A joke, huh? When neither the Irish nor the Brits find it funny, you possibly picked the wrong joke to make. :dubious:
It wasn’t really supposed to be a funny joke, more of a snide one. As in, “you guys think your country is such a perfect little gun-free paradise - but you’ve got terrorist groups literally attacking each other with automatic rifles in the streets, so obviously somebody over there who wants guns is able to get them.”
I personally would not use a shotgun for deer hunting, regardless of whether it was loaded with solid slug or 00SG. Why is it a requirement that a shotgun be used in Ohio?
Well, it could be argued had gun ownership been at US levels in Northern Ireland during the Troubles that the situation might have deteriorated into a fully-fledged civil war, more fully involving the citizenry of not only Northern Ireland but the Republic and Great Britain too. Anyway, for the most part the Troubles ended a decade ago.
And of course somebody who wants guns can get them. Although restricted, they are legal in NI, GB and the ROI.
It wasn’t a “joke” of any kind.
You’re doing a great job of representing The Typical US Gun Owner!
Shotgun-only is generally mandated either because of population density, as seen in eastern Pennsylvania around Philadelphia, or because the terrain is very flat (Ohio) or both (Ohio). The idea is the reduced range of the shotgun compared to a high powered rifle should reduce problems with stray rounds.
Of course, you can legally get around the rule in many such places by using a rifled shotgun. These have a rifled bore and fire a sabot-encased slug. Range and accuracy are surprising. One hundred yard shots are routine with such rigs. This doesn’t apply, of course, if the stipulation is buckshot-only as opposed to shotgun-only.
Argent Towers:
“with a 99 pound woman and a 250 pound rapist, a handgun levels the playing field.”
Well the chances that you end up with a 250 pound rapist with a gun, does increase somewhat.
“Switzerland has the highest per capita gun ownership in the world - and the lowest crime rate.”
I cant really imagine Lars thinking that his gun is ‘badass’, but that stereotypes for you.
“you pretty much have to agree that the guns themselves don’t inherently cause crime.”
Well, they do tend to cause gun crime.
"Some people are content to depend on the police in case of a crime. My personal motto is - when seconds count, the police are only minutes away. Their job is to clean up the mess afterwards, not protect you. "
So you are some sort of vigilante ?
DrCube: you have to calm down man. I am not paranoid ( although I have been told that they ARE actually out to get me … ). Post 22 is the kitten punching line.
You must mean post #10. I thought it was a harmless and informative post, which contained similar details and views as have been expressed elsewhere on this thread.
My kitten punching quip was a response to ATowers insinuation that just because a society looks upon gun ownership, or special interest study such as Martini Enfields, as ‘not normal’ ( sorry Martin ) then "people there are so prejudiced ".
They arnt. They are the way they are. Just because it looks odd from ATs American viewpoint, that doesn’t mean it is.
As Argent Towers says: “It was a joke which seems to have been taken literally.” I dont really punch kittens any more.
It’s OK, I’m used to it. 
Although perhaps you could have used puppy-kicking instead? 
I love kitties, to the point where I can’t even shoot feral ones, no matter how much havoc they’re wreaking on a farm.
This sounds like one of those damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don’t questions; “When did you stop punching kittens?” 
Cite please? I just read the 2008 Ohio hunting regs located HERE It mentions specifically that rifles are a legal way to take game unless otherwise noted. I saw no distinction of semi auto vs. any other type of action either. Further checked the code citations for the Ohio Administrative Rules located HERE Again, no distinction is made regarding the action of a rifle, only that rifles are not allowed for certain hunts.
That is because Ohio, like Iowa has a dense enough population that the local DNR most likely would prefer to not have people hunting deer with rifles that can lob projectiles well over a mile if aimed incorrectly. A shotgun slug has nothing close to that type of range and as such is the preferred method of hunting in many states. Typically, the action of the gun (bolt vs. semi auto, etc.) is not the issue.
I sleep well knowing that my neighbors aren’t psychotic, they own guns, and we all hunt and shoot together when we have the time.
I also sleep well because I have a really good pillow and a nice quilt.
Saying that guns “cause gun crime” is like saying that hearts cause heart attacks or that lungs cause lung cancer. The gun is the vehicle through which the crime is carried out - but it’s absurd to argue that the gun, itself, “caused” anything. The gun is an inanimate object.
Your lung cancer analogy would be better by saying “cigarettes cause lung cancer”, since the victim is the lung here, whereas the victim in gun crime is not the gun itself. Cigarettes don’t cause lung cancer - they’re the vehicle through which the disease is carried out.
