[naturalman1975]

People who have paid attention to what I have posted over the years on FR (and there do seem to be some of them) will be aware that I have often found myself responding to people who seem to have been lead to believe that 'guns are banned in Australia'. There are reasons why I respond to those claims and this article is part of the reason why.

Guns aren't banned in Australia - though we do have some stupid restrictions - but there are a lot of people who would like them to be. And every time the myth is repeated that 'guns are banned', it feeds their belief that this is both a worthwhile and achieveable goal.

And now we have a Prime Minister who is desperate for votes, with an election less than two months away who is leaping onto the populist bandwagon - he knows conservatives are either not going to vote for him, because he's not a conservative, or are going to hold their nose and vote for him, because he's better than Labor - so he's not worried about our votes. He's lost them or he's got them - in most cases, not all. He needs an issue he can try and capture more of the soft middle with. I doubt he'll actually do anything or make any actual changes - but I'd prefer he wasn't even talking about them.

[tubebender]

Bump for later

[Oztrich Boy]

“The majority of gun owners are law-abiding people who need them as legitimate tools. As with terrorism, you have to legislate for the minority.”

Gosh darnit, when it comes to terrorists we are told the laws shouldn't be harassing the majority of law-abiding asylum seekers/suspected illegal entrants.

[shibumi]

Where would I find a synopsis of the gun regs for Australia?

I’m not doubting your word.
I simply want to see what the restrictions are.

In VietNam I had the pleasure of being stationed in close proximity to some Diggers.
They didn’t strike me as the sort that would put up with being disarmed easily.

[fortheDeclaration]

Sounds like you need a license to own a gun.

Wasn't the buy back program really a form of confiscation since it wasn't voluntary?

[ozzymandus]

Some guns aren’t banned in Australia, but most are.

[Gene Eric]

bttt

[Ken H]

What percent of households are armed in Australia?

I've seen numbers for the US range from the 30s to the 50s. Since these are based on voluntary surveys, I expect those numbers are a lot lower than the real one.

[Jack Hammer]

“threat to our nation”

Another strident pants-wetter heard from.

[SkyDancer]

Well easiest thing to do is convict people there who use guns to protect themselves like in home invasions. Has happened.

[PLMerite]

Every time I get into a discussion with non-Americans about how guns aren’t “banned” somewhere, I point out that I keep a loaded assault rifle leaning in the corner of my bedroom, and ask how that would fly where they are from.

[JimRed]

...owners are amassing larger arsenals in their homes.

And why should YOU (Professor Alpers) fear that? Do you plan to invade those homes and fear resistance? Do you forsee doing things to the people that would prompt them to leave their homes with those guns and come looking for you? Or are you afraid that their children will find the guns and hurt themselves?

[Ruy Dias de Bivar]

Different opinion in 1942! Not enough guns!

[gloryblaze]

Thanks for posting! Australia's experience is often brought up to me regarding gun control, and I keep meaning to look into it because it was just too trite: Ban all guns and, viola, end of problem. But facts are hard to come by.

If you have a ping list, I would appreciate being added. TA