"James A. Donald" <jamesd@echeque.com>, writes:
I heard on talk.politics.guns somebody say that in Sweden they had banned knives with a sharp point at the end, and were going to ban sharp knives altogether. I think he was just engaging in hyperbole, that he really meant that gun control in Sweden was unreasonably strict, but on reflection I am not sure.
In a survey conducted in Sweden a few years ago, 50% of Swedish households had access to guns (generally military service weapons and sporting shotguns). Guns are, however, licensed and regulated, and seldom used in crimes. Licenses for "personal protection" are almost unobtainable. At least one military officer was court martialed when his service revolver was stolen from his automobile. The most significant "mass murderer" crimes in Sweden (one last year and one in the 1970's) were caused by people who used their legally-obtained military weapons. Martin Minow (ex-resident of Sweden) minow@apple.com