"Offensive Weapons" in the UK

[Cyberman]

Well, my powers of prophecy were right on the money again, even if it's not quite the twenty pages I foresaw. Amazing Randi, here I come.

Do you know what the difference is between an armed civilian and an armed criminal? No, neither do I. You might have the right to bear arms round your way, but do the same thing anywhere near me and suddenly you're not wearing the white hat anymore. In fact, and I don't mean this as a blanket statement against your nation in its entirety, but I rather wish there was more than one ocean separating me from this stuff.

Are you fucking kidding me? No blanket statement, but wish for there to be a body of water larger than the Pacific Ocean between us. How the fuck does that work?

It doesn't, obviously. On the other hand, if you re-read what I actually wrote, you should see that I was deliberately not addressing or attacking you personally, nor even Americans generally. That's why I chose the phrase "separating me from this stuff" with the greatest care; "this stuff" being the subject of public gun ownership which I was under the impression was under discussion. Your translating that to "between us" is misleading, and curiously so. I wonder why you did?

Oh and one minor point. There is another ocean separating our nations, one which puts us in closer proximity, to which I was referring. Bonus points if anyone can tell the class what it may be.

I suppose the Coral Sea isn't enough of a buffer. As if Americans never died in the Coral Sea, and for what?

I've no idea; it's your strawman, not mine.

Perhaps this is uniquely American, but if some jackass breaches the walls of my home uninvited he will soon find himself dead thanks to the business end of a gun that is under my control. If the fucker didn't want to be dead he should have used the knocker or doorbell instead of inviting himself in.

Perhaps it is uniquely American, as you say. Here in England and Wales - Scotland and Northern Ireland have apparently made their own provisions - we have had changes made as to what constitutes "reasonable force" when defending one's property or person. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) sets out in plain English what the law means in practise.

Does the law protect me? What is 'reasonable force'?

Anyone can use reasonable force to protect themselves or others, or to carry out an arrest or to prevent crime. You are not expected to make fine judgements over the level of force you use in the heat of the moment. So long as you only do what you honestly and instinctively believe is necessary in the heat of the moment, that would be the strongest evidence of you acting lawfully and in selfdefence. This is still the case if you use something to hand as a weapon.

As a general rule, the more extreme the circumstances and the fear felt, the more force you can lawfully use in self-defence.

Do I have to wait to be attacked?

No, not if you are in your own home and in fear for yourself or others. In those circumstances the law does not require you to wait to be attacked before using defensive force yourself.

Note that last paragraph: "not if you are in your own home" etc. This is all a very different set of circumstances to that of carrying offensive weaponry in public, which is where I left the discussion yesterday and which also has been the theme of every post I have made on this subject.