A gunman opened fire at a catering college in Kauhajoki, Finland, the nation's second school shooting in a year. The attack left several people dead and more were injured, state broadcaster YLE said, citing police. The gunman later shot himself, YLE said, and is being treated by paramedics, YLE said, citing the police at Kauhajoki. It didn't give details. ``There has been shooting at the Kauhajoki Home Economics and Catering School,'' police sergeant Jussi Muotio said in a phone interview from Kauhajoki, about 330 kilometers from Helsinki. ``There are casualties, but we don't know yet how many.''
The gunman later shot himself, YLE said, and is being treated by paramedics, YLE said, citing the police at Kauhajoki. It didn't give details.
``There has been shooting at the Kauhajoki Home Economics and Catering School,'' police sergeant Jussi Muotio said in a phone interview from Kauhajoki, about 330 kilometers from Helsinki. ``There are casualties, but we don't know yet how many.''
There will not be any kind of total ban called for - Finland is still largely forest and arable, and hunting is an old tradition (and a method of culling). The laws are actually quite strict - it is the application of them that is lax.
What we may see called for is a raising of the age at which a license can be issued, and restrictions on the types of guns that can be purchased and licensed. You have to remember that there is still compulsory national service, so most young guys over 21 are familiar with weapons. (except for those who choose civil service or are medically excused). I do not know if the young man in this tragedy had completed his national service. I suspect not. A macabre fascination with guns does not usually survive military training in Finland.
But there have been a number of incidents in the past year outside of professional crime. So a tightening up of regulation and monitoring is likely. You can't be me, I'm taken
The gunman, Pekka-Eric Auvinen, posted a video on YouTube as a preview of his attack, pledging to "eliminate" those he saw as "unfit".
Ms Holmlund said police questioned the man about the YouTube video, which showed him shooting at a firing range. On the video, the gunman says "you die next" before firing three times at the camera. Ms Holmlund said: "Police were aware of this and spoke to him on Monday, September 22. However, the police officer on duty decided there was no need to terminate his gun licence."
On the video, the gunman says "you die next" before firing three times at the camera.
Ms Holmlund said: "Police were aware of this and spoke to him on Monday, September 22. However, the police officer on duty decided there was no need to terminate his gun licence."
Gun crime and gun insanity including school shootings might be the most serious problem in the USA, and the rate of gun ownership (especially ownership of guns for personal safety) might be the highest there, but Europe has a gun problem, too.
In countries like France and Germany, it's chielfy the hunting lobby that retains too many loopholes. Switzerland is a special case with its home-stored military guns. But the worst are Austria and Finland, with relatively high gun ownership and mad gun lobbies, which even forced the respective countries to block EU-level regulation a feww years back.
Back to Finland, now or right after the nationwide mourning, what needs to be campaigned for is not simply stricter controls: sports shooters shouldn't be allowed to take a gun home (they should be kept at the club), and a rule for weapons not for persnal safety (including hunting guns) to be stored in disassembled state. If not, the next shooting comes, surely. *Lunatic*, n. One whose delusions are out of fashion.
