14 September, 2005

Guns

After the Harvey Nichols shooting . It made me think about just how easy is it to buy a gun and me being me I went to my old haunts in the west end last night. After a few pints in a pub. I saw a few of the old faces and after chatting and reminiscing. I asked how easy is it to buy a gun? What I got was a surprise, for one hundred and fifty pounds I could buy a gun that someone
actually had on them. When I asked why he had the gun? He said he was more likely to be shot because of the business he was in. So he had to have some sort of protection. Which I didn't really understand because if you get shot you have a ninety nine per cent chance of ending up dead and if you have a gun you are more likely to shoot first especially if you are afraid for your life and that is where I saw the problem of some of these so called modern gangsters if they were not in illegal businesses then they wouldn't need guns.
I then went to the east end to where I was born and the Krays ran amok thinking was this area the same as it was when I was there. I went in to a pub on the mile end road which I knew to be a hang out for drugs dealers and people that fenced stolen goods, because of the things I used to do to buy my drugs in my old life. I had frequented pubs in this area before. I was known to some of the regulars after convincing them I didn't do drugs anymore and after chatting for a while. I asked who if anyone could buy a gun? At first I was told to mind my own f---ing business. Then after telling them about my blog and telling them that I would not phone the police. I was told there was no problem in getting a gun. I could be gotten one within twenty minutes for a ton (�100). Not that I put it to the test but the funny thing is because I knew the people I was talking to. I knew it to be the truth. So you see getting a gun is quite easy. We need to do something about it this as we do have a gun culture growing at a rapid rate in this country. We need not only to charge the people who murder with murder but where can, we need to be able to charge people selling guns with accessory to murder as well. Because if you sell illegal guns you know its going to kill, even if you don't pull the trigger. We need to be much more forceful in our dealing with people that have guns. A four year jail sentence is not a deterrent and having one for protection is not an excuse as a vicar in Manchester said and he only got four months and there's me thinking that religion preaches non violence. When are we going to learn that guns can kill? I know what people say, it's the person that pulls the trigger that's the killer but if we can rid ourselves of guns on the street then there will be less chance of someone being able to pull the bloody trigger. It really is that simple and to give long term jail sentences for
possession of firearms can be made into a real deterrent

1 comment:

womble said...

You speak so much sense, Jamie.