7 ms·

You could say the same about the US.

by Gordonjcp 4y ago

richwater 4y ago
UK doesn't arrest you for carrying pepper spray.
- implements 4y ago
  The incapacitating kind of pepper spray is treated as a Section 5 ‘Firearm’ in the UK, and would land you in a world of trouble. You can get unpleasant smelling / badly staining / hard to remove spray which acts as a deterrent by making an attacker easily identifiable, but that’s about it I believe.
- localplume 4y ago
  Do you mean the other way around? Pepper spray is illegal in the UK (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/import-controls-on-offensive-weapons https://www.gov.uk/guidance/import-controls-on-offensive-wea...) but its legal in all states in the US.
- mytailorisrich 4y ago
  The only weapon you're allowed to carry in the UK is a disapproving look.
  - sh4rks 4y ago
    And everyone seems to carry that one
  - TheSecondMouse 4y ago
    For which we are all heavily armed.
    - jjgreen 4y ago
      Look out George! The bastard's got a disparaging look! (*) (*) Obscure Sweeny reference, if you get it, you're too old to be here Grandad
elephanlemon 4y ago
The UK is a good demonstration of why the US constitution is important. They have substantially weaker rights to freedom of speech, right to bear arms, and protection from unreasonable search and seizure. Of course the United States has tried hard in many cases to weaken or get around these protections, but it seems reasonable to say that Americans are still much more protected than citizens of the UK.
- Gordonjcp 4y ago
  Your tradeoff, of course, is that you have no freedom in the US because you live with a gun pointed at you at all times, blanket surveillance, free speech only if it matches what your government approves of, and no rights. In the US you can be shot and killed by the police at any time, for any reason. You don't have any rights to retaliate. Yeah, I don't think I'll trade places.
- hnlmorg 4y ago
  - freedom of speech. Most Americans misunderstand what their freedom of speech actually entitles them to. What your freedom of speech actually covers is represented via other legislations over here. And much as I think our government is a farce, we do have access to tell our politicians that. Frankly, if recent politics have taught us anything, it’s that freedom of speech doesn’t protect us from a shitty government being formed. - right to bear arms I’m glad we don’t. It’s a fucking stupid right in our modern age. How many shootings do you guys need before you wake up and join the rest of the civilised world with tighter gun control. And for what it’s worth, you can own guns legally in the UK. We just don’t allow unhinged people to roam the streets with guns. - protection from unreasonable search and seizure We have that in the U.K. Given all the problems the US police force suffer from, you’re really not in a position to be gloating about protections from crooked cops. Don’t get me wrong, the US does get a lot of things right too. But I wouldn’t say it’s ahead of the U.K. (nor most of Europe) in terms of rights. Roughly equivalent perhaps, but not so far ahead that we should all be modelling ourselves after you.
  - balls187 4y ago
    In the US our rights are mostly protected by one’s ability to pay for legal protection. I don’t know how it works in the UK. Having rights is all well and good, but in the US we’ve see. countless cases of government infringing on those rights requiring government to resolve them (via legal proceedings).
NDizzle 4y ago
I carry a knife, and often a gun with me while out and about. The UK is good with either of those things? I also insult people online, sometimes. I’m pretty much worse than Billy the Kid to modern day UK.
- Gordonjcp 4y ago
  > I carry a knife, and often a gun with me while out and about. The UK is good with either of those things? Yes, that's entirely legal in the UK. I can cross the road anywhere I like, without waiting for a light. The US is good with that? Oh wait, no, you can be thrown in jail for "jaywalking".
- nprateem 4y ago
  Much, much better. I can count on no fingers the number of school massacres in the UK this millennium.
  - NoImmatureAdHom 4y ago
    If you look at homicide rates, London's is ~half of e.g. New York's, but the countries are really, really different in a lot of ways. It would make more sense to compare the U.S. to the European Union than to the U.K. Compare the U.K. to Massachusetts or something. The U.K. doesn't have a long land border with a violent, half-ruled-by-gangs developing country, doesn't have large rural areas, etc. The available evidence suggests that magically removing guns from the U.S. overnight would make a dent in homicide rates, but not by all that much (I would estimate ~20%, charitably). Americans murder much more than average not because they have access to guns, but access to guns does make them a little more effective at murdering. An aside, but it's always interesting to me that people are specifically interested in instances where a lot of people die together. I mean, who cares?
    - Teever 4y ago
      Please. The US made Mexico what it is and is entirely responsible for that. If the US didn't want Mexico to turn into a 'half-ruled-by-gangs developing country' they shouldn't have let the CIA go full hog there and in Latin/Central America. And that's the thing, so much of the violence and shit that America is facing today is a direct result of blowback from things the US did. Imagine how much gun crime America wouldn't have if it didn't blow trillions of dollars on some dumb wars in the middle east. Imagine how much gun crime America wouldn't have if it toss a bunch of their young men into an agent orange meat grinder in South East Asia.
karaterobot 4y ago
But why would you need to in this case, since the article is about the UK? Just to start an internet fight I guess.

