Oh really. So I have heard of kids in high school with a working ROCKET LAUNCHER. A kid. And they dont sell those at any department store. Those are regulated, and a kid got one. Among other things. There was a story about a week ago in the news about a kid that was going to shoot up his high school, and he had ILLEGAL AK47s. Once again, a kid.
If you can provide me evidence that that happened in Australia, I'd be most interested.
So really what the gun control laws do is disarm those that wouldnt abuse a gun, while still allowing those that would do serious damage with them to have them.
You're missing the point Archon. Just let me once again compare two counties, one **with** gun control laws, and one **without** gun control laws. Australia and America perhaps?
Now, I don't know the exact stats for firearm deaths in the US. However, I **do** know that they who don't have gun control laws, have a much higher death rate by them. You say that people "wouldnt abuse a gun" - let me once again direct your attention to columbine. Or
any number of gun deaths in america which **aren't** the result of hardcore criminals. Your arguement that the general populace wouldn't abuse firearms has holes bigger than a nuclear crater in it Archon.
I've just finished googling for firearm deaths in America -- 89 deaths
per day. I'm sure you can work out what that comes to per year.
Now, looking at Australia. Our death rates are much much lower than that. Round 400
per year in fact. Are you starting to get the point?
You agree that people who want to defend themselves, (possibly from someone with a knife by the way) have the hardest time getting guns.
Yes, that is true. However, the converse of that is that we have a lower death rate. And the criminal themself doesn't have a gun. So I'm willing to accept the risk of walking the streets, and being confronted by a dude with a knife, rather than walking the streets with a gun, and being confronted by someone with a gun.
You agree that the people who are, by far, the most dangerous, can still get guns.
Yes, these two gangs in melbourne *can* get guns. The laws are not designed to stop very rich gangs, with underworld contacts, from buying guns. They're designed to stop your average pleb, from buying a gun and going next door, and killing the dude who insulted him at the pub last week. And they do stop that.
You argue that people should carry a gun, to fight against criminals. Dude, ever heard of the police? Thats their job, not the public's. Carrying a gun, and distributing guns to the widespread populace only encourages death and injury by them, not a lower rate of crime.