"The main difference in this country is that we have no gun shops in our shopping centres or towns, so we very few opportunities to obtain a gun legitimately or otherwise"

Nutty - I'm sorry to take issue over one sentence when I respect some of your heartfelt sorrow and questioning of the bigger issues but that statement about "no" gun shops in our towns is simply not TRUE. My own home town/city has had a gun shop in existence for donkey's years and is still open for business in a shopping centre that charges such high rates for retail outlets that most of the smaller businesses have gone. I have no idea what added restrictions they may have in trading in recent years or particular interest in finding out but I refuse to believe that they are the only one in the country.   It is sometimes too easy to use our personal experiences as being facts when they often are not.