[09x03] February 11th, 2007

[conceptualman]

Go to a German firearms shop. It's depressing. They make a Texas gunstore look pathetically stocked. What is not commonly known is that there are fewer restrictions on what you can buy in most places in Europe than there are in the US. Restrictions such as the UK are by far the minority. For example, in the US, silencers are illegal without special permits. In France, using a silencer is considered courteous as it doesn't disturb the neighbours. And any rifle built in Europe after 1986 is impossible to buy in the US unless parts are built in the US which is why rifles like the AUG are so expensive over here. The difference is that European firearms are subject to much greater restrictions on use or storage.

By way of example, about two years ago, the Irish courts declared the restrictions on firearm ownership null and void. For the first time in over thirty years, anything became legal to hold, to include fully-automatic weapons. As you can imagine, every shooter in the country went shopping, and on Irish boards I'm seeing people displaying pictures of newly purchased arms that I can't buy in the US, at ages much younger than in the US. It's depressing. The catches are that before the local Garda superintendent will sign the import papers, you have to prove that you have a place to shoot it (eg a club), and that you have satisfactory storage facilities (an alarmed vault), and of course, you can't carry a loaded firearm down the street.

The streets of Dublin (or more to the point, Limerick!) have not seen rivers of blood as a result of this de-restriction.

that's interesting . i didn't know that . ironically, you're from frisco of all places .
in ireland , apparently , they have liberalised many things in recent history . economic law , weapons ownership , business law , have been liberalized . and the govt desocialized . no wonder they have a per capita gdp which beats the uk and people are leaving france to go to work in ireland .
also, the heritage foundation lists the uk and ireland as among the most economically free countries below hong kong ,singapore ,australia , united states and new zealand . a little information with the entertainment .

 

[iongerm]

Best episode EVER! My boyfriend had to hold me tight, as I almost fell off the sofa laughing. I don't care if there was no "proper" car talk in this episode, as for me TG has long moved on from car focused magazin to very good Sunday evening entertainment. And what it has progressed into- realistically very few of us will ever be able to test any of the cars that are reviewed on this show. So whoever watches TG for those practial reasons is fracly a bit ignorant to reality. Every element is about entertainment, and that includes stereotypes and provocation in any direction. I'm German, and I could be very offended by the comments that get regularly thrown in our direction, but I'm not. I laugh at jokes and have a good time, as I do have a sense of humor- contrary to another Germans' prejudice.
If you don't like it, when they make fun out of non-UK citizens, then watch something else or read a good, informative but boring car magazin that is not TG-Mag...

 

[Manic Moran]

ironically, you're from frisco of all places .

I was born here, I live here now, but that doesn't mean I always lived here... My accent is Irish.

in ireland , apparently , they have liberalised many things in recent history . economic law , weapons ownership , business law , have been liberalized . and the govt desocialized.

I don't think the Irish system has desocialised, unless I've missed something in the last ten years or so. There has been a lot of privatisation, some more successful than others. (Hmm... I wonder if I still have my Eircom shares?). Indeed, arguably the Irish success is a demonstration of successful socialisation; back in the 1960s when education became priority #1, at the cost of things like transport infrastructure and defence, followed by a massive government influx in tech infrastructure in the late 1980s/early 90s. You still have one of the top three education systems in the world, and it's all pretty much fees-free. You still have to buy the books and lodging though, and it's taking some fire for being far too stressful. A lot of competition. I don't see it working in the US though.

NTM

 

[LoneWolf]

That episode was simply hilarious, and yes I am an American. Every part of the "American culture" that they made fun of(being fat, rednecks, breeding with vegetables, etc) is something I (and many other Americans) make fun of too.

