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From: tac@teldata.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.flame
Subject: A gun control question
Message-ID: <459@teldata.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 27-Jul-84 12:10:56 EDT
Article-I.D.: teldata.459
Posted: Fri Jul 27 12:10:56 1984
Date-Received: Sun, 29-Jul-84 00:57:58 EDT
References: <36200142@uiucdcs.UUCP>
Organization: Teltone Corp., Kirkland, WA
Lines: 74

, (sop to the blank line eaters--consider it a religious sacrifice)

I suppose that I shouldn't even try to talk reason in net.flame, but
here goes anyway.

>>  A first comment regarding this week's news: as far as I can see,
>>  the McDonald's massacre got less coverage in the press than the
>>  Miss America fiasco. Hmm...

Sex has beaten violence in our news for some time.
>>  
>>  Regarding the shooting, I ask the gun control dissenters, why it is
>>  that RANDOM murders take place almost only in this country?

I don't suppose that you would care to back this up with some statistics?

>>                                                              If it is NOT
>>  because of the fact that the US has far looser guns controls than
>>  say, Western Europe, Canada etc., why is it? 

There is a good chance that there are more guns per capita in the US than
anywhere else in the world.  This would be caused by three things--the 
first is that we have always allowed the citizens to carry guns, the 
second is that we were still an expanding country (i.e. fighting the
wilderness) when guns were developing--the older countries did not
have the need to have a large share of the population armed, the third
is our relative affluence--more of us can afford guns (and many
other toys) that the poorer populations of the world cannot.  For this
reason, it would be reasonable to assume that guns are used to commit
a larger share of our crimes.

>>                                                Do you wish to claim
>>  that such senseless slayings would take place even if there were the 
>>  strictest of gun control?
Yes.
>>                            If so, then we need to start a discussion
>>  about the differences in our society and those where such murders don't
>>  take place. 

We are not affraid of our government, as is most of the world.  I still
don't agree that most of the world doesn't have these same murders.  In
many areas it is just the government who does them.  The psychotics who
perform many of these feats are at home in an army or KGB which frequently
allows them an outlet for their passions.  In our society we have tried
not to make a home for them.
>>  
>>                                      S. Krolikoski
>>                                      u of illinois at U-C
>>                                      ...!pur-ee!uiucdcs!stank
>>  
>>  If not the difference in gun control, why the difference in the crime
>>  statistics in the NY Times and the London Times?
>>  
Here, I will side with you completely.  In London they do not have firearms
in the hands of the people, so we read in the London Times about bombings
on a regular basis.  When the cavalry was bombed, not too long ago, one of
the fellows here at Teltone was over there on business.  While drinking in
a pub one PM there was a loud BOOM, the building shook, people outside were
screeming.  The man next to him at the bar said, "Oh, damn, another bloody
bomb.  I'll have another."  This last was to the bartender.  They have
become so used to bombs going off that it only effects them when it hurts
them directly.  Thank you, I'll keep the occasional crazy who gets more
than his direct target and you can keep the ones who always kill more than
their target!

>From the Bomb Fearing Soapbox of
Tom Condon     {...!uw-beaver!teltone!teldata!tac}

A Bombing A Day Keeps The Civilization Away.

DISCLAIMER:  The opinions expressed herein are those of everyone who
  matters, but not necessarily anyone you know, and most certainly not
  my employers!