Quote:
Originally Posted by
samuel 
| If you go to wikipedia you will find they have very strict gun laws. sam. |
Sam, they aren't America, but they really aren't that strict (particularly compared to the rest of Europe).
Let's look at their rules:
Firearms can only be obtained with an acquisition license, which can be applied for at the local police for €32. A separate license is required for each individual firearm. Okay; here in California every gun I buy costs me $25.00 for a background check and fees. It might as well be a license, because I have to pay it for every gun I buy.
Here in the U.S., some of the states also make you get written permission from the local Sheriff for each and every handgun you want to buy.
They're supposed to keep the guns locked up, and if they have an especially dangerous one, or more than five, they have to be in a safe. Well, that's not a bad idea as a general rule, especially in a country where they probably don't even know what the phrase, "home invasion crime" even means. And I doubt they make midnight checks to make sure your nightstand drawer is locked, anyway.
Guns may be carried only when they are transported from their place of storage to the place of use That's the law in a lot of states here too, unless you have a CCW. A few states don't allow CCW period, and in states where it's county-by-county a lot of people can't get one anyway, unless they're rich and famous or a politician.
They have to give a reason for owning a gun when they buy one. Big deal. "Acceptable reasons include: hunting, sports or hobby, profession related, show or promotion or exhibition, collection or museum, souvenir, and signalling." If someone can't come up with one of those reasons, he's too stupid to own a gun anyway...
A license for a pistol or a rifle is relatively easy to obtain, requiring only an (often nominal) membership to a marksmanship association, although the police usually require that the first gun is suitable for a beginner (usually a gun chambered in .22LR). That doesn't sound so horrible to me; I had to show I was a member of the NRA to get my shooting range membership, and it's not a bad idea for beginners to start with beginner's weapons.
The firearms certificate may be canceled if a person has committed a violent, gun-related, or drug-related crime or has broken certificate rules. Physical and mental problems or reckless behavior are solid grounds for canceling the certificate? Well, in the U.S. you can't own a gun if you've been convicted of a felony or a slew of other crimes, including misdemeanor domestic violence. And you can be prevented from buying them for mental reasons, too.
I'm not saying Finland has the gun laws I would want; as a matter of fact they're too close to what California has now. But it seems to me that almost any Finn who wants a gun can legally get one, including handguns, and that's more than you can say for most of the world. H***, that's more than you can say for some of the cities in
this country.