Top Gear is awesome

Speaking of making fun of American culture, I was crying with laughter when my friend e-mailed me this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCkYfYa8ePI

I don't take it too seriously, there's a part of me that doesn't want to believe American's are really that stupid, but boy is it hillarious! :lol:

 

[115spider]

hahaha that was a good one .


a. in the home of the autobahn , no less .
b. your govt probably privatised because it could not afford the expenses or was not doing things efficiently enough and was not allowed to sell the service at market prices . also , if a cartel is running the market , it is not a free market .
c. frankly , in a few years , the issue may be moot with the decline of oil and the rise of other sources of energy . the electric car may make a comeback . there is an electric car company in america which has a car with a range of 250 miles and has a 0-60 of about 4 secs . however ,this should be up to the market to decide ...
d. i understand london already has "gun control" .
e. you mean everytime you eat you have to go to a school ?
f. you're right . bears should not be armed !

btw...just wondering , what do you think of angela merkel ?

a) was talking about UK - i got caught (and let off - thank god!!) doing 114 mph on the M20 in kent, my defence was "i only have a kph speedo, and had no idea i was going so fast..."


btw, i'm english, just live in germany, so my comments should be attributed to UK issues.

Merkel?? the CIA are welcome to "borrow" merkel at any point , along with her fellow ex-east german deputy - i think most german's wouldnt ask for them to be returned either....

 

[steelgrayscooby]

I've seen all of the Top Gear seasons, and this episode was....IMHO

Horrible, Boring, Scripted to beyond a soap opera(Gas station was a surprise), Felt like a circus, Poorly filmed.

I love Top Gear, and I do understand that this episode was a "Special", and thus should not really be about cars, but actually entertainment, but I found it to be really, really, boring.

It took me 3 days to fully watch it, It could not hold my attention beyond 15 min.

I don't know....Top Gear is Great, but Top Gear Specials....are......blah.

Also I am an American, and did NOT find any of that offensive, or anything. Just boring.

 

[lllflypaperlll]

All i have to say is avoid certain areas in miami at all costs. A guy I know who travels said he saw a guy walking around in broad daylight with a rifle on his back, no joke.

 

[tinman]

It was better than Gumball. They should definately make this an annual event. A worldwide thing. I do wish they would make the guys do a really long road trip all in the same car one day though. And with me as the 4th person in the car to upside down map read....

There is a relationship between this TG episode and an event we put on called BABE Rally. BABE Rally is for $250 cars going from New York to New Orleans. (www.baberally.com).

A TopGear team for the magazine came on the event in May last year, and absolutely loved every minute of it, hence its not entirely surprising to see JC, RH and JM do something very similar as the various departments of TG are partially linked.

http://www.topgear.com/content/features/stories/2006/10/stories/05/4.html

For some reason the pictures are gone, but the write up is still there.

 

[conceptualman]

I don't think the Irish system has desocialised, unless I've missed something in the last ten years or so. There has been a lot of privatisation, some more successful than others. (Hmm... I wonder if I still have my Eircom shares?). Indeed, arguably the Irish success is a demonstration of successful socialisation; back in the 1960s when education became priority #1, at the cost of things like transport infrastructure and defence, followed by a massive government influx in tech infrastructure in the late 1980s/early 90s. You still have one of the top three education systems in the world, and it's all pretty much fees-free. You still have to buy the books and lodging though, and it's taking some fire for being far too stressful. A lot of competition. I don't see it working in the US though.

true , unfortunately the american public school system is a disaster . it is a system which is fundamentally flawed . it is so flawed that it can not be fixed and should instead be dismantled ,though others may disagree ... in its place should be a system funded by vouchers to be used by the parents and students who are affected by their own educational decisions . then billions of dollars would not be wasted into the pockets of corrupt politicians , inefficiency , and the n.e.a. (the union of public school teachers) . in education one method does not fit all .

and here's one more thing . i have noticed immigrants in more and more of the tech , medical , physics areas of employment in america . it is as if american leaders say " no worries, if our own people cant do it , there are plenty who can , they are from countries where they have a functioning educational system ."

lastly ,while i'm still on my rant , the information age is now overlapping into the age of finance , imho , therefore the new western education should reflect greater knowledge of business , economics ,finance etc .

wow ! now i feel better .

