Seriously?
If you really think that there’s a chance that another stray bullet will come through the wall/window and kill you if you went to the U.S., do yourself a favour and buy a few Lucky Dips on the Lottery this weekend
UK Doctor killed by stray bullet - Georgia
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Seriously?
If you really think that there’s a chance that another stray bullet will come through the wall/window and kill you if you went to the U.S., do yourself a favour and buy a few Lucky Dips on the Lottery this weekend
Have you missed the fact that report was on another incident - not the one in the thread title ??
Soldato
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- 13,162
Have you missed the point in was in the opening post?
I mean having a stray bullet kill you is bad but a bunch of cops opening fire at an innocent car, missing it and hitting people in a crowd and killing a child is certainly more topical?
Caporegime
My grandad used to have an old war story where he was naive in not digging in his tent. The Japs used to fire on them during the night and he woke up with a bullet hole an inch above his head through his tent. It is safe to say the next night his tent was dug in!
I guess the only good thing with the story in the op is that it would have been instant and he would have felt nothing.
I guess the only good thing with the story in the op is that it would have been instant and he would have felt nothing.
Seriously?
If you really think that there’s a chance that another stray bullet will come through the wall/window and kill you if you went to the U.S., do yourself a favour and buy a few Lucky Dips on the Lottery this weekend
There is still a chance.
In the UK. The chance is so tiny it's basically non existence.
In the US.. that chance is 100000% higher
Soldato
- Joined
- 31 May 2009
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- 21,257
What?
Have you never fired in the rough direction of the nearest country while at sea on a vessel?
Tiss the American way !
What other steps do you take to avoid randomly being killed in a freak event? I would assume you're never in a crowded public place in Western Europe for fear of being killed in a terrorist attack for example
Seriously?
If you really think that there’s a chance that another stray bullet will come through the wall/window and kill you if you went to the U.S., do yourself a favour and buy a few Lucky Dips on the Lottery this weekend
I only went to Boston for work and I was surprised to see how run down the city was. Basically a block around the bay where all the newer businesses were was nice but outside it seemed like no upkeep has been done at all, the pavements were in a state, the 'park' was basically dead with even the grass basically giving up. The US is very overrated and no where near what you would consider "1st world"
It's also 10 million square km with over 300m people. But yeah, definitely worth judging it based on a single city.
You’re wasted here, with an imagination like that you could be a script writer for fantasy TV stories.
Maybe I use different criteria, until two years ago I’d been visiting the U.S. annually since 1976, sometimes twice a year, I’ve seen rundown areas in the South Bronx NYC, parts of Tampa FL, St.Louis MO, and South Central Los Angeles CA but the only time I ever felt vaguely uneasy was in 1979-1980 when I accidentally got on an Uptown Express instead of a Local on the NY subway and it went past my stop, (110th St), and stopped in the middle of Harlem at 125th St.
I had a couple of black American friends, and was actually staying on W113th St with an interracial couple, the guy a black lawyer, and his girlfriend a white Jewish lawyer, but I’d never been in a situation where mine was the only white face on the street.
I needn’t have worried, a couple of young black guys, probably picking up on my “where am I and how do I get out of here” look helped me out, they said that the quickest way to get back was to take the bus, which would stop closer to 113th St than the subway to 110th St would.
So although the U.S. may not be the garden spot of the Western world it’s nowhere near as bad as it’s made out to be from what I’ve seen of it.
Soldato
Yes it would have been a quick death, but still it's such an unlucky way to die. I think it should be a manslaughter charge (or the equivalent in US law) when the police identifies the guy who fired that gun.
It reminds me of that bin lorry driver in Scotland a few years ago, who killed 12 or 16 bystanders (can't remember exact number) because the driver was asleep at the wheel. Totally different story to the gun story but it's the same principle because the deaths were preventable in both stories.
It reminds me of that bin lorry driver in Scotland a few years ago, who killed 12 or 16 bystanders (can't remember exact number) because the driver was asleep at the wheel. Totally different story to the gun story but it's the same principle because the deaths were preventable in both stories.
If you're referring to Glasgow and Harry Clarke in 2014 then six people were killed and 15 injured. Harry wasn't asleep, he was unconscious.
Drove through Detroit once and the contrast from one bit to the next was stark - some bits were literally like 3rd world hell hole and apparently that wasn't even the bad parts but heading out to and including Ann Arbour other bits were pristine.
Caporegime
You're talking about a country from 40 years ago lt was almost closer to ww2 than now.
I know cabbies like to spin yarns but ....
Sure...
A place that 80% of adults own a gun (made up number).
More mental people in a square mile radius with guns.
And my fear is unwarranted?
I have a astronomically higher chance to be killed by a gun in the US than I do in the UK.
So.. I won't go.
Soldato
https://abcnews.go.com/amp/US/wireS...lish-astrophysicist-visiting-atlanta-82413272
Oh god - English Astrophysicist killed by stray bullet now in Atlanta :\.
Oh god - English Astrophysicist killed by stray bullet now in Atlanta :\.
Caporegime
Dunno if sarcastic but isn't it the same?
Soldato
That’s the same story as the op?
Considering the amount of guns there and their relatively ease of access then I’ll agree, mathematically you have more chance of being shot in the U.S., but astronomically is pushing the envelope.
In over forty years of regularly travelling there, visiting circa 18 or 19 of the Lower 48, staying 2, 3, or 4 weeks at a time, the only guns I’ve ever seen were either on a cop’s hip or in a pawnshop window.
I’m not a roving ambassador for the U.S. though, if you feel that you’d rather not go there then that’s your choice, but I’ve felt less safe in Istanbul, Cairo, and Marrakech than I ever did in Memphis TN, Chicago IL, or Phoenix AZ.
Man of Honour
I've been to the US a dozen times, mostly for business but a few times for holidays. It's alright, feels relatively safe, odd culture and very naive about the world in some instances, and very backwards in others, but also quite wonderful in other aspects. A lot of the people are wonderful, and some of the bigger cities are very exciting vibrant places. I've never felt in danger and that's even walking through some of the run down neighbourhoods - just like any big city to be honest. Even in some of the Southern states who are very indoctrinated with patriotism and religion they're welcoming and fun to talk to.
I don't like their gun culture, nor do I like a lot of their policies on sustainability, and the number of cottage industries that exist there (accountancy, medical, legal etc...) and the number of federal, state, county laws and regulations is just a bureaucratic nightmare - however for tourism it's less of an issue of course. Having been pulled over by the police a few times, and having had a few drink filled evenings with some locals of a small towns, I made it out in one piece with good stories to tell and overall good memories.
However this story of a stray bullet or accidental shootings are so obscure for us in Europe that I can sympathise with people like @Diagro feeling unmotivated to visit. Whilst there are more culturally rich and interesting places to visit in the world, America has got some wonderful scenery and good people - it's just spoilt by a lot of the others!
I don't like their gun culture, nor do I like a lot of their policies on sustainability, and the number of cottage industries that exist there (accountancy, medical, legal etc...) and the number of federal, state, county laws and regulations is just a bureaucratic nightmare - however for tourism it's less of an issue of course. Having been pulled over by the police a few times, and having had a few drink filled evenings with some locals of a small towns, I made it out in one piece with good stories to tell and overall good memories.
However this story of a stray bullet or accidental shootings are so obscure for us in Europe that I can sympathise with people like @Diagro feeling unmotivated to visit. Whilst there are more culturally rich and interesting places to visit in the world, America has got some wonderful scenery and good people - it's just spoilt by a lot of the others!