How do the Irish view the USA’s gun culture?

I’m getting a lot of ridiculous comments from gun-lovers defending US gun culture.

1. The question asks about Irish people’s thoughts on the US gun culture.
2. I gave the Irish opinion of US gun culture.
3. I don’t give a flying f*** what Americans think of their gun culture, and it’s irrelevant to my answer.

Some of these same challenged individuals are bringing up a load of crap about the UK, mostly alt-right bollocks.

1. The question asks about IRISH PEOPLE’s thoughts on the US gun culture.
2. I gave the IRISH opinion of US gun culture.
3. I don’t give a flying f*** what Americans think of THE UK, and it’s irrelevant to my answer.

ANY FURTHER COMMENTING ON EITHER OF THESE DEFLECTIONS WILL BE DELETED, AND/OR REPORTED.

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We think you’re crazy because we used to have gun problems too. You might have heard of the Troubles? Or the earlier Troubles?

As I drop my son to school every morning, I see one of my neighbours out for a walk. To call it ‘walking’ is charitable. He leans heavily on a walking stick with the one arm – his left – that still works, and drags one twisted, useless leg along behind him. It’s a flailing, hopping mockery of walking. His face is a rictus of agony, not because he’s necessarily in agony – it’s just how his face was left after terrorists gunned him down in the street. He was one of the first casualties of terrorism back in 1969.

We can see every day the misery and suffering caused by a few people with guns. We can’t believe you can’t see it too. The only conclusion we can come to is that your 2nd Amendmentists are crazy.

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Where in Europe can I own a gun?

This is completely off the top of my head because I can’t be bothered to go and look up the rules of every European country (if there’s even a definitive list of European countries, with the likes of Turkey wanting to join the EU), but I think I’d be correct in saying…

ALL OF THEM.

Surprised, aren’t you?

In fact, there’s at least one country – Switzerland – where every adult male is expected to own a weapon. Or perhaps legally required to do so – not sure.

But but but liberal socialist commie-loving snowflakes gibber gibber flail…

Yeah. Any European can have a gun. Sorry, rednecks.

The difference is, in Europe, there’s a number of hoops you need to jump through to get and keep a gun permit. They vary from place to place, but they’re usually there to stop criminals and random nutters getting a weapon legally and using it for criminal purposes. They’re also there to prevent people building up an arsenal (why would you want to do that, unless for criminal purposes?), or owning weapons that are ridiculously out of proportion to any perceivable threat (why would anyone want an assault rifle or grenade launcher, if not for criminal and/or terrorist purposes?).

Gun laws don’t mean “no guns”. They just mean it’s a lot harder for criminals and terrorists to get guns – legally in their own right, and by stealing law-abiding Joe Public’s guns.

What is the best self-defence weapon in the UK?

Your brain.

The criminal class is not usually terribly bright.

I was attacked and abducted by a serial rapist on a canal towpath frequented by the local police college as a running track, at 10 am.

I quickly realised I couldn’t fight him off, and that he would kill me if he got me out of public sight; but I kept my head and watched for an opportunity. Along came a canal-boat, and I twisted out under his arm and leaped into the middle of the canal.

The nice people on the boat fished me out and called the police. Their son tried chasing my attacker, but he’d skipped out one of the exits and disappeared.

He was caught within days, and is still in prison. He did get out on parole a few years ago, but absconded from his halfway house, so he’s serving out the full sentence, plus some extra for absconding. He also has some additional time to serve for attacks on prison staff. The police liaison officers say he’s likely to spend the rest of his life in prison.