Shots fired during family argument

@ Herbert Guillaumier
Mind your language please. I come from Zejtun and can assure you that the people of Zejtun are the most helpful and kind hearted one can find. Also if you want i invite you to come to Zejtun and I give you a free tour so you can see for yourself.

To all those concerned about the so called 'weapon madness'.

In Malta there are a good number of shotguns and a relatively small number of pistols - those that are used in ranges are all legal and as required by law.

I happen to love the sports of target shooting - yet I do not go about threatening people with my pistol. So why should it be confiscated?

All this hogwash of having a weapon and using it in an argument is nothing but cheap talk - the next time someone decides to use a car to grind a friend, will these people ask the police to confiscate their cars because they have been used as weapons?

And what about hammers, kitchen knives, blades, chairs etc??? All of these items have been used to kill -do we go through our lives without them?

Ladies and gentlemen, what you're talking about is grosso modo what sociologists call the labelling theory. Give a dog a bad name and there you are: Zwieten have the OK Corral DNA and so forth. I come from Zebbug, so my opinion about my fellow townsmen must be biased ... in their favour. I have lived my entire life in Zebbug and have no plans to move anywhere else. Maybe you could interpret the reason behind my decisions thus: better the devil(s) you know. Could be. But my opinion about the Zwieten can be judged as more objective. I guess Zwieten are kinder as a rule than the Zebbugin and not as tough. Maybe wilder, more gullible, but more controllable. But this is, after all, stereotyping and not absolutely reliable in all cases. As for individualism (even patriotism as an extreme form of the former ism), the Zebbugin retain their primacy. Vassalli, Xerri, Pullicino, Psaila, Sciortino ... these names remain major icons of the Maltese ethos. I cannot think of any other town or village that can boast of nobler personages. They represent the loftiest inspiration that helped turn the Maltese Islands from a remote archipelago into an independent island-state.

@J.Borg who seems to be the antigun guru every time the term gun pops up.
With all your drivel against firearms I would very much like to know what you would do if a murderer was about to harm you and your family in your home and your only choice of defence are a broom and a shotgun. Which would you pick up ? Categorically you won't tell us shotgun on here will you, unless obviously you are a karate expert also capable of shooting great balls of fire from your eeears (pun intended of course) !

@ Charles J. Buttigieg
I agree with you that the Zwieten are the most peaceful, helpful and also the cleanest village in this country. It is the provocation and intimidation of such political people that put this stigma on them.
By the way i'm not from Zejtun but i worked with those people and found out how kind they are.

@ J Borg - Civilisation is probably best defined by the number of non-essential items and pursuits one can enjoy. Essentiality does not come into it.

Food, basic shelter, and procreation are the only true essentials, just like they are to animals.

The Internet, the roof over your head, your clothes, your car, any sport, any hobby, any religion, why, even knives, bottles, etc - they are not essential to your or humanity's survival.

Dear wise gun banners, since guns are the root of all evil, and without guns we would have no violence as this would be impossible -

Kindly take a look at http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20090702/local/two-critical-after-zebbug-fight and recommend what exactly we should be banning there. No comments yet, now that is rather telling is it not!

Is the subject of the article 'A fight at Zebbug 'or 'Towns and Villages in Malta'? I got mixed up! I used to work as a nurse in a clinic in Zejtun and since then I learned that they are very nice and helpful people. They used to make us coffee or tea and some toast while we were on duty. With experience I can say that the Zejtun and Marsaxlokk people have the best character. You know were you are with them and they're very humble. Let us not hurt one another with stupid stigma. After all we all belong to one small but beautiful mother island. Btw, I'm not from Zejtun ;) As for the fight, I condemn all type of violence, but on the otherside I sympathize with them all ... No one can judge anybody because no one knows what happened. I wouldn't bring such articles on local newspapers .... these should remain private!

