From: Paul Bradley <paul@fatmans.demon.co.uk>
Date: Mon, 5 May 1997 20:43:16 +0800
To: ichudov@algebra.com
Subject: Re: Rape, death and XS4ALL
In-Reply-To: <199705041925.OAA30688@manifold.algebra.com>
Message-ID: <Pine.LNX.3.91.970505102129.509B-100000@fatmans.demon.co.uk>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain




> > > A ban on all handguns even when registered (currently all pistols above 
> > > .22 are banned and all guns have to be registered in a process whereby if 
> > > the applicant for a certificate has any history of political dissention 
> > > or crime (eg. Smoking a joint, the ultimate sin against society) the 
> > > certificate will be refused.
> 
> What would be an example of such political dissention?

Well, I`m pretty sure that, having recently been involved in campaigns 
against the ban on handguns, written to a number of people in positions 
of power over the proposed TTP scheme in the DTI white paper etc. my 
firearms licence will not be renewed the next time it comes up for review.
The powers that be now presumably see me as a loon.

A damning enditement on the British people is that last time I mentioned 
to someone my having written to the home office and others over the 
proposed gun ban I was called a lunatic and told "The sort of person who 
writes to the home office over something like that is the least suitable 
to have a gun".

I can assure you this is not a one-off, this happens every time people who 
don`t shoot find out I do. They have been brainwashed by the 
tabloid press, for example, the daily mail ran a particularly vitriolic 
hate campaign against gun owners singling out Albie Fox, leader of the 
campaign against the ban, and calling him a "Gun obsessed lunatic".
This, recall, is the same daily mail which rants every day about the 
"evil of drugs" and how the only way to "save society" is to throw 
everyone who doesn`t support their particular brand of bigoted fanaticism 
into jail for the rest of their life.

And of course, one would imagine that those who actually owned guns and 
used them for sport themselves would be the most informed people who 
would realise that the criminal use of guns is at the opposite end of the 
scale to the sporting use allowed in British law. However, I know several 
people who have said "I`m happy to give up my guns if it will save 
lives", to this I simply reply "who were you going to kill?" then walk 
away, these people don`t even deserve correcting as their bullshit is so 
deep.

In addition, when the police revoke or refuse to renew a firearms 
certificate, they do not need to give a reason, so one cannot even prove 
that it was because of speech or opinions they didn`t like that they 
revoked the certificate. Even if you could, it is unlikely a challenge in 
court would succeed, the UK does not have the same free speech guarantees 
as are given in the US and elsewhere, and any court challenge would fail, 
of that I am sure.

Also, to worsen the situation, the labour party has now come to power and 
as I have already explained in a previous post this make matters even worse.