 

[zenkidori]

My ex-girlfriend (who's from America) was stunned to see that in Europe we'd just ask people for directions. Even in the middle of the night in a large city. Kinda says enough IMHO.

so because your girlfriend was from the ghetto all of america is like that?

i'm quite the night owl and always walking around, even in downtown denver in the wee hours of the night and have never feared for anything. in fact some of the most interesting conversations i've had were with complete strangers i'd meet along the way, including homeless people.

in my area you'd need to be a lot more concerned about mountain lions or bears than someone attacking you.

Picture taken in the haven of violence that is Switzerland.

Go to a German firearms shop. It's depressing. They make a Texas gunstore look pathetically stocked. What is not commonly known is that there are fewer restrictions on what you can buy in most places in Europe than there are in the US. Restrictions such as the UK are by far the minority. For example, in the US, silencers are illegal without special permits. In France, using a silencer is considered courteous as it doesn't disturb the neighbours. And any rifle built in Europe after 1986 is impossible to buy in the US unless parts are built in the US which is why rifles like the AUG are so expensive over here. The difference is that European firearms are subject to much greater restrictions on use or storage.

By way of example, about two years ago, the Irish courts declared the restrictions on firearm ownership null and void. For the first time in over thirty years, anything became legal to hold, to include fully-automatic weapons. As you can imagine, every shooter in the country went shopping, and on Irish boards I'm seeing people displaying pictures of newly purchased arms that I can't buy in the US, at ages much younger than in the US. It's depressing. The catches are that before the local Garda superintendent will sign the import papers, you have to prove that you have a place to shoot it (eg a club), and that you have satisfactory storage facilities (an alarmed vault), and of course, you can't carry a loaded firearm down the street.

The streets of Dublin (or more to the point, Limerick!) have not seen rivers of blood as a result of this de-restriction.



[Edited to display civilised Continental European gun control in action]

NTM

wtf that's crazy. i hadn't heard of that. just goes to show that guns aren't the problem, idiot people are the problem. IMO we should have licenses and no other restrictions. simpler and i think more effective.

 

[Nano]

... how it is possible, that America, the big and rich USA trying to rule the world and "export the democracy" (at least Mr. Bush says, that invading another country is an "export of democracy"), wasn't able to "clean its own house" first?

Contrary to popular belief, America is not a democracy, it is a Chucktatorship.

 

[AnGuRuSO]

Contrary to popular belief, America is not a democracy, it is a Chucktatorship.

and what is a chucktatorship?

 

[pepitko]

one of the best episodes ever, I agree that a TG Special like this should be in every series. Hillarious, entertaining, but still about cars, great great episode.

my favorite line:
"We should use a calendar for this, not a stop watch"

 

[NHeer-Design]

I loved this episode. It was pure genius, it really was.

 

[FutureResident]

I thought TG was never going to come back to the States. It was hilarious to see them having to deal with the natives. I don't live in Alabama, but it might as well been any of the small towns around here; scary people. How they managed the cow onto the car I can only fathom, but how they got it off was priceless. I bet they left the thing there too. Definitely one of the most unique TG episode ever.

 

[Exano]

All i have to say is avoid certain areas in miami at all costs. A guy I know who travels said he saw a guy walking around in broad daylight with a rifle on his back, no joke.

Living in Miami, I can tell you that there are areas you DONT want to go to. But its not nearly as bad as they filmed it to be, its really a nice place. A lot nicer then most parts of London.

However, while never seeing anyone walking around with a rifle on his back in the 12 years ive been here, I can honestly say dont go alone to some areas..but thats true with any city anywhere in the world.

 

[Manic Moran]

There was a time once when seeing people with rifles on their backs just meant they were coming back from hunting or plinking.. Even city-dwellers.

NTM

 

[Scoots1994]

Funny even in the USA

Funny even in the USA

That was the best hour of TV in years. Pure gold, even here in the redneck USA.

 

[Polish]

I demand this episode be brought out on DVD! I would absolutely love to own this adventure on DVD, as well as have a ton of extras and behind the scenes info on this. I cannot get enough of it, i've watched it a few times through now.

 

[oakenfold]

That was simply an amazing episode, def going on my list of best ever. and being from the states made it all the more hilarious. Note to self: stay out of Alabama!