So simple
From Canada comes these words of wisdom.
Why a concept so basic and so simple as an outright ban on firearms hasn’t been worked out by any country is beyond my comprehension. I completely agree with Kevin Duffy (letter — Oct. 4) that such a ban should be in the works for all civilized nations.
Perhaps we could take the lead on this crucial matter and reclaim our position as one of the best and most civilized countries in the world.
Before we rightly mock this, I have a question. What country has been the most disarmed? Being disarmed due to foriegn occupation does not count.
October 6th, 2006 at 4:21 pm
I would say Japan
October 6th, 2006 at 5:55 pm
Since Japan has always had a tradition of keeping the peasants unarmed, I believe the correct answer would be the UK, which includes Scotland, England and Wales.
See which three top the UN’s list of most violent countries in the developed world :
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-1786945,00.html
October 7th, 2006 at 12:09 am
I’ll go with Russia
October 8th, 2006 at 12:17 am
I’d go with the Frogs.
October 8th, 2006 at 12:47 am
UK , all the rest have never had guns in the first place.
October 8th, 2006 at 9:00 am
Let’s look at it the other way. The most armed may be Switzerland, where, I believe, each home (or maybe it’s homeowner) is required to own a firearm. Veterans of the Swiss military keep their rifles for home use.
Is Switzerland the most violent country in the world? I don’t have statistics, but doubt they’d make the top 25.
October 8th, 2006 at 4:14 pm
The problem for me in the Swiss model, is that every one of those firearms are registered. That is nothing short of telling the gov where to go to seize them if they decide to one day.
October 8th, 2006 at 4:32 pm
I would vote for Russia off the top of my head. A country swimming in weapons, and none of them owned by the People.
October 9th, 2006 at 8:54 am
The Frogs? One would think, HOWEVER, their gun laws are most similar to ours than about any other country in Europe. In France, you can buy a rifle or shotgun from a gun store with an official government ID. I think handguns are a little more restricted, BUT you can get them.
Notice that France’s violent crime rate is much lower than Englands.
I think a better question is to ask NOT what country is the most disarmed but what country has best disarmed criminals. Isn’t that what people should really be concerned about? 🙂
October 11th, 2006 at 6:56 pm
The most disarmed nation in history was Carthage. Forget disarming the population, they were slaughtered, dispersed, enslaved. When the fighting was over, the ground was sown with salt so that nothing would grow where the demolished city had been. Even the Mongols didn’t quite go that far.