ISIS rampage in Brussels illustrates futility of gun control

Image by stevepb from Pixabay

Gun control is a debate here but it’s a reality throughout much of the world. We’ve also seen the flip side of that reality after Hamas attacked Israel just over a week ago.

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But some could argue that’s such a black swan event that it’s meaningless to any form of debate. I mean, Israel is in a unique situation in so many ways that it’s not really relevant to any other part of the world.

And they’re not completely wrong. Most nations don’t have a large portion of their country essentially cordoned off and filled with people who want its destruction and the slaughter of all its people.

Yet a situation in Brussels illustrates it’s not that unique, either.

Brussels was brought to a standstill last night after two people were killed when a gunman claiming to be a member of ISIS went on a rampage and opened fire on a group of Swedish football fans.

The gunman is said to have begun shooting at the men as they passed through Boulevard d’Ypres just a few minutes north of the city’s famous Grand Plaza.

The Swedes were wearing their team’s jerseys and were believed to be on their way to a match at King Baudouin Stadium, where Sweden were playing Belgium. A third person is said to be seriously injured.

The alleged attacker, named by local media as Abdesalem Lassoued, used the name ‘Slayem Slouma’ to boast about the two murders on Facebook, adding he sought to avenge the killing of a six-year-old US-Palestinian boy.

Speaking in Arabic, he celebrated the slaughter, and said he committed them in the name of ISIS.

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Now, let’s remember that Belgium has extensive gun control laws on the books. It’s not simple to get a firearm and yet, a literal terrorist got his hands on one and murdered two people. This was a terrorist attack and while it’s linked to what is happening in Israel, let’s not forget who started that particular ruckus and which side is explicitly going after civilian targets.

This was someone who wanted to pop and was just waiting for an excuse.

And the nation’s gun control laws did essentially nothing to prevent it.

Granted, we don’t know how the terrorist got his gun in the first place. If he’s actually linked to ISIS or something, then they might have gotten him a firearm easily enough. It’s not like they’re known for respecting law and order.

He might have gotten it via criminal means as well, much as any other criminal might.

It’s unlikely, but not impossible that he got it lawfully. If he did, though, then it raises even more questions about gun control in Belgium.

Either way, we do know that the gun control there prevented literally anyone in the area from stopping what was happening.

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No, it’s not a guarantee that someone could have stopped it even if their gun laws looked like Missouri’s, but as it was, that was never an option. There could not be a lawful gun owner there with the means to fight back because gun control advocates there won a long time ago.

But the terrorist wasn’t worried about those laws and we see how that went.

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