“Even in Israel the laws for private gun ownership are as oppressive as in western Europe. Strange, with Arabs in their midst you would think Israelis would want to be packing.”
Not exactly.
First, recall that we have a large percentage of our population that can’t be trusted not to use a vehicle as a weapon. Ergo, a decision was made to restrict firearm ownership.
Second, recall that there is a draft (for the Jewish, Druze, and now Christian) populations. When in the reserves and then upon retirement, most are entitled to carry a weapon.
So the number of weapons in the hands of Jewish civilians in Israel is probably the same as civilians in Texas.
It’s a roundabout way to get to much the same place.
Yes, you are generally limited to one pistol, shotgun, and rifle. But, for a pilot, I am excellent with that one pistol I’ve used (in various iterations) for my life.
“...a large percentage of our population that can’t be trusted not to use a vehicle as a weapon. Ergo, a decision was made to restrict firearm ownership.”
Don’t quite see the connection there, but I would like to know: are retired IDF reservists allowed to keep their service weapon? This is the case in Switzerland, though upon retirement the rifle is altered to semi-auto fire only.
Guess gun collecting as in America is unknown in Israel outside of museums?
By different culture, I learned to shoot in my upper single digits, over 60 years ago. And while I've no doubt you're capable with one pistol, I am too. Except I'd have to choose which one. I guess that's what I mean by a different culture. It's a sport and a hobby. I doubt the number of weapons is the same as in Texas, the amount you can use at one time, perhaps. I often comment on the absurdity of projecting values over centuries, but not much different across even friendly cultures. The other side, the number of weapons carried openly in Israel, liberals by the tens of thousands would need smelling salts here. That's really not seen much, especially in urban areas.
Mildly curious as to what pistol that might be ...