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Oscar Pistorius and South Africa's gun obsession
BBC News ^ | December 5, 2015 | Milton Nkosi

Posted on 12/05/2015 11:30:52 AM PST by MinorityRepublican

The judgement by the Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein that convicted Olympic athlete Oscar Pistorius of murder sends a message that South Africa does not tolerate the reckless use of guns.

As Judge Eric Leach said when he read the judgment, "not only did he not know who was behind the door, he did not know whether that person in fact constituted any threat to him.

"In these circumstances, although he may have been anxious, it is inconceivable that a rational person could have believed he was entitled to fire at this person with a heavy-calibre firearm."

One of the many things we learnt during the seven-month trial, was Pistorius' obsession with firearms.

The prosecution played a video clip showing the six-time Paralympic gold medallist shooting at a watermelon and remarking "it's not as soft as brains… but it's a zombie stopper".

The court was also told that Pistorius and his friends fired a shot inside a family restaurant in Johannesburg in 2013.

There are approximately 1.8 million registered gun owners in South Africa, which has an adult population of roughly 38 million.

The country's gun culture among both black and white communities can be traced back to the apartheid era.

(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: africa; banglist; southafrica

1 posted on 12/05/2015 11:30:52 AM PST by MinorityRepublican
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To: MinorityRepublican

http://www.nationalreview.com/article/398136/end-south-africa-josh-gelernter


2 posted on 12/05/2015 11:43:02 AM PST by Cyman
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To: MinorityRepublican

Whatever else may be going on here, this particular case was always suspicious. In the US it would be manslaughter at least.


3 posted on 12/05/2015 12:11:13 PM PST by buwaya
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To: MinorityRepublican

The South African obsession with guns is directly related to the catostrophic crime rate in the country.


4 posted on 12/05/2015 12:26:10 PM PST by USNBandit (Sarcasm engaged at all times)
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To: MinorityRepublican

5 posted on 12/05/2015 12:32:03 PM PST by TigersEye (This is the age of the death of reason and rule of law. Prepare!)
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To: USNBandit
The South African obsession with guns is directly related to the catastrophic crime rate in the country.

I can personally verify that claim.

6 posted on 12/05/2015 1:39:39 PM PST by chopperman
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To: MinorityRepublican

Hmmmm....Let’s see, why would White People in countries with astronomical crime rates committed by Black People, refuse to give up their guns?


7 posted on 12/05/2015 1:43:53 PM PST by The Toll
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To: chopperman

You live in South Africa?


8 posted on 12/05/2015 3:34:28 PM PST by MinorityRepublican
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To: MinorityRepublican

No, but I’ve been there five times over the last 30 years.


9 posted on 12/05/2015 10:07:07 PM PST by chopperman
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