Finland's prime minister called for stricter gun laws

[308Mike]

Linkarooni - So, in America, gun control has its roots in racism, and apparently in Finland, it looks like it's going to be based on sexism. Obviously the elected idiots think women can't defend themselves and need to laws against objects to protect them.

Just more idiocy.

Police: Finland shooter's victims are mostly women

By Marius Turula
ASSOCIATED PRESS

6:17 a.m. September 24, 2008

KAUHAJOKI, Finland – Finland's prime minister called for stricter gun laws Wednesday as investigators revealed that the 22-year-old gunman's attack hit women especially hard, killing eight female students and leaving another with a gunshot wound to the head.

The slaughter that killed 10 people and the shooter Tuesday was Finland's second deadly school shooting in less than a year.

Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen said it was time to consider restricting access to guns in a country with more than 1.6 million firearms in private hands.

“We need to study if people should get access to handguns so freely,” Vanhanen told reporters in Kauhajoki, 180 miles (290 kilometers) northwest of Helsinki. “I'm very, very critical about the guns and during next few months we will make a decision about it.”

Interior Minister Anne Holmlund said the government was working on a proposal to restrict gun laws by giving police greater powers to examine applicants' health records.

More..............

[Erik]

The papers keep talking about the "lax gun laws" in Finland. It's a sham. They are more or less identical with the laws in Sweden, including the requirement for 6 months membership in a gun club and shooting tests to be able to get a license. It also requires a backgroundcheck by the police, the person must be known as a law abiding and dependable person.
There is nothing in the Swedish laws that would have stopped this guy from doing the exact same thing in Sweden, the exact same way.
The differences between Finland and Sweden is mostly academic, slight differences. And the argument "too many guns" is just stupid, this guy got his own license, and he passed every test and law on the way to get it.

On one of the Swedish forums, there's a guy from Finland that's been quoting the Finnish laws and noting where the media is wrong about them.

As for the sexism angle, it's just a way to play public opinon. Equality and feminism is big in this part of the world, and this is just a way to try to play to the media and maybe get some public opinion to help him add some more laws.
Or at least to show how concerned he is and that he really is going to do something about this, and wait a few months before they do some small change.

[tcourtplayer]

SOOOOooooo....let's see here. Lets call the average man 5'10"-6'0" 190-220lbs. Lets call the average women maybe 5'4"-5'6" 120-140lbs. So they are saying that they are doing women a favor by taking away a tool to use in defense and instead are forced to use brute force against what on average would be a greatly physically stronger opponent? Yeah, you all keep thinking you are "looking out for women." While you are doing that I'm gonna keep training all the females in my life who want to learn, how to shoot and shoot well under pressure.

[Aaron]

SOOOOooooo....let's see here. Lets call the average man 5'10"-6'0" 190-220lbs. Lets call the average women maybe 5'4"-5'6" 120-140lbs. So they are saying that they are doing women a favor by taking away a tool to use in defense and instead are forced to use brute force against what on average would be a greatly physically stronger opponent? Yeah, you all keep thinking you are "looking out for women." While you are doing that I'm gonna keep training all the females in my life who want to learn, how to shoot and shoot well under pressure.

Agreed. I hate this crap.

"God created men and women, Samuel Colt made them equal."

[mekender]

we already know that gun laws do not stop these kinds of incidents...

[Erik]

And to make the point:

link (in swedish)
Tonight, the police in the Swedish town of Köping searched three addresses. Guns were taken, and three men were taken in for questioning.
Two of the men, a 37 year old and a 42 year old were later released but are still under investigation. A 16 year old was arrested for 'violation of the weapon laws', and 'public endangerment'.

Two of the men, the 16 year old being one of them, is in a movie on YouTube. In it, he makes statements that led to his arrest.

The weapons taken was "powerful enough to require a license". Not known right now how many or what kind

[308Mike]

The weapons taken was "powerful enough to require a license". Not known right now how many or what kind

That doesn't say much, after all, what qualifies as "powerful enough to require a license"?

[Erik]

Anything from an airgun more powerful than 10 Joule and up. I think that's where the license requirements start.

Speculation in a forum I checked is that it's probably soft airguns or something, since it was described the way it was.

[308Mike]

And the media probably gets all hyped-up about those air guns because their pellets "are powerful enough to break the skin!"

But what's even more frightening is how many seemingly intelligent people believe and buy into their fear-mongering without question, and are intellectually lazy when it comes to thinking about restricting access to inanimate objects.

[mekender]

http://www.alphecca.com/?p=953

Minister of the Interior Anne Holmlund (Nat. Coalition Party) Also said that the government will look at the possible need to tighten the law.
Interviewed on television news on Tuesday evening, both ministers indicated that changes might be made in the availability of handguns. Vanhanen said on a television news broadcast of the Finnish Broadcasting Company (YLE) that a total ban on private use of easily-concealed handguns should be considered.

sounds like what happened here in the US