What we need, Steele, are tough laws, such as a mandatory 20 years for using a firearm in a robbery, plus another 5 years if it is in working order and an additional 10 if it is loaded, add on the penalty for robbery and only the latter subject to parole.
Murder in the course of a robbery, then the death penalty.

"Stop being so idiotic. The laws were a reaction to the Port Arthur massacre and designed to stop random shootings of that kind."

Which they did not do, the Lindt Cafe hostage-taking and siege was a good example, had it not been for brave men, with guns, then there is every possibility that a massacre would have occurred.

Failure!!

The laws have been trumpeted as "making Australia a safer place".

There is firearms regulation at one end, and at the other, the political swamp infested by the 'gun control' crocs. 'Gun control' is a recent thing and is the creature of a number of billionaires and hugely wealthy funds that just happen to be very involved in secretive, closed-door manipulation of politics.

Especially billionaire currency dealer, George Soros, who is constantly interfering in the domestic politics of the US and other countries through his Orwellian 'Open Society' units that spawn and fund leftist activism. Universities are always crying out for grants and Soros gets his leg in by installing his own funded 'research' and researchers.

Soros investments have been in firearms manufacturing and in ammunition. -While his 'Open Society' spruiked for the 'gun control' that demands the complete disarming of lawful legal, licensed citizens of Western Democracies. This is the Soros the leftists cozy up to and who is heavily involved in the 'gun control'. Remember it is NOT aimed at good effective gun regulation, but at bans and compulsory confiscations, to disarm licensed civilians exclusively and in Western democracies,

"George Soros' offshore finances revealed in Panama Papers"
http://www.aol.com/article/2016/05/17/george-soros-panama-papers-hillary-clinton/21379016/

"HAS HE PAID HIS TAXES YET? George Soros Had Until 2017 To Pay $7 Billion In Taxes After Avoiding IRS!"
http://americanlookout.com/rms-flashback-george-soros-owed-7billion/

"DC Leak Exposes Top Clinton Donor George Soros Manipulating Elections
Billionaire investor buys access to high-powered Democrats"
http://observer.com/2016/08/dc-leak-exposes-top-clinton-donor-george-soros-manipulating-elections/

"George Soros Fails To Clear His Name Of Insider Trading In France"
http://www.businessinsider.com.au/george-soros-insider-trading-conviction-2011-10?r=US&IR=T

Now, might anyone, SteeleRedux postures as the forum 'expert'(sic), be aware of any links between the 'gun control' activists in Australia - they are very limited in number but somehow get the media's attention, especially the ABC (how about that!) - and any political party, say in NSW for a start?

contd..

The only strong control where firearms are concerned is the licence. All of the other bureaucratic paper-pushing weakens the strong control and wastes police resources looking over the shoulders of known, checked and certified reliable and reputable citizens.

Police do not want to be polishing chairs doing that. Police took up the job to collar criminals, not to hound and risk destroying the good relations that exist with respectable, law-abiding citizens. Goodwill that takes years of good, solid police work to build up.

SteeleRedux Quote "Howard's laws were a brilliant success eliminating mass shootings in this country which was exactly what they were designed to do."

That statement is rubbish, how can you say that it was successful at eliminating mass shootings when the future can't be predicted so for all you know there would have been no more mass shootings whether the guns were taken or not.

mhaze Quote "When you outlaw guns, only the outlaws will have guns."

Wrong When you outlaw guns, only the outlaws and the Government (police army etc) will have guns.

The Lindt cafe score was
IS :1 . Police :1.

Compare that with Chicago which knows how to stop burglary.

"The city has logged more than 700 homicides this year, more than any other major U.S. city. Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel recently announced the city would hire about 1,000 new people to work in the police department."

"These officers will be assigned directly to the streets of our communities," Emanuel says. "To work with residents in partnership to confront gun violence."