April 7th, 2011

By David Codrea

“A man believed to be a former student opened fire in a school in Rio de Janeiro on Thursday, killing 12 people and wounding 22 others before taking his own life,” AFP is reporting.

The shooter is identified as being 24 years old.

Per  BBC News:

[A]ny Brazilian over the age of 25 can buy a firearm, provided they pass background checks.

Then there is this:

[A]ll firearms are required to be registered with the state…

We’re further told that it’s “virtually impossible to obtain a carry permit,” and that a tax must be paid every three years to own a gun legally. So naturally, nine of the estimated 17 million guns in Brazil are unregistered.

And naturally:

Although Brazil has 110 million fewer citizens than the United States, and more restrictive gun laws, there are 50% more gun deaths;  other sources indicate that homicide rates due to guns are approximately four times higher than the rate in the United States.

A candid assessment, reported in The New York Times of all papers, during discussion on a nationwide gun ban in 2005, explains:

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“If approved, this measure is not going to affect criminals, but will only prevent ordinary citizens from defending themselves,” said Mr. Fraga, a former police commander. “Criminals don’t go to the store to buy their guns, they get them clandestinely through networks of contraband, which are only going to grow if the yes wins” because ordinary citizens will also have to turn to them.

And we should be shocked, shocked to read this admission:

Other guns used to commit crimes come from police and military arsenals, either stolen or sold by corrupt soldiers and officers.

So much for—what do the antis call it?—“common sense gun control.”

You know, a flight of dreamy fantasy that always has a nightmare ending.