You could say the same about the US.

richwater 4y ago

UK doesn't arrest you for carrying pepper spray.

implements 4y ago
The incapacitating kind of pepper spray is treated as a Section 5 ‘Firearm’ in the UK, and would land you in a world of trouble. You can get unpleasant smelling / badly staining / hard to remove spray which acts as a deterrent by making an attacker easily identifiable, but that’s about it I believe.
localplume 4y ago
Do you mean the other way around? Pepper spray is illegal in the UK (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/import-controls-on-offensive-weapons https://www.gov.uk/guidance/import-controls-on-offensive-wea...) but its legal in all states in the US.
mytailorisrich 4y ago
The only weapon you're allowed to carry in the UK is a disapproving look.
- sh4rks 4y ago
  And everyone seems to carry that one
- TheSecondMouse 4y ago
  For which we are all heavily armed.
  - jjgreen 4y ago
    Look out George! The bastard's got a disparaging look! (*) (*) Obscure Sweeny reference, if you get it, you're too old to be here Grandad

elephanlemon 4y ago

The UK is a good demonstration of why the US constitution is important. They have substantially weaker rights to freedom of speech, right to bear arms, and protection from unreasonable search and seizure. Of course the United States has tried hard in many cases to weaken or get around these protections, but it seems reasonable to say that Americans are still much more protected than citizens of the UK.

Gordonjcp 4y ago
Your tradeoff, of course, is that you have no freedom in the US because you live with a gun pointed at you at all times, blanket surveillance, free speech only if it matches what your government approves of, and no rights. In the US you can be shot and killed by the police at any time, for any reason. You don't have any rights to retaliate. Yeah, I don't think I'll trade places.
hnlmorg 4y ago
- freedom of speech. Most Americans misunderstand what their freedom of speech actually entitles them to. What your freedom of speech actually covers is represented via other legislations over here. And much as I think our government is a farce, we do have access to tell our politicians that. Frankly, if recent politics have taught us anything, it’s that freedom of speech doesn’t protect us from a shitty government being formed. - right to bear arms I’m glad we don’t. It’s a fucking stupid right in our modern age. How many shootings do you guys need before you wake up and join the rest of the civilised world with tighter gun control. And for what it’s worth, you can own guns legally in the UK. We just don’t allow unhinged people to roam the streets with guns. - protection from unreasonable search and seizure We have that in the U.K. Given all the problems the US police force suffer from, you’re really not in a position to be gloating about protections from crooked cops. Don’t get me wrong, the US does get a lot of things right too. But I wouldn’t say it’s ahead of the U.K. (nor most of Europe) in terms of rights. Roughly equivalent perhaps, but not so far ahead that we should all be modelling ourselves after you.
- balls187 4y ago
  In the US our rights are mostly protected by one’s ability to pay for legal protection. I don’t know how it works in the UK. Having rights is all well and good, but in the US we’ve see. countless cases of government infringing on those rights requiring government to resolve them (via legal proceedings).

NDizzle 4y ago

I carry a knife, and often a gun with me while out and about. The UK is good with either of those things? I also insult people online, sometimes. I’m pretty much worse than Billy the Kid to modern day UK.

Gordonjcp 4y ago
> I carry a knife, and often a gun with me while out and about. The UK is good with either of those things? Yes, that's entirely legal in the UK. I can cross the road anywhere I like, without waiting for a light. The US is good with that? Oh wait, no, you can be thrown in jail for "jaywalking".
nprateem 4y ago
Much, much better. I can count on no fingers the number of school massacres in the UK this millennium.
- NoImmatureAdHom 4y ago
  If you look at homicide rates, London's is ~half of e.g. New York's, but the countries are really, really different in a lot of ways. It would make more sense to compare the U.S. to the European Union than to the U.K. Compare the U.K. to Massachusetts or something. The U.K. doesn't have a long land border with a violent, half-ruled-by-gangs developing country, doesn't have large rural areas, etc. The available evidence suggests that magically removing guns from the U.S. overnight would make a dent in homicide rates, but not by all that much (I would estimate ~20%, charitably). Americans murder much more than average not because they have access to guns, but access to guns does make them a little more effective at murdering. An aside, but it's always interesting to me that people are specifically interested in instances where a lot of people die together. I mean, who cares?
  - Teever 4y ago
    Please. The US made Mexico what it is and is entirely responsible for that. If the US didn't want Mexico to turn into a 'half-ruled-by-gangs developing country' they shouldn't have let the CIA go full hog there and in Latin/Central America. And that's the thing, so much of the violence and shit that America is facing today is a direct result of blowback from things the US did. Imagine how much gun crime America wouldn't have if it didn't blow trillions of dollars on some dumb wars in the middle east. Imagine how much gun crime America wouldn't have if it toss a bunch of their young men into an agent orange meat grinder in South East Asia.

karaterobot 4y ago

But why would you need to in this case, since the article is about the UK? Just to start an internet fight I guess.