The United States’ Second Amendment protections of the right to keep and bear arms may have gone from archaic to envied this week as Austrians and other Europeans–particularly women–pour into stores looking for firearms with which to protect themselves from the hordes of Islamic migrants flooding into their countries.
The migrants have brought violence and already portend a change in culture for the countries they are entering.
For example, Breitbart News previously reported that violence is a fixed part of life in the centers where migrants are gathered in Germany, and the violence is expected to spread from there. Researchers at Die Welt observed, “Violent behaviour and aggressive verbal confrontations, threats or insults and serious damage to property were very commonly reported, indicating they are part of everyday life in the hired accommodation.”
In addition to this raw violence, the Gatestone Institute points to a “rape epidemic” that exists among the migrants. This epidemic first began to show via the rape of 13-year old girl and a 16-year-old girl within areas where migrants are gathered. That worsened, with conditions for women and girls at some shelters becoming so perilous that females were being described as “wild game” fighting off Muslim male predators. And now “the raping of German women by asylum seekers is [allegedly] becoming commonplace.”
On top of this violence, culture is changing. Christian migrants are forced to live “segregated” from Muslim migrants in the German state of Thuringia. There are examples of hundreds of migrants coming to Germany believing there are two sets of laws–a law for the Germans and then Sharia for the Muslims. And there is attempted dominance of Christians among many of the migrants, as well as outright violence toward those who hold to the Christian faith.
Simon Jacob is with the Central Council of the Eastern Christians. He said, “I know a lot of reports of Christian refugees who are under attack. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. The number of unreported cases is high. We must expect further conflicts that bring the refugees from their homeland to Germany. Between Christians and Muslims. Between Shiites and Sunnis. Between Kurds and extremists. Between Yazidis and extremists.”
Amid this tumult, many Austrians are seeking firearms with which to defend their lives and the lives of their families–and women are predominant in this push for guns for self-defense.
Townhall reports this situation in Austria:
Nearly all shotguns are sold out because there is no permit required to purchase them, according to arms dealer in Upper Austria. For all other firearms, however, a license is required, which in turn means courses to become licensed are now taking place weekly, instead of every five weeks.
According to the University of Sydney, the process of acquiring a gun in Austria or Germany is laborious. First off, neither country guarantees the right to own a gun. Secondly, the process of obtaining a firearm includes “passing a background check which considers criminal and mental records.” In both countries the ownership of semi-automatic rifles and handguns “is permitted only with special authorization,” and the ownership of ammunition is heavily regulated.
Perhaps citizens did not think about it until a time like this, but a considerable amount of time is required to meet these and other regulations. Every control in the gun control spectrum puts a bit more distance between the life of the citizen who may be endangered tonight and the gun that could be used to keep to defend that life from violence.
Follow AWR Hawkins on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.
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