I did in fact carefully read the Institute of Criminology account from go to woe, looking particularly for anything it said about gun homicide before and after the critical year 1996. It said nothing at all about gun homicide until the last chart which was not about the number of gun homicides but about the ratio of gun homicides to total homicides. The chart said almost nothing about changes since 1996 and that period was scrunched in the right hand corner. It did look as if this ratio plummeted abruptly after 1996 (assuming the peak was due to the Port Arthur triumph of gun anarchy) – a sharp decline being what I would have expected following the abrupt drawing of some of the gunnies’ fangs.

The sentence about the declining trend in that ratio since 1968 I also noted. But again, that comment said nothing about any difference in the time before and after Howard stood up to the gunnies which could give information about the result of the new restrictions.

I’m glad Is Mise noticed a bias. It’s a bias between the human right to personal safety and the wish of a small section of the community to compromise it. I have a similar bias between the human right to life and liberty and the programme of the Moslem cult to compromise it. It’s a bias I’d commend to everyone else as I value living in a community which shares it.

Is Mise, thanks for that copy of Lance Boyle's latest cookbook 'Cooking The Crap Out of Critters', you remember good old Lance the now unemployed gun happy NSW public serpent who was cavorting with certain unsavory politicians the 'Two Bobs' from The Shooters and Hooters Party. Well I couldn't say for sure the book come from you as the kangaroo blood had smudged on the inside page where it was signed, but thanks anyway.

I tried my first recipe the other day, 'Boiled Galah', one had dropped dead in my backyard. As instructed I boiled the critter for three weeks in a large pot with a rock, when I thought the rock was soft I threw away the galah and the family attempted to eat the rock, some of the kids gave up and tried to eat the bird, but soon relilsed it was too tough and returned to the rock.

Now I've got a wombat hanging in the plimb tree, picked it up about a month back, road kill, I don't actually shoot anything. I'm going to give Lance's 'Wombat Stew' a go. One question do you think I should leave the maggots in or out, do they add flavor?
Now, this is not a joke, its very serious stuff, you know I never post funnies.

p/s "The Friends of the Shot" held a meeting last weekend at the MCG, unfortunately the 'House Full' sign went up 2 hours before the meeting kicked off so I couldn't get in. But I do believe they were able to launch The Vegans cookbook 'Organic Tofu and You'.

Julian,

You must have missed this,

"Trend in firearm homicides...."

graph.

Shews downward trend from 1989 to 2011/12 then it rises.

How do you account for the rise?
http://www.aic.gov.au/statistics/homicide/weapon.html

Is Mise wrote: Julian,You must have missed this,
"Trend in firearm homicides...." graph.

Easy to miss it as it wasn't there. Check his link which was http://www.aic.gov.au/statistics/homicide.html. The three charts show (1) Homicide victims from 1993 to 2007 (number per year)
(2) Homicide incidents in Australia, 1989-90 to 2006-07 (number)
(3) Homicides involving firearms as a percentage of total homicides, 1915-2003
No other graphs. Nada.

The later additional reference to the criminologists (a profession dedicated to inventing excuses for criminality) brought two more charts, with careful smoothing into long term trends and cherry-picking otherwise random dates, to show that killers, deprived of guns, are choosing knives. This confronts people with a weapon that has to be used up close, with some chance of self-defence, instead of one which is used at a distance and en masse which leaves people with none.

The recent rise in gun homicide (if there really is one) would be accounted for by the limited interim scope and steady erosion of the Howard war on guns and the need for something much more thorough and draconic.

That's funny Julian, I clicked the link that I gave and it was there.

I share your concern for the victims of crime or other brutality, just how would a person protect themselves against a pack of dogs?

Judo, ju-jitsu, karate, run, dial 000?

Surely you can think of some way to give the potential meal a fighting chance.

Julian,

I note that you are in favour of draconian laws:

"draconian
drəˈkəʊnɪən,dreɪ-/Submit
adjective
(of laws or their application) excessively harsh and severe.
"the Nazis destroyed the independence of the press by a series of draconian laws"
synonyms: harsh, severe, strict, extreme, drastic, stringent, tough, swingeing, cruel, brutal, oppressive, ruthless, relentless, summary, punitive, authoritarian, despotic, tyrannical, arbitrary, repressive, iron-fisted; raresuppressive
"collaborators suffered draconian reprisals" (courtesy of Google).

Fits.