Nukes but No Guns

There has been considerable buzz on the friendly parts of the Internets promoting the utility of armed civilians in thwarting an attack like the one in Mumbai. I wholeheartedly agree with that sentiment, but in reading this very detailed account of the attacks in the WSJ, it's clear that India has "progressed" to the point that many of the law enforcement/security officials are as unarmed as the civilian population. I've parsed a few sentences from the lengthy WSJ article to give you some of the flavor of how poorly prepared these folks were:

Most police officers at the station -- as they are throughout India -- were unarmed or carried only bamboo sticks known as lathis. ....

The hotel had metal detectors, but none of its security personnel carried weapons because of the difficulties in obtaining gun permits from the Indian government, according to the hotel company's chairman, P.R.S. Oberoi. ….

Uptown, the two gunmen who had attacked the train station -- recorded by the station's surveillance cameras -- reached the nearby Cama Hospital for women and children, authorities said, shooting dead two unarmed guards at the entrance and racing up the stairs. ….

The three policemen armed with guns drew them. The nine others waved their bamboo sticks.