But let's do something to keep the guns out of THEIR hands.. not out of the hands of a poor rancher who needs his rifle to keep predators from eating his livestock or the law abiding guy who likes to put holes in paper targets down to the Shooting range or the guy who inherited his great grandfather's collection and keeps it locked safely in a gun safe.. or any other law abiding citizen who, by the Constitution has RIGHT to keep and bear Arms.
All those cases you mentioned are covered under Australia's gun laws. They are valid reasons for owning a firearm, and would be specified on the permit. It's not too difficult to get a gun, you just have to join a gun club (unless you are a farmer or live in a rural area, etc), visit your local cop shop and fill out your forms.
By the way, I passed my annual shoot today! And it was the worst conditions I've ever had to shoot in. For starters, had to wear a helmet and heavy-arse body armour, and it was PISSING DOWN rain. Blinding rain. Windy, cold, and generally sh*tty. And to top it all off, it was a Friday. But I passed, and with a pretty decent score Quite happy.
Rick H.
Sydney
MFP 0174
'74 XBGT Hardtop
'64 Caddy Convertible
They are valid reasons for owning a firearm, and would be specified on the permit.
And that is the difference. Most gun owners in America believe that gun ownership is a fundamental right. Not a government granted privilege that can be withdrawn at a whim. It is the right to defend your life and property (from anyone, criminal or government) with the most practical means available. We should not have to give a reason to be allowed to own anything as long as we aren't harming others. Not trying to start a fight, just saying where I'm coming from. Congrats on passing your tests.
Personally I think it's a good system for Australia, and it appears to be working for us. I accept that Americans have a different view on it and fundamentally it comes down to differences in cultural background. Different countries, different histories.
Rick H.
Sydney
MFP 0174
'74 XBGT Hardtop
'64 Caddy Convertible
Like the saying goes: "an armed society is a polite society." i.e. People would be a lot nicer to each other if they were carrying silenced MP5's!
Valid reason for owning a firearm? Because I can!..(Screw them..that's why!)
Anywhoo...What's happening with this new 6.8mm SPC NATO round?
Are any manufacturers gearing up to make hunting rifles in it?
ballastics seem similar to the 30/30 (americas most popular deer cartridge) and 7.62x39 and not far off the 280 British that failed to get off the ground 50 years ago!!
Hunt with a machine gun? I own two full-auto sub-machineguns but I don't hunt with them. I have gone hunting with AR-15's, SKS's, Kalashnikovs, and M1A's though. None of these are assault rifles or machineguns because they lack the capability of full-auto fire. Those who don't believe that semi-auto military-looking weapons have no place in hunting should be in the bush during the season. There are more then a few being used. If you don't like them, just don't take one afield. Besides that, they're fun as Hell to shoot at the range.
Here stateside, black powder guns are not considered firearms. I got my first cap&ball revolver when I was 9 or 10. I shot that piece so much it finally got to a point where it was just wore out and I retired it to the wall.
Now if you want to talk machine guns, I humped an MG-42 for 2 years back when I did WW2 reenacting. The 42 is my favorite beltfed. My gun had the Lafette mount and optics. I loved that setup at public events where we could actually set up a proper gun position and show just what the system is truely capable of and not like the crap they showed in Saving Private Ryan. My biggest problem was finding and training a reliable assistant gunner. I still get invites from the unit to come out and run the gun.
I haven't heard anything new about the 6.8 SPC lately. Most production is still going to the sandbox. I've been on a Soviet Afghan War-era collecting kick for the past 2 years so I really haven't been keeping up on recent developments.
Now here's an idea I'll throw out to the stateside guys who are building "in-the-spirit-of vehicles. If a MFP type outfit was run here, what weapons would the officers carry before and after the Apocalypse(for lack of a better word). Max came from a society that didn't have the firearms background that exists here so a sawed-of SxS seems normal. But here it's very common for our lawmen to have MP-5's, M-16's, Mossberg and Remington pump 12-bores, etc. By that extension, what would you be carrying for your in-the-spirit-of personna?
"There are over 550 million smallarms in worldwide circulation. That's one weapon for every 12 people on the planet. The only question is: How do we arm the other 11?"
"The Teutonic reputation for brutality is well founded. Their operas last for 3 or 4 days and they have no word for 'fluffy'."
Quote: Originally posted by OverheadCam on 08 June 2007
Like the saying goes: "an armed society is a polite society." i.e. People would be a lot nicer to each other if they were carrying silenced MP5's!
Valid reason for owning a firearm? Because I can!..(Screw them..that's why!)
Anywhoo...What's happening with this new 6.8mm SPC NATO round?
Are any manufacturers gearing up to make hunting rifles in it?
ballastics seem similar to the 30/30 (americas most popular deer cartridge) and 7.62x39 and not far off the 280 British that failed to get off the ground 50 years ago!!
what's the deal?
Remington is making it in the model 700 and Ruger is listing a Mini 14 in 6.8 on its web site. There may be others, but I haven't heard of any more than these.
The "Assault Weapon" thing is a huge pile of Male Bovine Excrement.
The definitions in that Bill make little mention of Full Auto capability..
It lists things like Removable magazines and barrel Shrouds. (Both are Safety features IMO)
By the definitions listed, the Ruger 10/22 and the Henry AR-7 would both be considered Assault Weapons.
Those familiar with these know that while they're both good guns for what they are, calling them Assault rifles is base Stupidity.
Last edited by Foxtrot X-Ray on Mon Feb 25, 2008 2:36 pm, edited 2 times in total.
"Go ahead and run. Run home and cry to mama! Me, I'm Through runnin'!"
Now here's an idea I'll throw out to the stateside guys who are building "in-the-spirit-of vehicles. If a MFP type outfit was run here, what weapons would the officers carry before and after the Apocalypse(for lack of a better word). Max came from a society that didn't have the firearms background that exists here so a sawed-of SxS seems normal. But here it's very common for our lawmen to have MP-5's, M-16's, Mossberg and Remington pump 12-bores, etc. By that extension, what would you be carrying for your in-the-spirit-of personna?
Personally I'd select a gun I know I could find ammunition for in plentiful supply pretty much anywhere. Seems to me a shotgun would meet that criteria.
Point and BOOM!! As opposed to a "point and click" H&AK 25mm Semi automatic mounted with the telescopic nightvision lasersight, monopod with the built in anti-roll cage and factory fitted cammoflaged heat seeking missile accessory with dual airbags and of course 110v AC european adapter... Know what I mean? Finding ammo for that little baby might be a tad hard to find.
Just my thoughts, for what they're worth.
Biker
Are we living in a land where sex and horror are the new gods?
If a "Red Dawn" type situation occurred, I would personally carry my recurve bow for hunting game, a large-ish knife, ax, and a good 30.06 rifle with a good scope for defense. The problem with being in the mountains (where I'd be) is the echo throughout the range...giving your position away if you use a larger caliber round. Snares, tiger traps and wooden versions of bamboo traps would litter the perimeter of my sunken log and dirt-covered kiva house like the NW Inuits make. Another rifle I'd use would be a good .22 Long rifle for small game and personal defense as the rounds are easily found, transported and stored.
Quite happy.
