Switzerland and the gun
I find gun culture in other countries fascinating. This article on the BBC talks about gun culture in Switzerland.
Guns are deeply rooted within Swiss culture – but the gun crime rate is so low that statistics are not even kept.
The country has a population of six million, but there are estimated to be at least two million publicly-owned firearms, including about 600,000 automatic rifles and 500,000 pistols.
Mark Eisenecker, a sociologist from the University of Zurich told BBC News Online that guns are “anchored” in Swiss society and that gun control is simply not an issue.
Very interesting. Read the whole article here.
Hi, I’m Mike and I live in Switzerland. I’m a firearms collector and enthusiastic sports-shooter.
I’m honored that many fellow gun enthusiasts all over the world look at Switzerland in such a positive way.
Sadly, our current system is under heavy attack by an initiative of our left-wingers. We will vote about our gun laws in February and a lot of emotional discussion is currently going on. The initiative will stop the current way of taking the service rifle home between terms of service and will seriously impact the overall laws concerning purchase and ownership of firearms. It will basically put a stop to civilian gun ownership except for hunting and certified sport/competition.
If you want to do me and the free world a favor, pray that this initiative gets thrown out with a overwhelming percentage.
Best regards from Switzerland
Mike
Would that the Swiss attitude become prevalent everywhere.
Thanks for the insight. I defiantly agree with that sentiment.
The Swiss are pragmatic, homogeneous, independent, and utterly unconcerned with what the rest of the world thinks of them. I worked in Europe in the 90′s and met some business associates from that country. They were proud of the fact that their country has repeatedly rejected joining the UN and that it’s unflinchingly neutral. These people were so level-headed, logical, and hard working it’s easy to see why they have almost no negative gun issues. To them, a gun is a tool no different than a shovel or a hammer.