Gun Control Coming to Switzerland?
The usual suspects, liberals, greens, et al, are planning a major offensive to disarm the country. From SwissInfo:
Attitudes towards firearms may be changing in Switzerland, which is well known for its militia army, strong traditions and liberal gun laws. A recent survey found that two out of three Swiss want to ban army weapons from private households.
Centre-left political parties and pacifist groups are hoping to build on these signs of public disapproval to force a nationwide vote. They are due to start collecting signatures for a people’s initiative from August this year.
The initiative is calling for army weapons to remain in the barracks, a national gun register, a ban on private individuals buying or owning particularly dangerous guns such as automatic weapons or pump-action shotguns, and tighter controls on those who say they need to carry a firearm.
Green parliamentarian Jo Lang, who is behind the proposal, argues that keeping an army gun at home is “a major security risk” and that “there are no practical arguments - only ideological ones”.
Gee, I can’t think of any “practical argument” either. Oh, wait! That’s right, Switzerland was the only country that Germany didn’t invade. . . I’m sure it wasn’t because in those days every home in the country was armed with a gun and someone who knew how to use it.
Notice that even your everyday pump-gun would be banned.
4 Responses to “Gun Control Coming to Switzerland?”
on 20 Jun 2007 at 7:59 am # Keith
My wife was at the receiving end of an armed home ivasion about 25 years ago. She was living about 5 miles south of the Swiss border.
The robbers were Italians and it is notable that the gang did not try going north of the border.
If Switzerland does go in for gun control, it will be interesting to see whether the subsequent and inevitable rise in armed crime on dis-armed victims is put down to the excess or lack of gun control.
more controvesially, I have not read Freedomnomics yet, but I wonder whether this has anything to do with women’s suffrage in Switzerland? which is quite a recent event.
Keith
on 20 Jun 2007 at 9:51 am # Keith
I should have added that the Italian speaking Swiss have very distinctive accents compared to the Italians accross the border.
It was not just Hitler who didn’t want to mess with the Swiss, the last dictator to try his luck with them was Napoleon.
Machiavelli, (in “the Prince”) in the mid 16th century noted that while Italy was divided into principalities variously under the control of the French, Spanish, Austrians, church and a few local princes, that the Swiss enjoyed greater freedom than any other people and he put this down to the ordinary people being better armed than anyone else.
In several centuries which have seen wars raging between the various principalities and kingdoms and countries which now make up France, Austria, Italy and Germany, how many of those conflicts spilled over into Switzerland, which has French, German, Italian and Romanche (Latin) speaking communities, living side by side?
Answer: none!
Practical reasons for keeping a military gun at home:
It is impossible for any group or foreign power to seize or bomb out the arsenals, the guns are right where they’re needed, in the hands of the citizen soldiers.
Particularly in the mountainous areas, it would be virtually impossible to eliminate opposition from the Swiss citizens.
Bear in mind that Finland is pretty flat and was increadibly poor in the 1930’s, but it took about twice as many soviet troops as there were Finnish population to force the Finns to sue for peace in the winter war. Switzerland is rich, well equipped and has the Alps, as well as lakes, forests and bogs to help the defending forces.
Having your service weapon hanging above the fireplace, you take extra care in cleaning and maintaining it; indeed, Swiss target rifles were finished in bright polished steel as blueing would cast a slur on the owner, suggesting that he was too lazy to keep it properly cleaned and oiled!
having ready access to your rifle you are intimately familliar with it, it is yours and you know exactly how it shoots, where to aim to hit a target etc. It is not like being handed a battered neglected armoury weapon in an emergency, that you have never even fired before.
Note that Switzerland does not have armed crime,
yes it has a somewhat higher murder rate than its neighbours, but this is more due to the Swiss tradition of 3 generations of a family living under the same roof.
The only masss public shooting I’m aware of there was in a council building which I believe was a dis-armed victim zone.
Ideological;
Yep
Keith
on 21 Jun 2007 at 12:34 pm # Patrick Joubert Conlon
What a shame but it was only a matter of time before the Swiss fell victim to new Brownshirts.
on 21 Jun 2007 at 11:15 pm # Ninth Stage
The site you link has a poll asking “Should Switzerland tighten its gun laws?” Two days ago “No” was winning at 75%, tonight it’s winning with 93% of the (unscientific) vote.