Another school-massacre in Finland

[THR]

Finland must be gaining a very notorious reputation for shcool-shootings as today the nation has been shocked at another tragic shooting incident this time claiming 9 lives.

http://yle.fi/news/left/id102382.html

This time a 22-year old student shot nine students in a small Western town of Kauhajoki.

The Finnish gun-laws have been considered quite lax by European standards. With a second incident like this within a year, they are likely to be tightened.

Once again the perpetrator made a youtube-video about himself.He waseven interviewd by the police but they didn't see it fit to revoke his license.

[Thac0man]

Is there something wrong with Europeans? Columbine, a school in American got more coverage and sparked more debate in Europe than either of these massacres in the schools of a close neighbour. Simular incidents in France and Germany have not sparked the raging debate in Europe simular to the debate in Europe about gun control in America - a country 3000 miles away.

In reality do we value American lives more?

[Evil Eco-Fascist]

The above link says at least 11 people were killed.

[Tiernanator]

God rest the souls of the people who died and deepest sympathy to the people/families of those injured/killed.

[THR]

The above link says at least 11 people were killed.

Updated version. The gunman himself has died now too as he shot himself in the head and was taken to hospital but could not be saved, which is a shame; He should have lived to see what he has caused.

[Respvblica]

Is there something wrong with Europeans? Columbine, a school in American got more coverage and sparked more debate in Europe than either of these massacres in the schools of a close neighbour. Simular incidents in France and Germany have not sparked the raging debate in Europe simular to the debate in Europe about gun control in America - a country 3000 miles away.

In reality do we value American lives more?

Thats a relevent and good point. In many european countries the governments directly control the state broadcasters deciding what is news and what is to be discussed. Its the same here although to a much lesser extent. I get the feeling that it is "allowed" to be critical of other countries such as the US, but self criticism is very thin on the ground in many european states.

What about the debate on Lisbon. You can travel from Cadiz to Helskinki and most people wont have a clue what you are talking about.

[seabhcan]

Is there something wrong with Europeans? Columbine, a school in American got more coverage and sparked more debate in Europe than either of these massacres in the schools of a close neighbour. Simular incidents in France and Germany have not sparked the raging debate in Europe simular to the debate in Europe about gun control in America - a country 3000 miles away.

In reality do we value American lives more?

Thats a relevent and good point. In many european countries the governments directly control the state broadcasters deciding what is news and what is to be discussed. Its the same here although to a much lesser extent. I get the feeling that it is "allowed" to be critical of other countries such as the US, but self criticism is very thin on the ground in many european states.

What about the debate on Lisbon. You can travel from Cadiz to Helskinki and most people wont have a clue what you are talking about.

Oh come off it. The most dangerous city in the EU is Glasgow with a murder rate of 6/100,000 per year. Washington DC has 60 murders by gun per 100,000 population per year.

Why are we so interested in gun deaths in the US? There are much more of them.

But the media issue is interesting also. Why do we in Ireland (and the UK is the same) get so much US news? The reason is that US stations produce a lot of news segments, in english, and sell them cheaply to other countries. Simple as that. European media saves money by showing US news in preference to locally produced news. And a lot of US news segments are about gun crime.

Gun ownership in Finland is the 3rd highest in the world at 32 per 100 population. Ireland is around 5/100

In the US the figure is 90/100.

[Starkadder]

There is also a strong pro-gun lobby in Finland, linked to
the country's hunting movement