UK gun laws: Slippery slope, what slippery slope?

[pipmaster1971]

Oh, and if you can't tell I was been sarcastic in the title [sad2]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7056245.stm

 

[Admin]

More recently, in response to a series of high-profile shootings, the Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006 was introduced.


This made it an offence to manufacture, import or sell realistic imitation guns; doubled the maximum sentence for carrying an imitation gun to 12 months, and made it a crime to fire an air weapon beyond the boundary of any premises. It also increased the age limit for buying or possessing an air weapon from 17 to 18

Pretty progressive I must say.

 

[MarkM]

Mark Murray-Flutter, curator of firearms at the Royal Armouries in Leeds, says: "UK governments have always feared their own people, especially the working classes, and the thought of them having firearms with which to confront their own forces of law and order was always a driving factor in the controls of weapons.

Hitler felt the same way.

 

[MarkM]

Pretty progressive I must say.

I had some great replica (blank firing) handguns when I was growing up. They are all illegal now [sad2]

 

[Lugnut]

That's damn scary! I've always been concerned and still am.

 

[pipmaster1971]

Well that's how it could happen here. First ban something that's expensive and no one owns (think full-autos). Then ban something that appears dangerous and is rare (think 50 BMG). Then ban things that look like any of the previous (see assault weapons ban). Then ban certain characteristics of what's left (capacity restrictions etc). Then regulate what's left after all that to ensure only the wealthy can buy anything (licenses, taxes).

Unfortunately it happens so slowly, and initially effects a small portion of the population no one really notices. Until it's too late.

Next time you go shooting take a newbee with you!!!

 

[Lugnut]

OK- I think I know the answer to this but what did they do with all the hand guns in existance after the Firearms (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 1997?

 

[pipmaster1971]

OK- I think I know the answer to this but what did they do with all the hand guns in existance after the Firearms (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 1997?

Chopped them up, and melted them down. By the time that act had come along though there were only about 70K handgun owners. I had a friend (potential Olympic shooting material) who took his guns to the continent so he could practice. Of course, this became prohibitively expensive so he had to give it up.