Foreign

Deaths at US Party Shooting, 28 Injured

By Web News 344

At least two people were killed and 28 wounded in a mass shooting at a street party early Sunday in the US city of Baltimore, police said.

Officials said more than one assailant opened fire at the celebration in Baltimore, a port city about an hour’s drive north of Washington which has one of the highest homicide rates in America.

The motive for the latest chapter in America’s gun violence crisis was not immediately known, and police appealed for anyone with information about who was responsible to come forward.

“Treat this as if it was your daughter, your son, your brother, your cousin that was out here, shot at this event,” said Mayor Brandon Scott.

“We must come together as Baltimore and wrap our arms around this Brooklyn community and each other,” he said, referring to the neighborhood where the shooting took place.

One 18-year-old woman was found dead at the scene and a 20-year-old man died after being taken to hospital, a police statement said.

The victims range in age from 13 to 32, said acting police commissioner Richard Worley.

As of Sunday afternoon, all but nine of the 28 wounded had been released from hospitals.

Some remained in critical condition.

Punch / Titilayo Kupoliyi

Foreign

Beto O’Rourke Interrupts  Texas Governor over Gun Laws

By Web News 647

A confrontation during Texas governor Greg Abbott’s press conference on Wednesday laid bare the deep political divide on gun legislation.

Beto O’Rourke, the Democratic candidate running for governor against Abbott, walked to the front of the room in the middle of the conference. The governor had just suggested the gunman’s poor mental health – not his firearm – was the reason the shooting happened.

Abbott’s deputy was heard telling O’Rourke he was “out of line” as he was being escorted out.

BBC /Taiwo Akinola

Feature

Odd World: Man Owns 100 Guns, 100,000 Rounds for Self-Protection

By Web News 1072

There are so many differences and peculiarities in the world even in these days of the global village.

Like the Yoruba adage says, “bí wọ́n ṣe máa ń ṣe ní ile yii, eewọ ibo míràn ni” which translates to “what is the norm in one culture is a taboo in another”.

The issue of gun ownership for whatever purpose is so important in the United States, U.S., that it is deeply entrenched in the country’s constitution as a fundamental human right.

The right to keep and bear arms in the United States is a fundamental right protected by the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution, part of the Bill of Rights, and by the constitutions of most U.S. states.

“The Second Amendment (Amendment II) to the United States Constitution protects the right to keep and bear arms. It was ratified on December 15, 1791, along with nine other articles of the Bill of Rights.” (Wikipedia)

This brings this author to this story posted on Quora by Guns and self-protection in December 2021, which is reposted below, as he wonders what folks from other parts of the world would think of it.

You may have heard on the news about a Southern California man who was put under 72-hour psychiatric observation when it was found he owned 100 guns and allegedly had 100,000 rounds of ammunition stored in his home.

The house also featured a secret escape tunnel.

By Southern California standards, someone owning 100,000 rounds is considered “mentally unstable.

But…

In Michigan, he’d be called ”the last white guy still living in Detroit”.

In Arizona, he’d be called “an avid gun collector”.

In Arkansas, he’d be called “a novice gun collector”.

In Utah, he’d be called “moderately well prepared”, but they’d probably reserve judgment until they made sure that he had a corresponding quantity of stored food.

In Kansas, he’d be “A guy down the road you would want to have for a friend”.

In Montana, he’d be called “The neighborhood ‘Go-To’ guy”.

In Idaho, he’d be called ”a likely gubernatorial candidate”.

In Georgia, he’d be called “an eligible bachelor”.

In North Carolina, Virginia, WV, Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, South Carolina and Minnesota he would be called “a deer hunting buddy”.

AND, OF COURSE,

In Florida, he’d just be “a guy who’s a little short on Ammo”.

What do you think such a person would be called in Nigeria?

Maxwell Oyekunle