What the fuck is the world coming to? I’m sure many of you will have seen over the last few days that an American company has released the pattern to a gun you can make in your own home. All you need to do this is a 3D printer. In a country that has an endemic gun problem apparently the best remedy is to provide access to more guns. Let me give you a comparison:
“Doctor! Doctor! I think I have an addiction to sex!”
“Here let me see what I can do.” As he proceeds to shove his member down your throat.
Doesn’t quite work really, does it? On average there are about 33,000 deaths per year in the USA, be they murders, suicides or accidental shootings. That is almost the same number of deaths caused by traffic accidents. It is also about the population of Herne Bay (some might ask why it never is the population of Herne Bay). Most of these guns were legal and registered. Now, for about a grand, you can piss on the rules and make your very own gun factory in your bedroom.
"What is wrong with that Will?" I hear you cry (or probably not). "It just saves them a trip to the shop where you can get a gun as easily as a snickers bar (and for half the price, damn you Mars!).
Well, I'll tell you what's wrong with it; if you think it is ok that you can essentially download a gun as easily as you download a zip folder full of videos of large-breasted Latvian women munching rug then you'll probably fail the mental health check anyway. Although, I am not surprised that this is seen as acceptable in a country that markets a product called ‘My First Rifle’. Apparently it's to introduce children to guns slowly and gently. I'm pretty sure Joseph Kony has been doing that for decades and it was definitely frowned upon.
Do you know why we don't give five-year-olds dangerous weapons in the UK? Because it's a really fucking stupid idea! I guarantee social services will get involved if your child's next birthday present is a 2 foot bowie knife... or a python.
Now, I know how much 'Murica likes its civil liberties and democracy et cetera so I'll put it this way: 'turrorists' can make plastic guns that are undetectable in metal detectors, get on a plane, hijack it and kill the president! I know that's taking it to the extreme but oh well, still sound like a good idea? Now your mildly psychotic, bullied schoolboy can, instead of downloading a game to take out his frustrations, download a gun to take out his frustrator. I do know the arguments for mass gun ownership, protecting your land and possessions and stuff but it does start to take the piss when a single family is better armed than a small African nation. Personally, I think that the relevant part of the constitution should be rewritten from 'the right to bare arms' to 'the right to bear arms'. It would make things a lot more interesting and a lot less deadly. You will just have to be a bit more careful when you scratch your balls.
This issue has dived head first into the 'could and should' argument like Stuart Hall into a paddling pool at a high school wet t-shirt contest. Yes, we could let people print guns but that doesn't necessarily mean we should. Just as scientists could genetically engineer a mutant zombie virus but should they actually do it? If they did then at least the nutters can use the one shot in their plastic gun to paint the wall with their own brains before the zombies use it as a chew-toy.