Perhaps “guns facilitate gun crime” would be a better all round.
All the media and all the political parties were in agreement that blanket bans were entirely acceptable. With the exception of those whose property rights were directly affected by it, no one else felt it was an unreasonable step to take. Indeed many felt that the bans didn’t go nearly far enough.
A small number of people tried to hide them from confiscation; they were detected and given exemplary punishments as a warning to anyone who might be tempted to imitate their example.
A pro-gun organisation recently sent me the following:
So while there is some low key lobbying going on, there is no evidence of change, or likelihood of it in the foreseeable future.
This is one of the most densely populated and urbanised countries in Europe, with no Frontier era, no hostile Indians, few quarry species, no dangerous game, and animals like wolves exterminated centuries ago. Guns have not played any significant part in building this society and were it not for the historical accident of the Second Amendment, a provision which few (I’m tempted to say none, but I’ll settle for few) emerging countries since 1788 have seen fit to incorporate into their constitutional arrangements, you would long ago have riding the same train as us.
Reference has been made earlier to Ireland. While Ireland made significant use of guns to win it’s ‘freedom’ from England, the experience didn’t give the Irish nation an enthusiasm for disseminating gun ownership as widely as possible. A bitter civil war, lost by a faction which refused to accept the result as final, made them keep all the English laws in operation coupled with some new ones and until very recently things were more restrictive than England, with no pistols, no rifles bigger than 6.5mm, and no reloading at all. Only the (seemingly permanent) end of the Troubles has prompted some limited change.
At least in the UK the presence of a gun turns it from a crime into a gun crime, which I believe is what the poster was trying to point out.
This is really worth repeating. We Europeans are often told that we don’t understand how vast the US is. Well I often feel that those in the US have no real concept of quite how densely populated some European countries are and apparently within the EU only the tiny island of Malta is more densely populated than England.
Cite: BBC NEWS | UK | England | England 'most crowded in Europe'
I’ve no idea where the UK comes as Scotland and Wales are quite different in terms of population density, especially far up north.
I’m sorry, you are correct. It is only Pennsylvania that prohibits semi-automatic rifles and pistols for hunting. Here
I’ve never heard of an AK that was not (at least) semi-automatic so you may use it to hunt some game in Ohio but you may not legally use it to hunt in Pennsylvania.
Good stuff. So “assault weapons” are not restricted, rather ALL semi auto rifles are. A strange limitation for sure, but I believe it is still illegal to hunt on Sundays in Pa isn’t it?
There is a pump action version of the AK. I just saw one at a local gunshow this weekend.
Wow. That is a profoundly stupid weapon.
And how does it work, anyway? Aren’t tube magazines combined with “pointy” bullets a recipe for disaster?
Autoloading rifles and pistols are illegal here in PA for hunting any game. Autoloading shotguns with appropriate shot loads and a magazine plugged to hold only three rounds can be used to hunt small game. You can hunt deer with a non-autoloading shotgun and slugs, but the shotgun can’t be an autoloader. There is no hunting of game animals i.e. those that have a hunting season on Sunday; but varmints i.e. those with no season can be shot any day of the week.
PA’s game laws have always been kind of stodgy and blue-nosed with respect to the weapons permitted. Compound bows didn’t become legal until the late 70’s. Muzzle loaders meant period-authentic flintlock rifles only until quite recently; and still does mean that in primitive weapons season. In-line muzzle loaders have their own season and became legal only in the last few years. Crossbows, likewise, were quite forbidden until very recently.
The no Sunday hunting has been attributed to both PA’s origins as a Quaker colony and to its former status as primarily an agricultural state; supposedly the ban on Sunday hunting was so that farmers wouldn’t be disturbed by hunters on their one day of rest. Take your pick which you want to believe.
All that said, licenses are cheap in PA and can be purchased from Wal-Mart, among many other places. The state maintains large tracts of property called State Game Lands all over PA where any licensed hunter can hunt whatever is in season for free. There is even limited hunting available within city and county parks at times.
I can see it in my head: a smoke-filled room, with a ceiling fan slowly turning overhead. Five shadowy figures dressed in suits are sitting around, conspiring.
“Alright…I’m gonna have to consult with the Zionists and the Freemasons before I can make any definitive statements, but I’m thinking we should use an M-16 on those deer.”
“No, we need something in a larger caliber. Let’s try a BAR.”
“BAR as in the hunting rifle, or the machine gun?”
“Either one’s fine. Just see that it’s done. Dismissed, gentlemen.”