Is the subject of the article 'A fight at Zebbug 'or 'Towns and Villages in Malta'? I got mixed up!
I used to work as a nurse in a clinic in Zejtun and since then I learned that they are very nice and helpful people. They used to make us coffee or tea and some toast while we were on duty. With experience I can say that the Zejtun and Marsaxlokk people have the best character. You know were you are with them and they're very humble. Let us not hurt one another with stupid stigma. After all we all belong to one small but beautiful mother island. Btw, I'm not from Zejtun ;)
As for the fight, I condemn all type of violence, but on the otherside I sympathize with them all ... No one can judge anybody because no one knows what happened. I wouldn't bring such articles on local newspapers .... these should remain private!

Erm,... excuse me,... What does this article have to do with Zejtun??

One last shot (pun intended)

to all those who have dismissed the recommendation to round up all firearms (unless unusable display items) - by saying that we will need to collect knives, glass bottles etc.

I hope we all agree that knives, glass bottles etc. come very handy in everyone's daily (normal) life - rendering such items useful if not even necessary.

Now can someone pls justify how a firearm can be considered commonly useful - or necessary?
And in doing so also justifies the usefulness he/she may see, in the light of the criminal acts, injuries and even murders commited by such firearms?

Sure, firearms will still be held illegally - however holding a firearm when its possession is not deemed illegal is a warmer cup of tea for anyone.

Herbert Guillaumier

and to each and every with a wrong perception of Zejtun:

I have been living in Zejtun for the past 20 years now, previously living in Mosta and Iklin. With all due respect to people in Attard and Iklin about whom I have absolutely nothing wrong to state, I could only describe Zejtun as a heavenly village!!

It is a really peaceful place and its warmth is next to none! People living here come from all parts of society just like in each and every village, at it is amazing how all the neighbourhood comes out to help ... even their own enemy! The feast has just been celebrated and I could vow that in these 20 years, the 2 band clubs pass from infront of each other with their celebrations and yet still a single fight NEVER occurred!

And people also come over literally crying with joy for others' achievements .... as if it is their own!

Maybe you need a cultural tour around to appreciate Zejtun and its people. It is truely a gem with views of Marsaxlokk, St Thomas Bay, Marsascala and Pretty Bay which surround this village.

So before commenting .... please be informed!

How and why did this accident trigger off a mud flinging match between the zebbugin and the zwieten? Both villages can boast great Maltese in literature, arts and patriots. likewise I am sure that if we look deep enough we will discover not so peasant characters in both villages as in all other towns, cities and villages.
I believe that even in hell there are devils and there are devils.....ask Dante!
So stop generalising and stereotyping please.

There is good and bad everywhere be it Zejtun, Zebbug, Sliema, Valletta etc.
Unfortunately Zejtun has a past (recent past), which is not very nice and they have to live with the stigma. Every town or village or city has the good and the bad.

'Every family has its black sheep'. What then in a whole town? We should not generalise.

@ J>FARRUGIA & @Herbert Guillaumier - you actually do not know what you are talking about. You should feel ashamed you are part of this sleazy hatred towards Zejtun, a community rich in talent, kind-hearted people and enriched with great personalities. You do not even know what type of treatment young people from town have to endure when they are at school or looking for employment because of nonsense like yours. Be honest and say that this argument could have happened anywhere in the islands!

@ j Farrugia

I cannot understnad why you are judging! after ll zejtun, zebbug ... we all live in this very small island of Malta..please grow up. That time of comparing north or south, east & west is OVER! grow up!!

@ J FARRUGIA
ISKOT THALLIX LIL MIN IGELDEK MAL PROXMU SPECJALMENT DAK ZEJTUNI KUL MIN JGHOLLI JDEH GHANDU XI XOMM U GHOQOD ATTENT/A MIN XI BALLABOSTRA (ARA BIEX NICCAJTA)

@Mr Herbert Guillaumier
As a patriot from Zejtun I feel very sad to read your comment .I am very very proud of my town and it`s history.You have to come to Zejtun to see and learn about it`s poeple. (Trouble makers are everywhere some of them are hidden my friend) Yes proud of our poeple from Zejtun,if there is an example of what we are see our parish church built by the ZWIETEN.(even mosta dome is built by the zwieten MASTRU ANGLU).If I was you read the books of REV J. ABELA I`m sure you will change your perception to us.

herbert.....haz zebbug genna ta l art hdejn iz zejtun!

