Politics & general individual perception don't necessarily equate to reality.....we've allowed the Australian "nanny" government to create/lead false presumptions post our "gun buy back" - the facts indicate we now have greater legal & illegal gun pwnership, gun crime with illegal automatic/assault type weapons has escalated, crime overall has increased & the population feels less safe/secure.............
Sure the article presents the how & the political/media induced "why", but fails entirely to address/support the outcome with any resilent facts: -
Interestingly the first so called "statistic" John Howard relies upon to support the 1996 reforms is the so called "wide consensus" of reduction in suicide, cutting firearm suicides by 74% - what he fails to mention is that the suicide in Australia remains significantly higher than the USA, (per 100,000 people) +7% in ages 15-24 & +22% in ages 25-34......so using Johnny's flawed logic one could also argue more liberal gun ownership prevents suicide (?) .....
John Howard also attributes to the 1996 reforms that there has not been a subsequent single massacre (of more than 4 victims) in Australia; again a flawed logic in that comparatively New Zealand ( a country that continues with legal ownership of semi/auto weapons & statistical historically similar mass shootings/gun owership to Australia prior to 1997) hasn't suffered any tragic event post 1996 either ......???
Despite John Howard's view & self praise of his initiative, most reseach/statistics would support if the amount our government allocated to the gun buy back was diverted for example to mental health/welfare far greater long term tangible socio/economic benefits would have been produced (with less risk of another massacre).
I think you'll find many more views/facts of Australians & others in the thread -
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/rural-living/267124-could-aussie-tell-us-how-9.html
Unfortunately, IMO gun control is not as simple, nor with the perceived outcomes our politicians & the media would like to have us all believe - what may or may not work in Australia is (again IMHO) largely irrelevant to the gun debate in the USA, this is an issue your citizens & government need to work through for appropriate resolution in a different culture/society.
I'm neither pro nor anti gun control, we need to hold government accountable for informing/acting upon all the facts/anticipated outcomes in a balanced approach to all socio/economic issues, benefits & costs - Australia at great socio/economic cost instituted gun reforms/buy backs in 1996 (& with arguably zero/neglible positive benefit/outcomes) directly from the tragic massacre in the same year of 35 innocent victims by a single deranged maniac at Port Arthur.
As tragic & confronting as gun massacres are, historically they are sporadic/extremly infrequent in Australia.....And yet interestingly, the Australian Federal/State Government & society remains correspondingly complacent in creating similar levels of all encompassing reforms/financial commitments & funding to address issues where there's signifcantly greater risk to life.............. such as bushfire mitigation/defence , a seasonally regular catastrophic event/threat with associated much more gross loss of life/property -in 2009 we tragically lost 173 people in the Victorian bushfires - with the majority of fires caused by clashing or fallen power lines or deliberately lit, already in 2013 upwards of 100+houses have been lost & many lives risked......concerningly of all the "firebugs" charged with lighting current fires let out on bail so their civil liberties are not infringed........and the power companies are not tasked with securing power lines more adequately above or better still below ground in fire prone areas......
