Today was to be a pistol shoot, however, because of ongoing work on the range, the covered firing line could not be used.
On a dry day, we would simply move forward but as it was raining fairly heavily the shoot was cancelled.

10 metres to the right of the pistol firing line is the covered rifle firing line, which is not being used today.

Simple solution, shoot on the rifle range; but we're not allowed to use pistols on the rifle range.

I cannot imagine why, and people wonder why we want some sense in the laws and for them to be evidenced based.

The Howard inspired 'gun control' was a political stunt by John Howard who was a master politician and a skilled practitioner of wedge politics.

Although in this case (significant other cases too?) it is alleged that it was his fearsome wife Jeanette, the power behind the throne, who directed John Howard towards the political 'gun control' that all of his ministers advised against.

Of course his ministers and anyone with any smattering of statistics and risk assessment would never have signed up for 'gun control', which is the antithesis of evidence-based regulation.

Numerate secondary school students should find it easy to spot the sophistry and outright fraud in the claims that Howard:

- 'stopped' multiple homicides (just one example could be the expected clumping together of incidents, and later, the gaps or zero incidence, normal for random events);

- reduced suicide (rope was always most popular and a few more chose it); and,

- reduced gun crime (when it was not the licensed persons that 'gun control' focusses on that are the perpetrators, and secondly, there was a sustained downturn that commenced well before Howard and the starting incidence was very low anyhow.

The fraud of the 'gun culture' rhetoric and use of it to sledge respectable, licensed Australian citizens. Where Howard's and other political spin ignore the social eg black+drug+gang, linked to low eco-social status of the most affected population in the US. -Riding on the backs of ghetto blacks in the US to score political points.

The US does experience deep social problems in some areas, but overwhelmingly the US is safe and peaceful. It is nasty that the elites, billionaires and Democrat (also wealthy, for example, the Clintons) use 'gun control' to conceal the root causes of serious social disadvantage, while hypocritically posing as the 'saviours' of the poor and disadvantaged.

Similarly on both sides of politics but particularly the Greens, politicians make headlines for themselves out of creating and then appearing to solve problems.

Number 1, gun crime is very low in Australia and has trending down for years and long before Howard's cynical wedge politics.

The all knowing, all seeing Leoj, you certainly are the fly on wall, when it comes to politics... now claiming to know what Jeanette H was telling Little Mr H to do, knowing what ministers were advising the PM. Amazing stuff Leo, simply amazing. How do you find the time.

Issy, I am really upset to hear that news, Why didn't you switch to water pistols, free ammo falling from the sky, or declare it duck hunting season, since it was weather fit only for ducks. Then again you could have retired inside and took pot shots at each other, you would soon forget about the weather then.
Just trying to help Issy, i hope its appreciated.

Paul,

That post of yours illustrates perfectly what we are up against, emotion based thinking and here was I thinking, based on your past posts that you were all in favour of evidence-based law.

What do you think of the idea of a permanent amnesty?

Paul1405 Just in case you can't see what is in front of your eyes. My question too you again.

Quote "The John Howard gun amnesty which resulted in 800,000 illegal firearms being surrendered most likely saved a minimum of 100 innocent Australian lives, men women and children."

You have absolutely no concrete evidence to prove that statement,also if someone is absolutely intent on killing someone and have no gun they will just use another method.

A length of plastic conduit on the pistol muzzle creates a rifle complying with gun-club rifle-range rules . As the rules of the club are made by a shooter then a single shot at 20 paces will soon help him out. Pistol record distance is 900 metres.

Knife record is 90 metres , basically it comes down to lack of propellant and firing-cap in your knife. So it's just 10% the body-count of pistols .

A crumpet up the nose at 400mm is deadly and suited for domestic shoot-outs.