quote:

Originally posted by Dusty78:
Face it boys however bad we think we have it here...it can be much much worse.

What are supposed to do with this? Things can always be worse. Are we supposed to take comfort in that?

I just read that the murder rate in London has just surpassed the murder rate in NYC for the first time ever.

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:

quote:

Originally posted by Dusty78:
Face it boys however bad we think we have it here...it can be much much worse.

What are supposed to do with this? Things can always be worse. Are we supposed to take comfort in that?

I just meant that we are the only developed nation with actual freedom. Other places that claim to be free societies aren’t.

quote:

Originally posted by Dusty78:

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:

quote:

Originally posted by Dusty78:
Face it boys however bad we think we have it here...it can be much much worse.

What are supposed to do with this? Things can always be worse. Are we supposed to take comfort in that?

I just meant that we are the only developed nation with actual freedom. Other places that claim to be free societies aren’t.

And I suspect Para's point to be just because we don't have it as bad as other places, doesn't mean we should accept the erosions of our freedoms we already suffer.

I become more and more confused by people. What is happening in England and places like California just baffles me. I don’t understand how people think this is ok. There is a huge % of our planet who don’t think stupidity should hurt. Worse yet, they think being smart should come with a penalty.

quote:

Originally posted by saigonsmuggler:
Freaking upside down world over there! WTF?!

Out of their nut.

Two strange men with NO BUSINESS being in his home, man defends his life, avoids death, and is formally charged with murder.

I don't care if he does walk, just charging him with murder as a matter of "routine" is fucking idiotic. Pure insanity.

^^^
I agree. Pure insanity.
"Formerly Great" Britain is going down the crapper....

I'm not an expert but watch a lot of British crime shows

Just thinking aloud and to play advocate here, there is a dead body in someone's home on the presumption that that homeowner defended themselves. Perhaps an investigation is generally warranted (to guard against murder trying to be passed off as a home invasion) but charging immediately for homicide/murder is unwarranted pending at least a cursory investigation suggesting such.

Is this what we're saying?

A couple years ago, I saw a comparison of statistics for burglary between the US and Great Britain:

In US burglary 2nd (going into a residence/business while it is unoccupied, no one home or present at time of crime) was around 78% and Burglary 1st (going in when someone else was there) was 22% of all burglaries.

In GB, it was reversed with almost 80% of burglaries occurring when someone was home and, according to arrested burglars, this was because of the laws of GB concerning self defense of home, property, and life.

Can't anyone report a decent story anymore? Why not just state the facts in simple chronological order and be done with it instead of going round and round in circles?
Drives me crazy. That report could have been done in one third the words and been a better read at that.

quote:

Originally posted by cparktd:
Can't anyone report a decent story anymore? Why not just state the facts in simple chronological order and be done with it instead of going round and round in circles?
Drives me crazy. That report could have been done in one third the words and been a better read at that.

Writer is paid by the word number and must fill so many column inches. Just a money issue.

Thanks to tac I expanded my vocabulary today: "scroates".

The Urban Dictionary gave a crystal clear definition.

"I don't know why, Constable, the two criminals got into a fight with the one stabbing the other." (Shrug).

When I was working in the UK, one of my agent's home was burglarized while he and his wife were sleeping upstairs and their car among other things were stolen. This resulted in a long discussion between me and a good friend in the Constabulary about burglaries and defense of the home. My position was that a burglar under similar circumstances in the US was not likely to survive if discovered. My UK police friends explained that you would need to be unable to flee the home to be justified in using force against a burglar. We ultimately got the car and some of the property back from some punks with a long record of such things.

Another interesting fact I learned was that the EU countries agreed years back to require all new vehicles to have a chip sensor that would not allow a vehicle to be started if the fob is not present. A great number of vehicles were being hotwired and stolen prior to that. The result was a drastic increase in the number of occupied residential burglaries that became necessary for the criminal to get the keys and steal your car. A tale of unintended consequences.

quote:

Originally posted by patw:
The fact he was charged at all shows how screwed up it is there

agreed

------------------------------------------

quote:

Originally posted by Dusty78:
What do you expect from the UK. They don’t have a free society. This is evidenced by the recent conviction of a Scottish guy for a hate crime because he posted a YouTube video of his pug doing the Nazi solute.

Well, he was cuing the dog by saying, "Should we put the Jews in the oven?"

Still not a crime in the US, but a bit more than just the dog saluting.

quote:

Well, he was cuing the dog by saying, "Should we put the Jews in the oven?"

That's a really cute dog trick. Somebody kick him in the ass. And I don't mean the dog.

Fortunately, in this country, we have the First Amendment. Any of you guys who support what happened to this man over what he did, you'd better take stock of yourself. What happened to that guy was wrong and there was nothing right about it.

You don't arrest and jail people, ruin their lives, for being an asshole, at least not in this country.

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
Fortunately, in this country, we have the First Amendment. Any of you guys who support what happened to this man over what he did, you'd better take stock of yourself. What happened to that guy was wrong and there was nothing right about it.

You don't arrest and jail people, ruin their lives, for being an asshole, at least not in this country.

For the record, I am not OK with restricting freedom of speech because someone might be offended. This guy is a victim of intolerance by speech-code, Nazi, goose steppers. He is also a victim of his own stupidity.

Update:

Shame he had to be put thru the wringer over an obvious self defense.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/ne...t&utm_medium=twitter

Pensioner arrested for murder of career burglar told he won't face charges

The pensioner arrested for the murder of a burglar has been told be police he will not be charged with any offence.

Richard Osborn-Brooks, 78, faces no further action over the stabbing of Henry Vincent, a career criminal, who had broken into his home in Hither Green in south east London on Wednesday at the scene.

Scotland Yard said in a statement that officers had spoken to Vincent's family and explained the reasons for the decision. It had been taken after consultation with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

Mr Osborn-Brooks, whose wife is suffering from dementia, had been arrested after Vincent's death and initially told to return to a police station in May.

Detective Chief Inspector Simon Harding, of the Metropolitan Police’s Homicide and Major Crime Command, said: "This is a tragic case for all of those involved. As expected with any incident where someone has lost their life, my officers carried out a thorough investigation into the circumstances of the death.

“We have approached the CPS for early investigative advice, as required under the guidance. We have received and considered that advice, and, at present - on the evidence available - we will not seek a charging decision. Therefore, no further action will be taken against the man.

"Whilst there might be various forms of debate about which processes should be used in cases such as this, it was important that the resident was interviewed by officers under the appropriate legislation of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act; not only for the integrity of our investigation but also so that his personal and legal rights were protected.

“There will be an inquest in due course which will further review the circumstances into Mr Vincent’s death in a public forum.

"Our thoughts remain with the families whose lives have been devastated by these events."

The threat of charges against Mr Osborn-Brooks had caused a furore. Vincent was stabbed with a screwdriver he had taken with him on the burglary. An accomplice fled the scene and is being sought by police.

Another pensioner targeted in a distraction break-in linked to Vincent said it was a "jolly good job" Vincent had been thwarted in his final break-in.

Cyril Goodearl, 78, who was robbed at his home in the pretty village of Farningham, Kent, last November said he would like to shake the hand of Mr Osborn-Brooks.

Asked how he felt about what happened to Vincent, Mr Goodearl said: "Jolly good job! That's got rid of another bit of scum. I am all in favour of capital punishment. They should never have let him out of prison.

"It's good riddance and he got what he deserved."