After a "golden age", due to the issue of a gun permit that allow to any italian law-abiding citizen to buy and TRANSPORT to the range it's own guns, with a letter of the Ministry of the Interior dated March 17th, 1998, now everything maybe is going to end. Or to be even much more difficult.

In six days two disturbed men shot 10 bystanders killing six of them(one was the major of a little city in Sicily).

Both of them were owners of a regular gun permit called TAV, released by the police despite the fact that they've been signalled for they abnormal behaviour to the police, or even they have been denounced to the police for violent behaviour!

Press and media put on pressure against firearms ownership by civilians, psichologysts said that "all firearms searchers (?) are undoubtely violent and potential killers", members of the left wing of the parliament asked for more checks and further restrictions in issuing TAV and PDA (PDA=CCW).

I don't know what to do, I am moving through RKBA associations in Italy, but RKBA supporters are scattered in many associations and my fear is that this time we are really FUBAR.

When I was in Israel, the situation about firearm laws was even worste in a certain sense, but when you finally got the hard earned CCW, policemen looked at you in a relaxed manner, because they knew that a gun-permit owner is someone that is reliable.

Here in Italy media (and public opinion) portraits gun-permit owners like Jesse James or Charles Bronson or The New Sheriff in Town... someone that likes to spill blood from other people.

Discouraging... [:(]

Good luck with your fight Paolo.
Hang in there.

ARH

That sounds [i]EXACTLY[/i]  like what happened in England with the Dunblane massacre.

Spooky, no?

Good luck Paolo.  I just hope there are enough gun owners in Italy to have some effect on the debate.  England had succeeded in reducing the number of gun owners and dividing the rest so that they were completely ineffective at defending their rights.

Big bummer, for sure. Sounds like the California. [:(]

ohio will welcome a good, honest, hardworking italian.

So is Italy soon to be known as PRI?

* UPDATE *

Yesterday I went to a gun shop of a friend of mine to buy a Ithaca Govt. Model in 45. I found one at reasonable price and in decent conditions. Of course all the discussion were on the shooting issue and about what will happen.

According to this friend, the police told him that probably for TAV and hunting gun permit will be requested to pass an annual psycho-medical examination.

A friend of mine that is in the "Service", told me that the intention of the govt. is to cut all gun permits, to surrender powder and ammo, and all the guns will be passed under the "collection" status, that is they cannot be sold, moved or used. You can only own them.

If so, I'll quit Italy for Israel. A country where I was born that so easily can infringe its own son's rights, RKBA included, doesen't deserve my loyalty.

I don't know exactely the iter, my impression is that since the EU MUST became a reality, an antigun campaign started, taking profit of legislative gaps, shooting accident and bureocracy inertia, to disarm EU citizien: GB first, three years ago France, last year Germany, now Italy.

Maybe I am not right. And you don't know how much I would be wrong...

Which is the USA state with the best gun laws? You know, as Italian I don't need too much to be comfortable...

I'll have to state that even the worst US state is probably better than any EU country in terms of firearms laws.

Heck we can still own machineguns but the EU all but banned automatic ownership IIRC.

Just avoid California, Massachusetts, Hawaii and New Jersey.

We DO have RKBA and we DO fight for it.

CRC

Another note:

Is it just me or do regulating authorties in Europe NEVER take away gun permits from crazies and wait until a shooting happens?

CRC

How can they steal guns from law abiding citizens, then?

The mad shooter in Milan was under the legal surveillance of the father. This means that he was partially or totally, temporarily unable to behave like a responsible person.

HOW COME THAT THE POLICE DID NOT REVOKED THE GUN PERMIT?

Just police have fat big asses and it's paniful to move them, or...

There is a proverb in Italy: "If you suspect someone to have made something bad, surely you are in sin, but 9 times out of 10 you are RIGHT!"

Try Pittston, Pennsylvania. You'll feel right at home. Best damn markets in the state.