Britain: Stopping gun crime

Britain: Stopping gun crime
Date: Feb 17, 2006 11:35 AM
PUBLICATION: The Daily Telegraph
DATE: 2006.02.17
PAGE: 02
SECTION: Features
NOTE: Letter to the Editor
WORD COUNT: 156

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Stopping gun crime

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SIR - It may seem almost sacrilegious to say, but, in cases where
violence involving guns has occurred, the source of the gun is
irrelevant. As Kevin Fiske (Letters, February 15) comments, readiness to
commit acts of violence is the problem, not the weapon itself.

Shootings in Nottingham have involved sub-machine guns. These guns have
been prohibited since about 1936, but that does not stop criminals
obtaining and using them. If we are to curb the violence that appears to
be overtaking us, we must first investigate its causes.

In the meantime, as we cannot prevent criminals from getting hold of
firearms, we must make it not worth their while to do so. That means we
must impose serious penalties on those who commit acts of violence,
especially if they use, or carry, weapons for criminal purposes.

Richard V. Malbon
Director, Sportsman's Association of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Preston, Lancs