Fighting Crime the 11th Century Way....

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Tighter gun ownership laws are pushing South Africans to buy crossbows, spears, swords, knives and pepper sprays to protect themselves from violent crime.

"We've had to build an entirely new shop because the demand from people is so great," Justin Willmers, owner of Durban Guns and Ammo, told Reuters. "It can be anything from a Zulu fighting spear, battle axes, swords, crossbows."

New gun controls came into force last year under South Africa's Firearms Control Act, but some weapons shop owners say high crime rates are pushing law abiding citizens to look for alternative means of defending themselves.

Despite official figures showing the murder rate falling 10 percent in the year to March 2004, South Africa's Arms and Ammunition Dealers Association says individuals face a one in 60 chance of being the victim of a violent crime in any given year.

Many houses are surrounded by razor wire and electric fences, but with police turning down 80 percent of firearms license requests after an 18-month application process, Association spokesman Alex Holmes said people were forced to look at other options.

"It's not really a matter of choice," Holmes said. "Licensed firearms are not used in crime at any great rate."

Estimates of the number of illegal firearms in South Africa vary between 1 and 4 million, he said, but the real problem is from some 30-40,000 hardcore criminals using a small number of illegal guns.

SILENT CROSSBOW

South Africa began a firearms amnesty on Jan. 1 that to date has netted some 13,000 weapons, officials told Reuters, but critics say most of the weapons handed in are old and would never have been used for crime.

story.news.yahoo.com.../nm/20050317/od_nm/crime_safrica_crossbows_dc

This article is offered without specific comment by the originator. Any pertinent or factual reality based information presented by the originator may be deemed “offensive” to some members of this forum. Such action would be a violation of the San Angeles “verbal Miranda act” according to the “Magi” that control this website. Please offer any comment no matter how obscure or fact less as such information will immediately be found “brilliant” and your personal self esteem shall be stoked accordingly by the “Maji”.

If you're not going to comment on the story you've posted, why bother posting it in the first place?

Originally posted by DrHoracid
This article is offered without specific comment by the originator. Any pertinent or factual reality based information presented by the originator may be deemed “offensive” to some members of this forum. Such action would be a violation of the San Angeles “verbal Miranda act” according to the “Magi” that control this website. Please offer any comment no matter how obscure or fact less as such information will immediately be found “brilliant” and your personal self esteem shall be stoked accordingly by the “Maji”.

You know- this really has to be one of the most childish things i have seen on this board. I'm kicking myself right now for even replying to this and giving you points, but come on! You're not helping matters by patrinizing those who don't agree with you- you're helping to make the polarization WORSE.





[edit on 18-3-2005 by negativenihil]