I was thrown into a panic this morning by Alan Ritch's reference in 'AWADmail Issue 317' to "the nine people who, almost literally, hold our lives in their hands". My God - who are these nine people?! Why didn't I know about this?! How could I have been living with a false sense of security for decades, unaware that my life was in the hands of nine shadowy individuals??

And then I realised - Mr. Ritch of Berkeley was probably referring to the US Supreme Court. A body which has jurisdiction over only 1 out of the 192 generally recognised countries - or only 4.6% of the global population. Phew! I'm still safe and sound here in Ireland. But then one has to ask - why was the term "our lives" used by Mr. Ritch? He would do well to remember that AWAD is a global phenomenon. Like so many scribes on the internet, he is guilty of that form of hegemonious US-centredness which makes the author completely forget that American culture and institutions are, in fact, very much the minority.

That said, I'd have to agree with Mr. Ritch's overall point of the ludicrousness of "the right to bear arms" as it still pertains in the US. I hope that the US will soon leave the 19th Century, and join the many of us enjoying tranquillity in the 21st.