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| Topic | Iceland is a gun-loving country but has no shooting murders since a decade ago |
| Mackorov 05/29/18 2:06:04 AM #2: | ...what's clear is how seriously all Icelanders take the responsibility that comes with owning a deadly weapon. That's why Gararsson, the mechanical engineer and hopeful gun-owner, is currently sitting in a Reykjavik hotel conference room learning about the ins and outs of his weapon of choice. He came here with his girlfriend, Jhanna Einarsdttir, 26, a teacher who also wants a gun. There are about three dozen others in attendance, all listening intently to the seminar covering firearm history, physics, laws, hunting and safety. This is only one step in a meticulously regulated journey. Candidates are examined by a doctor who checks they are in good physical and mental health. They have a meeting with the chief of police, who asks them why they want to own a gun and runs a background check to make sure they have no criminal record. Then comes the lecture, followed by a written test the next day that they have to pass with a grade of 75 percent or higher. The final part is a day-long practice session at a shooting range outside the capital. Here, against the backdrop of snow-capped mountains, they blast at bright-orange targets fired into the sky by a machine. "It feels like somebody cares that you're getting a gun and what you're going to do with the gun," Gararsson says at his apartment on the outskirts of Reykjavik. "So you're not going to buy a gun to do stupid things." If they pass, he and his girlfriend will have been studying and preparing for around 13 months. And that's just for a small rifle or a pump-action shotgun. Owning a handgun, for example, can take around three to four years, and semi-automatic rifles are all but banned. Gararsson hopes to finish the tests and start practicing his aim in time for winter. ... Copied to Clipboard! |
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