Aspergers syndrome - licence issues

[stefan2004]

I have actually been airsofting with a policeman and his younger brother.

But it does leave us with an interesting question: What would you say if the FLO says to you "What if you pick up the wrong gun on way to Airsofting and shoot all your little friends?"
I wish I was joking, but the H&S-culture is pretty much this bad already.

Id say : "a real rifle has a manual pullback system, an airsoft gun does not. If I went for an AR15 manual pullback, it would look and operate completely differently to the airsoft gun, youd also assume the gun would be free of ammunition, so If -by chance I took the wrong one, it would be obvious when I try to load it with BB's - as the guns magazine obviosuly chambers ammuntion FAR larger than airsoft guns"

H&S culture?, you forgot PC and apathetic aswell!!! lol

[Apache]

The best advice has already been given. You must be 100% honest on your application. Ring your local FEO and they will talk to you. BASC are a good organisation and if you join they will talk to you. Talk to your doctor and ask what they'd say about your suitability if ask (they are bound to be). Do you also see any specialist doctors or just your GP?

Do A LOT OF TALKING before putting in for a FAC. The reason I say this is if you put the forms in and are refused it will make it a hundred times harder if you re-apply in future.

I am a BASC member and I spoke to the FEO and emailed them about a few issues I had and they couldn't be more helpful (if you email them you have their response in writing, should you ever need that!)

The issue that makes me uncomfortable is the DLA despite earning a damn good salary. What makes you eligible for this (you don't actually have to tell me) and would these eligibility criteria effect your application?

[stefan2004]

with DLA you get asessed every 3 years, obviously depending on how bad you are the higher you go.

oddly enough, just having aspergers makes you eligable for DLA, regardless of your condition. I will admit that when I was very young i was on highest form of DLA, because I was very bad before my adolesence - I had many major health problems, particularly trachaelstenosis, severe athsma..etc and my aspergers (according to most) was getting pretty bad.

Obviosly now Im nowhere near as bad as I was and my condition according to most is so good you can hardly notice it. (especially when you compare me to someone with moderate to severe aspergers)

[smiffy]

with DLA you get asessed every 3 years, obviously depending on how bad you are the higher you go.

oddly enough, just having aspergers makes you eligable for DLA, regardless of your condition. I will admit that when I was very young i was on highest form of DLA, because I was very bad before my adolesence - I had many major health problems, particularly trachaelstenosis, severe athsma..etc and my aspergers (according to most) was getting pretty bad.

Obviosly now Im nowhere near as bad as I was and my condition according to most is so good you can hardly notice it. (especially when you compare me to someone with moderate to severe aspergers)

I do know someone who grew up fairly poor in N.Ireland. He said his folks would fill him up with cheap colourful sweeties and orange squash before showing him to the expert for his routine checks, to worsen his ADD symptoms, so they'd get more money.

As I said - being on benefits for a mental-health issue casts an immediate shadow over being the sort of person who ought to have a gun. I realise it's a hard thing to turn down "free money", but it may be the price of making your way as a fairly-neurotypical adult and potential FAC-holder. Who knows? Maybe your recent improvement will get you taken of the DLA list anyway?

A few final things before I log off for the night. Do give it a few years of making your way as a DLA-free adult before you put the paperwork in. (I'm assuming you had your last assessment at 17 or 18, possibly while still at home and still in education, when the money might have been much more important). Don't mention past problems to the shooting-club committee unless you really have to. It *is* their job to give a sight-picture of your *current* suitability, but there's been a lot more pressure on them to fail anyone with a cedilla of doubt in the probationary process since Dunblane.
(Politics Alert: However, the old system worked fairly well. From the public domain evidence I've seen, the Hungerford killer had failed his probational assessment, and Hamilton had had his committee repeatedly requested the revocation of his FAC)

[stefan2004]

speak of the devil, looks like my worst fears are realised:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/edi ... 270693.stm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

to put the story short, a man from edinburgh (where I reside currently) has assembled MANY guns from pistols to SMGs. He had 200 weapon parts and many other bows, knives and ammo.

heres the problem:

hes 1 year older than me, lives in the same city and they believe he has...yep...Aspergers....

Im really starting to think ill just get labelled...

[smiffy]

Not really - he's not you and you're not him. His crime is breaking firearms-law while being a license-holder.
Essentially this is two crimes in one - owning illegal guns and parts, *and* breaking the code of behaviour
Once you gain this status, you are under the microscope and your behaviour must be be beyond reproach.

Like I said, keep you nose clean for a few more years.
Try to establish a reputation for being stable and reliable.
Try to genuinely become a stable and "Neuro-typical" as you can.
Then examine yourself and think "Can Isee myself misusing a gun?" and "Would a cop have misgivings about granting my ticket?". If the answer is "no" to both, then proceed. Your application succeeds on it's own merits.