On Mon, 24 Nov 2003 17:38:24 +0900, Declan Murphy
<declan_murphy@hotmail.com> wrote:

>Raj Feridun wrote:
>> On Sun, 23 Nov 2003 23:53:59 +0900, Eric Takabayashi
>> <etakajp@yahoo.co.jp> wrote:
>
>>>It is not, nor is it a defense. I see such ignorance or denial among Japanese
>>>all the time. Even killings take place in Fukuyama, yet people will claim it
>>>is not a problem. There is a rifle store (which advertises a shooting club) in
>>>the neighborhood across the street, yet people claim that there are no guns in
>>>Japan and that I must have seen model guns. I guess all the gun related crimes
>>>(including in Fukuyama) are imaginary, as well.
>> 
>> Most guns in Japan are cheap Chinese crap brought in by the yakuza.
>> They're just as likely to blow up and kill the person firing them.
>
>Yes most of the guns brought into Japan are of Chinese manufacture 
>(according to the local police officers I had a chinwag with last week, 
>the remaining black market guns are stolen). They are not however "crap" 
>nor likely to injure their user, unless said user is an idiot. Apart 
>from the problem of black market 56-1 (Chinese version of the AK47), the 
>gradual proliferation of reliable pistols is apparently also a growing 
>concern.

Thank you for this information. I was not even aware that Chinese had
their own variant of the Kalishnakov rifle.

>Which prefecture/town do you live in btw? My last trip to Shikoku was in 
>August (Awaji/Tokushima/Iya/Kochi/Takamatsu).

I'm in the mountains of Matsuyama Prefecture. How did you enjoy your
trip? Sounds like you had almost the same itinerary as that Taiwanese
physician with SARS last winter. Did you make it over to Shodoshima?