With Mr. J. Borg's reasoning I read this following news from another timesofmalta article: http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20090702/local/accused-of-partners-attempted-murder

And adapt Mr. Borg's reasoning, thus it should read as follows,.. And we still have 'knives' in OUR
islands, countryside, villages, roads, streets, cars, clubs and homes....

how many fatalities (or near-ofs) more are required until the authorities decide to collect these factually lethal items and have their use and thus their storage limited only to 'butchers'?

Silly reasoning ain't it?? Mr. Borg, I do own guns, I do own knives, I do own a car, I do have my freedom to do whatever I want as long as it's legal, but that does not make me a criminal. I never want to lose the privilege of holding any of them for a moment of anger. You can never generalise, it is unfair and unjust. It's like saying "every woman is equipped to be a prostitute," but that does not make every woman one, does it? The human behind them is the real weapon,.. punish the individual human, not legitimate users and their passtime.

@ Herbert Guillaumier ,

Once I got a car breakdown in Zejtun and a person you would call a Wild CowBoy full of tattoos and smoking like a chimney helped me fix my car and did not even want a tip.
I am pretty sure I would have got different treatment in other coastal parts of Malta.
For me that guy is a living saint as he loved his neighbour as himself.

William Attard McCarthy

Hogwash - it's not hard drugs that kill but their users - so why are drugs illegal ?
Its not guns that make theft, so why am I not allowed to enter a bank with a gun in my pocket ?

Guns should be banned, the likes of drugs, the the incidence of them will be reduced to the illegal ones around. The mere fact that you own a gun, will increase your chances of using it when you're in a heated argument. While I understand what you are trying to say, it is child like talk and nothing more. Why don't we allow Libya and other rouge states to hold WMD ? Why all the fuss on Iran ? Weapons of mass destruction don't kill - their users do. Well if their users didnt have them in the first place, than they would not be tempted to use them when they go nuts.

Fully agree with you Mr. C. Buttigieg. I'm a Zejtunija and proud of it too. Guess Mr.Herbert Guillaumier was just
joking. Was he ?

This accidents can happen everywhere in each country. As a Zebbug resident i can say that my neighbourhood is very quiet and gentle.

@ hERNERT

Mind your comments please...
the attitude of someone like what haddpened in the last election and other incidents does not and SHOULD not reflect the people from zejtun

These hotheads should be told they have to have anger management or go to jail.

@William Attard McCarthy and Galea L. ........ Ok your point is valid about anything being used as a weapon but I for one would rather face a man with a knife than one with a shotgun. While it's always controversial to generalize, someone who kills animals (birds) for fun will have much less trouble using a firearm on another human than one who does not. If the other human is a family relative, then the guilty person is a danger to society and as such should be locked away. If you can shoot someone from your own family it's evident you would not have second thoughts about using the weapon on a stranger.

Herbert Guillaumier
Zejtun is a peaceful town and the Zwieten are lovely people. Poor souls they just became the victims of a mud slinging campaign. Trust me,you can knock on any door at Zejtun and you would get all the assistance you ask for including food and shelter.

J. Borg
Are the police going to collect all knives, screwdrivers, glass, preserve cans, forks, hammers and anything else that could be used to commit a crime?
Get a life Borg.

Mr. Borg, it is not the firearm that kills, but its user... In absence of firearms, I am certain that those with intention to do harm would revert to using something else as a weapon.

Before gunpowder was invented, it was daggers and swords.....does this imply that after the Govt. has commissioned all firearms it would eventually proceed to commissioning our kitchen utensils??

The WILD WEST (Zejtun)days have shifted to Zebbug.

and we still have firearms in OUR
islands, countryside, villages, roads, streets, cars, clubs and homes....

how many fatalities (or near-ofs) more are required until the authorities decide to collect these factually lethal items and have their use and thus their storage limited only to shooting ranges?