Of course, it's all the fault of firearms -- not their unequal distribution in the hands of criminals.
Typhoon Haiyan: gun culture of the Philippines hinders relief efforts
There are 3.9 million guns - legal and illegal - held by civilians in the Philippines, or about 4.7 per 100 people, which isn't that high in global terms. But people are prepared to use them. The murder rate is among the highest in Asia and three times that of the United States, at 8.9 homicides per 100,000.
Illegal guns are not just carried by criminal gangs and insurgents. They also belong to civilians and politicians who keep private armies. Earlier this year the president boosted his credibility by winning top prize in a shooting competition, even as television reported a major shootout between police and thieves on a motorway.
Guns are so common that shops, restaurants and malls in cities commonly display signs asking customers not to bring their weapons inside. All private security guards carry either handguns or shotguns, or both.
Analysts tend to blame the colonial history of the Philippines for becoming a gun-happy independent nation. It is said that three centuries of Spanish machismo were followed by 50 years of American preaching on the right to bear arms, making for a volatile mixture.
Of course! It's the fault of the Second Amendment! Why didn't I think of that?
8 comments:
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I'd be willing to bet that anyone there who is not a criminal, and owns a gun, is damn glad they do. Try and protect your family when the grid and police are gone in any disaster, with out one. In those situations, it becomes the law of the jungle, and children crying with empty bellies, and old people dying for lack of clean water mean nothing to the masses and the thugs intent on preserving their own lives. The person who wrote the article hasn't a clue as to what's what.
Yeah right...except 90% of those guns are illegal.
Having been to the northern Philippine islands, I can say that the folks I ran into there were mostly happy, industrious, and enjoyed firearms of all types. They also enjoy edged weapons, which are indigenous to their culture. Most northern Filipinos like and admire Americans. Screw with them at your peril.
It's one hundred percet BS, of course.
The Spanish ruthlessly oppressed the native population and denied them arms. They were not allowed guns or even swords, nor were they allowed to visibly train in their indigenous martial arts. As in other countries, it had to be hidden in dances and trained in secret.
Fortunately, the machete was a common farming tool and couldn't be restricted, thus the focus of many Filipino martial arts focusing around machete-length weapons.
So gun ownership is responsible for the effects of a typhoon?
Why can't peoples just be happy as disarmed subjects?
All this talk of being free citizens is the problem!
:-)
III
The one thing Mr.Alex Spillius's article did was showcase his ignorance of Philippine history.
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