Obama Townhall Saturday in Grand Junction, Colo

[jake]

Then there wasn't a big media circus and panic in the UK about finding a "live 22 round" on a doorstep? Oh my goodness, if detonated, it could kill somebody!

Pray tell, how recently did you emigrate? And please note, I'm not trying to pick on you, not trying to mob you. UK Firearm "freedom" is nothing like what we have in America. I know of many UK visitors that specifically want to shoot when they come here just because they don't have the real luxury to do so at home. Is it all a big conspiracy and they all make BS up just to get pity? Yes, you can have a firearm in the UK. No, it is nothing like what you can have here. And, it has gotten worse over there in recent years, so if you came here.. 5, 10, 15 years ago, whatever - well, past experience isn't exactly live experience.

PS: With the number of spilled 22 shells in the nooks and crannies of my truck bed, I'd probably be labeled a terrorist were my truck parked in the UK. I don't call that FREE.

Taking your points one by one, regarding the finding of a .22 round, what you have to understand is that hardly ANYONE in the UK owns a firearm, so finding live ammunition in the street is a bigger deal than it would be to you or me. It's not that everyone in the UK is a pansy who is terrified of guns, it's that there is practically zero gun culture over there.

I emigrated 6 years ago. My wife is from Miami, and when we married we decided to make our life there. How I came to end up in Colorado is another matter, involving hurricanes, insurance premiums and the housing crash. UK firearm freedom is nothing like here, because, as I said, there was never really a firearm culture there. The current restrictions on firearms were introduced after the Dunblane massacre as a result of overwhelming public pressure, and resulted in about 50,000 people (that's less than 1% of the population) losing their firearms licences (even before the restrictions, firearms were licenced, and anyone who wanted one had to show a good reason for wanting to own it and allow their security arrangements to be inspected by the police).

It's really almost impossible for an American to understand (and NO offence is intended here) the differences, because to you, the idea of having to apply for a licence and submit to a police inspection would be an abhorrent idea, but to an Briton who was interested in owning a firearm, that's how it has been for a hundred years.

You're right, many Britons who come here want to shoot, but it's not really from a desire to experience something we are cruelly denied back home, it's more out of curiosity. I suppose the best way to describe it would be if you went to Paris, you would climb the Eiffel Tower, but that doesn't mean you want an Eiffel Tower built in Denver.

As for your PS, once again, it's a difference in culture. If you lived in the UK, you simply wouldn't have .22 shells in your truck. You wouldn't bemoan your lack of freedom, simply because the idea of owning a gun wouldn't be on your radar.

I also see no reason to try to make every country the same - or every State for that matter. You like the UK's systems - great. Don't be too annoyed if we don't. People always have the option of moving to the UK if they truly love it's system. I see absolutely no reason for those people to try to make us UK #2. Diversity is a good thing.

As I said before, I don't have a problem with you not liking the idea of a single payer health service like the NHS. What does annoy me, and I would imagine would annoy you if the roles were reversed, is people making claims about a system that they have never experienced, and that are almost entirely based on lies.