Third Mass Shooting In A Week, This Time In Netherlands

AP Photo/Peter Dejong

For the third time in less than a week, a mass shooting rocked a foreign nation. Once again, anti-gunners are pretending they never claimed this was a uniquely American problem.

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In a similar manner to Christchurch, New Zealand, this appears to be an act of terrorism. An act that left three people dead.

Dutch police arrested a suspect in a deadly shooting aboard a tram Monday that officials said bore the hallmarks of a terror attack.

The shooting took place aboard a tram in the city of Utrecht, leaving three people dead and five others injured. Emergency officials treated the injured at 24 October Square station, named in honor of the founding of the United Nations.

“Several shots were fired in a tram and several people were injured,” police spokesman Joost Lanshage said.

The suspect, identified as [Name redacted] of Turkey, led officials on a manhunt for hours before his arrest, Utrecht police said.

“Today is a black day for our city, for Utrecht. Unsuspecting and innocent people in the tram on their way to work or school were attacked,” Utrecht Mayor Jan van Zanen said according to the Telegraph.

The Netherlands has very tight gun control requirements, so tight that New Zealand looks downright lax in comparison. Guns are relegated to police, hunters, and target shooters. There are hurdles members of those last two groups have to clear before getting their guns. Self-defense isn’t considered a viable reason to own a gun there.

And yet, a terrorist got his hands on a firearm.

There’s been no mention of how he got it, but either way, it proves a key point. Namely, that the bad guys will continue to obtain firearms and gun control laws only leave the innocent defenseless in the face of evil.

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Since last week, I’ve written three different times about mass shootings. In every case, it was a country with stricter gun control legislation than the United States has. Meanwhile, anti-gunners are intent on blaming us, the National Rifle Association, and anyone else for the problem here in the United States but ignoring that the same thing happens elsewhere.

The problem isn’t gun laws or the lack thereof.

No, the problem is that there is something very broken in humanity. Somehow, people are thinking things like this are a viable option for achieving their goals. People are sitting there thinking, “You know what? That’s a hell of an idea.”

That is the problem.

In too many cases, there’s too much rage built into some people, rage they don’t seem to have any other release for, so it explodes into the senseless slaughter of innocent people. In other cases, it’s nothing more than a tactic to achieve a political goal. Either way, something is broken within them.

Meanwhile, something is also broken in people who think this means we should have to give up our guns, our right to keep and bear arms. We all know someone will try to make that case, but me? My guns aren’t going anywhere.

Should a terrorist try to shoot up somewhere I’m at they’re going to get a nasty surprise instead.

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