Wednesday, March 11, 2009

The Stuttgart Shooting

There were 15 folks killed today by a 17-year old kid in Stuttgart....the majority at the Realschule....mostly kids 14 and 15 years old. The cops eventually got to the kid. Reason? None given yet.

The chat tonight over the state-run networks goes over gun-control and the likely next step.

For those who aren't familiar with the German method of gun-control....its kinda simple. You want any weapon? You register for a class in your local town....run by the gun club. You must be eighteen and with no major criminal record. You come in for 90 minutes a week, for about four months, and then you get tested. Along this class episode....you take a first-aid class, learn to take weapons apart, maintain weapons, and fire an assortment of guns. There's a test at the end....if you pass....you get a certificate.

With this certificate, you go to the local town hall and get registered. You agree to play by the rules. You can buy weapons now. But with this responsibility.....you are required to keep them locked in a steel type locker or special gun cabinet. The lock? Its specialized. Its a one-of-a-kind key for that lock. Neither the wife or kids can access to that gun locker. The key has to be on your person at all times. Neither the kids or wife can have a copy of the key. If someone suspects they have access....they can report you and you lose the weapons.

In this case at Stuttgart.....the kid got access to dad's gun locker. Strangly enough....in almost all of the past dozen shootings at schools....dad's locker has been accessed.

The general feeling now is that the government is about to change the rules. My guess? If you have a shotgun or single-round rifle.....you get to keep them in the house. If the weapon is automatic or semi-automatic.....you will turn the weapon over to the gun club and they will store it for you.

The number of adults in Germany who run around shooting people? That's the thing....few if any in a normal year. These school shootings all come up with kids who felt that they were treated wrong by the kids in the school and the teachers. They come back for revenge.

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