After School Arms Club
Mark Thomas puts the arms trade under the spotlight in this special edition of Dispatches, asking how easy it is to broker arms. Working his way through a spider’s web of vast and, in some cases, archaic legislation, Thomas unearths a series of dangerous loopholes, inconsistencies and, even more shocking, simple omissions that would have the most avaricious arms broker salivating with glee.
The programme highlights the international trade route that runs from Eastern Europe to the Far East and the twists and turns that make it possible to broker equipment like thumb cuffs, wall cuffs and the particularly menacing sting stick (two-foot metals bars covered with sharp spikes) within the existing UK guidelines.
In his inimitable style, Thomas highlights the shocking impact of this trade route not just in war-torn countries like Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia and Sierra Leone, but also in our own backyard. But nothing prepares Thomas for the possibilities that open up when he discovers a neighbouring European country with no brokerage laws.
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does anyone know what happened next? is the situation the same or has it changed? this is terrible. arms companies are criminals. why dont the govt get tough on this crime? coz they are corporate companies they get away with murder.
This doc is ******, the people on the doc are ****** too. We should be able to protect ourselves with any weapon we want. protect ourselves from who? from the government themselves! I like it when the girl said the “pain” stick was used in Tibet, why do i like it? because she proves my point: it was used by the GOVERNMENT! and used against the people of TIBET BY THEIR GOVERNMENT!!
2nd amendment, you got it backwards, The Chinese government used these “sting sticks” against the people of Tibet when they were peacefully protesting. And i suppose you believe it was the god given right of the Hutus to defend themselves with black market arms by killing a Million of their Tutsi Neighbors. Protecting one’s self from ignorance is the most powerful weapon against you’re government. You sir are the ****** one.
While I’m not for facilitating torture, I can’t imagine it’s possible to restrict imports of all instruments of torture, since virtually every object in existence can be used as such. That sting stick looks like it could hurt, but no more than than many common kitchen appliances and garage tools in the wrong hands. A noble cause is presented, but the methods will do much better for ratings and views than for prisoners.
Why can’t people just be proud to admit that they wish for complete gun control by the federal government? Unfortunately for them, the United States has a pesky little thing called the Second Amendment – a right be bear arms, no ifs ands or buts about it.
Fact: the most cruel dictators of the world enforced strict gun control laws: Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot, Kim Jong Il, Qaddafi, Mao Tse-Tung, Castro, Amin.
Fact: cities with the most strict (arguably unconstitutional) gun control laws have the highest gun crime rates and highest general crime rates: Los Angeles, New York, and Washington DC. On the other hand, cities with lenient gun control laws have the lowest crime rates in the country.