Hey Bernie, Is this true?

[Aussie Mike]

Originally Posted by turnpike boy

It's good to see there is some rationale applied to the give-backs, and not just simple emotional bile. It deserves to be mentioned, at least in passing, that those dreaded military style semi autos represent an insignificant proportion of gun crime here in America. http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/pdf/guic.pdf Again, this data is pretty old, but factual nonetheless.

Interesting that the vast majority of gun crime is hand guns. We have much fewer hand guns in Australia due to our stric laws for hand gun ownership. Anyone wanting to own one can only realisticly use it at a gun range and the licensing and storage requirements have been tough for a very long time. To keep a hand gun My current rifle safe wouldn't pass and it's made from 3mm steel plate with internal hinges and 3 locking points.

You also need more than a letter from your mum to get a hand gun licence.

The more common firearm for criminals for a long time is sawn off shotguns and rifles. All modifications to make the weapon easier to conceal.

I think the US is in a difficult position with gun control. If Obama wants to do anything about it he'll have a difficult time. You already have such a huge number in circulation and a whole industry and economy revolving around them. The gun is so entrenched in US culture that you can't let it go.

Cheers