In present-day Estonia, getting a personal pistol, rifle or shotgun permit has been made very very difficult. Not totally impossible, but unreasonably really difficult. This is the continuation of a Soviet occupation tradition and "culture", when the ruling Russian and communist "elite" wanted at all costs to avoid weapons being in the hands of disgruntled citizens. In earlier times, the lords of the manors and the feudals in Europe were similarly concerned that the peasants might getta hold of something more dangerous than a pitchfork. In modern Estonia, which is currently under an ever more real existential threat from a Russia gone rather imperially apesh*t and not particularly neighborly,it's absurd that we are not moving towards a society that has the capability to defend itself. In the worst case scenario, if the Russians come and want to do a Bucha on you, a handgun is at least handy for making a departure from this world before they start applying their tender mercies to you and possibly your family. Jürka here signing off, from an Eesti that is a million miles from having a reasonably armed ethnically Estonian citizenry of all ages, in the style, once-upon-a-time, of Paul Revere or Alfred Käärmann for that matter. Very strange country I live in, situationally unaware and irresponsible. Such is life in lala land.

When the war started in Ukraine there were many who wanted to volunteer and did volunteer to fight against the Russians. I am probably not alone in that I thought of our local Estonian community and why we even had a lasketiir at Eesti Maja. It was so that we would be prepared.
There were numerous volunteers in Ukraine and active fighters, who had never held a gun before.
We should all be grateful to those who built our lasketiir and who maintained it for thousands of Estonians. What a legacy!
Whereas many visitors from Estonia were in awe of our lasketiir and of our Estonian House of course. It would be interesting to read a who´s who of all of those who visited the lasketiir...or at least comments from those who want to share their memories.
Estonians were very fortunate.