A full-page article in The Sun of October 14 1997 contained strongly-worded condemnations of British gun-owners and calls for the prohibition of the civilian ownership of cap-and-ball revolvers. These weapons with their 140-year-old design, freely available in many continental European countries, are deemed too dangerous for the crazed Britoid public to own.
Below is a selection of quotes from the article, penned by two The Sun journalists, Nick Parker and Laura Collins.
Johnny <johnny@dvc.org.uk>
Dunblane mum Jenny Hasell, whose son Kevin, five, was killed when Thomas Hamilton gunned down 16 tots and their teacher last year, said: "It's sickening and makes a mockery of the law. The parents of Dunblane hoped the ban would stop gun fanatics getting their hands on firearms. I hope the government moves swiftly to outlaw these."
Firearms expert Ian Hogg said: "The Ruger Old Army may be
based on an old design but in the right hands it remains lethal and
accurate up to 50 yards."
[Italics theirs]
Gill Marshall Andrews, chairwoman of the Gun Control Network,
said last night: "This is an obvious attempt to sidestep the law by
gun fanatics who are becoming increasingly desperate.
"Families of the victims of the Dunblane and Hungerford massacres
are 100 per cent behind the campaign to close this loophole."
Pulling the hammer back, I fired again. And again, And again -
six times without reloading, destroying six melons. I'm not a gun
expert, though I have fired weapons before. But from 30ft, I hit my
target every time.
And the thought that with this weapon in the wrong hands those
exploding melons could have been people, sent a shiver down my
spine.
Paul Flynn, MP for Newport West, said: "Some people are
determined to find a way round the ban on handguns and it is clear
a new, all-embracing law is needed to close any loopholes.
"The more guns there are, the more shootings and accidental deaths
there will be and the more chance of someone going berserk and
killing people. The intention of the handgun ban was to reduce the
number of guns in circulation. If it isn't doing that then the law
has clearly failed and we need a new one."
The Sun <letters@the-sun.co.uk>