The UK has some very strict gun control laws; measures that simply won’t fly here in the United States. Heavy restrictions on guns, we’re told, is part of why the United Kingdom doesn’t have the issues with violent crime that we do.

Apparently, there can be no other factors at play. That also can’t be the reason their violent crime rates were much lower than ours before they passed their current restrictions, either.

Regardless, we’re told that their laws work and should be emulated.

However, the UK also seems to have some issues.

A violent feud involving guns is behind a move to increase police stop and search powers in a north Manchester district.

Officers introduced the so-called Section 60 powers in Harpurhey after a spate of ‘serious violence’. The measure came into force yesterday evening and remains in place across the area until 10pm tonight (Monday).

…

No further details have been revealed about what crimes have occurred or where and when. However, the Manchester Evening News understands that the incidents involved firearms being used amid an ongoing feud.

Now, I could get into arguing about these “stop and search” powers–and I can argue both sides, to be honest–but that’s not what we do here.

Instead, I feel like I need to point out that if the UK’s gun laws were as amazing as many people claim, then why is there a problem with guns in a violent feud in Manchester, England?

It just doesn’t make a lot of sense, now does it?

Unless, of course, you recognize that the people involved in said feud are the kind that will ignore all the laws against violence in the UK, meaning they’re also the kind of people who will ignore gun control laws. Further, since there’s a demand for guns, someone has happily provided those guns despite all those gun control laws.

In other words, I’ve taken dumps that are about as effective at curbing violence as the UK’s gun control laws.

The truth is that the UK has a lot of other potential reasons why violent crime is lower there. It was lower before their current batch of gun control laws was passed and will likely continue to be lower than ours. We’ve also seen that their total violent crime rates are lower than our knife crime rates.

And this need for additional powers to curb gun-related violence illustrates just how ineffective the laws are there.

Meanwhile, law-abiding people in the UK are deprived of their ability to protect themselves from these violent criminals, all because the UK got their knickers in a twist about guns.

Well, they need to untwist them, because the laws aren’t working and people are vulnerable to all kinds of horrible acts of violence. They shouldn’t have to worry about if they can run from a life-threatening situation, especially since that just makes them more vulnerable.

Unfortunately, Parliament isn’t likely to change anything. We just need to keep fighting so we don’t end up down this same road ourselves.