War veteran, 83, put armed robber in headlock while men half his age stood by

A British WWII vet still has the right stuff -- unlike the younger generation:

A judge has hailed the heroism of an 83-year-old war veteran who tackled a gunman during a robbery at a bookmakers while other customers stood by.

Sidney Bannister, who served with the Royal Artillery Corps during World War II, put 30-year-old robber Henry Rockson in a headlock.

But the pensioner's calls for assistance met a wall of silence and up to nine other men in the shop - most far younger than Mr Bannister - stood by as Rockson smashed him twice in the head with the butt of the gun. ...

But the widower, of Lees near Oldham, Greater Manchester, said: "There were nine other blokes in the shop and most of them were either half my age or younger. I just wish one of them had shown some gumption."

Gumption? That's been criminalized in oh-so-politically correct Britain. For some decades now, the government has been encouraging passivity toward lawbreakers. Guns and even knives are illegal. Citizens who try to protect their homes have been prosecuted, and have even been told it's easier to leave structures unlocked to minimize the damage done by burglars.

British men of Mr. Bannister's generation haven't yet acquired this level of learned helplessness.