GUN-BANNED SCOTLAND THE MOST VIOLENT COUNTRY?

The report below originated from the United Nations so whatever it says the opposite could be true. But I am inclined to think that there is a lot of truth in it. About half of the Scots live in Glasgow and its environs, which has long had a large population living on welfare. And the Glasgow "Jimmies" have for many years carried knives -- and used them to fight with one-another in brawls -- usually drunken. And you don't need to know much about Scottish history to know that the Scots have always been great fighters. To this day there are considerably more Scots in the British army than you would expect on a per head basis. They are a pugnacious lot on the whole, but sentimental too!

And I say that as someone who has a great affection for Scotland and some background in studying the Scots.

And you will note that the report specifically states that knives, not guns, are the problem. So Glasgow is a very good example of where banning guns has done no good at all. It is the culture and the individual that leads to violence, not guns.

"A United Nations report has labelled Scotland the most violent country in the developed world, with people three times more likely to be assaulted than in America. England and Wales recorded the second highest number of violent assaults while Northern Ireland recorded the fewest. The study, based on telephone interviews with victims of crime in 21 countries, found that more than 2,000 Scots were attacked every week, almost ten times the official police figures. They include non-sexual crimes of violence and serious assaults. Violent crime has doubled in Scotland over the past 20 years and levels, per head of population, are now comparable with cities such as Rio de Janeiro, Johannesburg and Tbilisi.

The attacks have been fuelled by a �booze and blades� culture in the west of Scotland [a polite way of saying Glasgow] which has claimed more than 160 lives over the past five years. Since January there have been 13 murders, 145 attempted murders and 1,100 serious assaults involving knives in the west of Scotland. The problem is made worse by sectarian violence, with hospitals reporting higher admissions following Old Firm [football] matches.

David Ritchie, an accident and emergency consultant at Glasgow�s Victoria Infirmary, said that the figures were a national disgrace. �I am embarrassed as a Scot that we are seeing this level of violence. Politicians must do something about this problem. This is a serious public health issue. Violence is a cancer in this part of the world,� he said.

Detective Chief Superintendent John Carnochan, head of the Strathclyde Police�s violence reduction unit, said the problem was chronic and restricting access to drink and limiting the sale of knives would at least reduce the problem.

The study, by the UN�s crime research institute, found that 3 per cent of Scots had been victims of assault compared with 1.2 per cent in America and just 0.1 per cent in Japan, 0.2 per cent in Italy and 0.8 per cent in Austria. In England and Wales the figure was 2.8 per cent. Scotland was eighth for total crime, 13th for property crime, 12th for robbery and 14th for sexual assault. New Zealand had the most property crimes and sexual assaults, while Poland had the most robberies.

Chief Constable Peter Wilson, president of the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland, questioned the figures. �It must be near impossible to compare assault figures from one country to the next based on phone calls,� he said. �We have been doing extensive research into violent crime in Scotland for some years now and this has shown that in the vast majority of cases, victims of violent crime are known to each other. We do accept, however, that, despite your chances of being a victim of assault being low in Scotland, a problem does exist.�"

Source





Colorado: Weld County shooting under investigation: "Weld County Sheriff's deputies are investigating the shooting of a 19-year-old man wounded as he allegedly broke into a neighbor's home. The shooting occurred in a home in the 2100 block of Meadowlark in the Meadow Vale subdivision near Weld County Road 5 and Highway 119 near Longmont, according to a press release issued by Weld County Sheriff John Cooke. The sheriff's office did not identify home owner or the wounded man, Nathan Weathers. Weathers was shot with a 9 mm handgun, according to the sheriff's office. He is being treated at Longmont United Hospital. Cooke's press release noted that the shooting may fall under Colorado's "Make My Day Law," which allows a home owner who feels threatened by an intruder to shoot the suspect."



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