The Black Hills Wild Horse Sanctuary

[LONDONER]

Something out of America that does not involve shooting or guns or anything, something very positive for a change:

[Virge]

The BH Wild Horse Sanctuary is about 90 minutes south of where I live. They are one more of the great things to see and do up here.

Londoner, it's not just what you said but what most Brits say.... It's like you guys have the impression we walk around with guns looking for someone to shoot. It's not that way at all.

[LONDONER]

Londoner, it's not just what you said but what most Brits say.... It's like you guys have the impression we walk around with guns looking for someone to shoot. It's not that way at all.

It was an attempt to give a different point of view from all the horror stories that we read about or see reported on the news. Yes, I do know that you aren't all gun slingers 24/7.

[LJay]

In fact, Londoner. You are saying the same thing that Virge is. It is not all violence in the US, though if you read the news a lot it certainly seems like it. I must constantly remind myself that the local news is often garnered from the easy to grab police reports and that is much cheaper for the news stations to use than real reporting. Being depressed and somewhat paranoid, I dream of living in a tranquil small town or to be properly installed in the backwoods, with butler and internet, of course. I am sure that I have a lot of company.

[Virge]

Technically, [MENTION=18457]LONDONER[/MENTION], by European standards, I would be a "gunslinger." I own several. After I got out of the marines my 1st job was with law enforcement busting drug houses and labs wearing body armor. I'm still a reserve officer and can be called up for emergencies. I can guarantee you the guy in the video about the horse sanctuary is licensed to carry a gun and most likely had one in his truck. Down where he lives at the south end of the Black Hills he wasn't kidding when he said there are cougars, bears, coyotes and rattlesnakes to deal with. Where he lives it can take easily over an hour for law enforcement to respond to an emergency call if someone were to break into his house or attempt to rob him.

The big distinction that gets lost in the news reports is that 87% to 92% of crimes in the US involving guns are committed with illegally possessed guns. Then... of all the people in the US shot or killed by guns less than a third are "innocent" victims. The rest are people involved in criminal acts ending up getting shot by other criminals who are illegally in possession of firearms.

I guess I'm defensive about it because in other forums I'm always reading comments from other people from the UK with delusions that people in the US walk around everywhere with guns on their hips. It's just not that way in reality.

One reason I keep guns at home is during the summer months when I'm running the B&B it's not unusual for me (not including the lodgers) to end up with as much as $3,000 in just business cash in the house, not counting the money of the lodgers. Most of my tourist/lodgers carry large amounts of cash. A few of them have been robbed while away from the B&B. I'm only 300 yards from our "small" town's police station where one officer works the 3rd shift and can take close to half an hour to respond to a call considering the wide area of police jurisdiction around our town. If I need to make a call about a robber breaking in here I want to make sure I can tell them to bring a body bag for him, not me or a guest -- and not to rush because he's not going anywhere. Leaving other options up to the criminal could be hazardous to my life and the lives of my guests.

As for the horse sanctuary -- I'm glad you posted the video. It was a good reminder, The sanctuary isn't far out of the way when we go swimming at Hot Springs again. It would a fun thing to do before heading home. I haven't been down there since I was a teen.

[LONDONER]

Thanks Virge. I hope you understand my point of view also where in the UK it is definitely not the norm to carry a gun and the vast majority of police are unarmed. Just as in the States, the few killings that we have that involve guns, are also usually unlicenced weapons. I don't like guns and would never own one. Accidents happen, such as the two year old who shot his mother in Walmart a week or so ago.

[Virge]

Funny you'd mention a couple of things....

"crimes with unlicensed guns "... are there any licensed handguns left in the UK? Didn't they take them all up about a decade ago?

"unarmed policemen" I just heard this... of the first nine gendarmes to respond to today's act of Islamic terrorism in Paris only one had a gun. I won't go any further with that subject.

[LONDONER]

Funny you'd mention a couple of things....

"crimes with unlicensed guns "... are there any licensed handguns left in the UK? Didn't they take them all up about a decade ago?

"unarmed policemen" I just heard this... of the first nine gendarmes to respond to today's act of Islamic terrorism in Paris only one had a gun. I won't go any further with that subject.

If there are unlicenced guns in the UK they have been obtained illegaly.

On the whole we don't have as many gun killings in Europe as you do have in the States and that's why the majority of police are not armed.

[Virge]

If there are unlicenced guns in the UK they have been obtained illegally.

I asked about legally owned guns in the UK. It's my understanding that there are none anymore but that there's a move to make them legal once more.

On the whole we don't have as many gun killings in Europe as you do have in the States and that's why the majority of police are not armed.

That's the simplified explanation to the general public for mass consumption and it's partially true.

The part no one really wants to hear about is that nowhere on earth is the top priority of police protecting the public. The primary goals of police are
#1 . to maintain order...
#2 . raise revenues....
#3 apprehend criminals (<<has nothing to do with protecting anyone and everything to do with #1 and #2 above.)

If you want to figure out which is the real top priority read about what police in NYC are doing in response to their mayor's words and actions. They're cutting off city revenues that approach a billion dollars annually.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/06/nyregi....html?_r=0