54 replies to this topic

[digger]

There is the type of application that the person may put the item or knowledge to, for consideration too.

I have a huge knife but it sits in the kitchen next to the breadboard. -It's considered a normal kitchen breadknife.

If I brandished the same knife in a public place then there would be offences committed.

I look at pyrotechnics as a hobby with pretty colours, shapes and movement. Stars, rockets, cakes, cones, candles etc even the noise is incidental though some noise is essential.

I'm a graduate chemist I could mis-apply pyro and chemistry but I am dis-inclined.

I agree

Interesting thread

It is a dangerous situation to agree with the banning of information, as this promotes bigotry in society and can lead to dichotomy of beliefs.

I agree some information can be used to create fear, however it should be intent to use information against society that should be denounced, investigated and prosecuted. A witch hunt is not helpful.

At the end of the day a committed terrorist will find the information he requires to achieve his aims regardless of whether a book is banned or not.

I enjoy the hobby of pyrotechnics with all the crowd pleasing effects that it is able to create, however if we allow information to become banned then this may not be a hobby that it is possible to pursue in the future because as I am sure you will agree certain compositions could be subverted for other uses (certainly more powerful that the gunpowder this chap was intending to use).

[Arthur Brown]

There is the impossibility of banning publications to consider, HMG's failed attempts to ban the Spycatcher book made that book an essential purchase, and a best seller.

[digger]

There is the impossibility of banning publications to consider, HMG's failed attempts to ban the Spycatcher book made that book an essential purchase, and a best seller.

I agree, however the point is, simple possession of information should not immediately single you out as an enemy of the state whether you are white, black, brown, yellow or green as some have said in this thread. The key is the way in which the information is intended to be used as you say (the knife).

[bogsulphur]

I've been selling kno3 on ebay for 2 1/2 years now without any problems. And before you start, yes, I do all the stuff everybody loves to believe ebay sellers ignore. Anyway I got a phone call from west yorkshire police a month ago (i live in glasgow) saying they wanted to meet me. I had no idea why, or how they got my number or anything so I was pretty worried.

When they eventually came up (they drove 3 hundred miles from w.yorkshire instead of telling strathclyde police to get me so I realised it must be serious) they met me in central station and took me into an absolutely tiny room in the transport police office, and shone an incredibly bright light on me. They said 'do you know what this is about' and I said no and they said 'we're from counter-terrorism,' as in government agents. Then they told me some asian guy had bought kno3 off me on ebay and used it to make a b**b to use against the bnp in leeds.

As you can imagine I was getting kind of worried by this point. What happened was they took a massive 9 page statement, told me to come to court next year sometime to give a witness statement and let me go. BUT read this - this is the story, or the bare bones of it anyway.

http://www.yorkshire...t-on.3214623.jp

Update on this: They were acquitted on all charges a couple of days ago. Sounds like a couple of teenagers were just messing around and unfortunately happened to be Muslims at the same time. Here's the link: http://news.bbc.co.u...ord/7685636.stm

Couple of points from that article; the Anarchists Cookbook and potassium nitrate are not what one would use if one wanted to actually do some structural damage. Also, the 'significant amounts' referred to are the 500g KNO3 he bought from me. Why calcium chloride is mentioned I don't know, correct me if I'm wrong, I thought it was merely a dessicant.

[Arthur Brown]

Sadly in newspaper parlance a bottle of baby bio plant food and a roll of toilet paper is "tubes and fertiliser to make bombs" Add in a minority religion and the ability to speak a foreign language........

Newspapers do not like the truth getting between them and a good story.

Edited by Arthur Brown, 26 October 2008 - 02:36 PM.

[Richard H]

All the more reason not to sell chemicals online in my opinion. Besides all the packaging regulations you must comply with, unless you have some very good procedures then you have no way of knowing who you are selling to.

eBay is not the place to be marketing oxidants. It all seems very slapdash to me.

Be careful!

[wjames]

i agree. ebay's not the place

Kids can buy things from ebay !

[Asteroid]

I think that a lot of kids go through a stage where all they want is a good bang and to mix up flash in their room. I had a copy of the anarchists cookbook for quite a while and even tried a couple of things from it (luckily nothing too dangerous and/or functional). I had a look around the internet and found all sorts of interesting things but my lack of commitment led me to soon become bored. Several years later I become interested in pyro again, but this time see it in a different light. Does this mean I should be locked up?

I think that Inoxia's age restrictions are a great idea and do go a long way towards discouraging kids from making flash, but at the end of the day they're always going to fid some fertiliser from somewhere and attempt a few smoke mixes, maybe even a simple fuse. Luckily, back in the day I didn't know the first thing about acquiring these "exotic" chemicals and so I still have 10 fingers!

[pyroduck7]

actually I DID buy from them, red Phos and Iodine as well as other things all in one order.

I had absolutely ZERO clue or idea that these were used in making drugs at the time, it wasn`t until I told my mate that I`de ordered some new chems for my element collection that he said "WHAT!!!!! are you mental!?". I was like Huh? what`s the big deal??? and then he explained.....

so I know that I`m probably in line for an inspection at some time, but that`s cool too (as long as I`m at home and it`s a reasonable hour and not Dinner time or Sleep time).

I think the reason, I`ve not been raided is that I simply just don`t do anything "raid worthy", and I`m fine with that too

haha, i bought some red p from them aswell, and some magniesum - i have to admit that £5 for 200g is bloody cheap. but selling red fumeing nitric acid to the public is just dammed stupid. at the time my and my freinds only wanted the red p for makeing some small matches for fun. - but better put the distalation rig away just incase thay raid! haha that wouldent look too good!?

[pyroduck7]

Its very sad to see people thinking that, and even worse I don't think your opinion is unique

i think that people have all these books and things , because some of the people (many of witch are children) want to make a b**b and if thay see these websites that have little if any rules on safty, and few chemicals thay think - whey! little chemicals, little effort, little risk of injery ,BIG BOOM, thay see that and dont think of anything else. sometimes i take a look through the totse website, not to try anything out (hell no) but just to see how some people think, and how some people are stupid. that said, i was slightly drawn to that side of pyro/explosives when i first started but im glad i never acually tryed anything. and pluss you get a whole lot more satisfaction when your 3" areail shell goes up purfectly, a whole lot more satasfaction than a extordanerroly dangourse explosion thats both stupid and ilegal