streets on a Saturday night. Add guns in there, and its Shawn of the Dead without the zombies.

They all have a rifle at home, as part of their military service. Basically, all civilians in Switzerland are "potential soldiers". But they don't carry them around.



Boringly ok.

I would hope that the guy with the gun proceeded to pistol-whip the ******* who got in his face.