What was a 12 years old boy doing with a loaded .22 rimfire rifle? I really don't know, perhaps I'm now wondering whether we should re-examine and where necessary, modify the F/A Laws, or at the very least, reassess the penalties for any breach of the Act. or Regulations.

And the most recent 'post' from IS MISE is remarkable, in so much that he's teased out, a real conundrum, created entirely by our utterly preposterous politicians, ostensibly for the benefit of all law abiding citizens of the State of Victoria?

They have proclaimed that you (a citizen) has the right to defend yourselves, provding you don't use anything that may prove capable of hurting or frightening someone. Or is construed as being an offensive weapon? Yet these courageous, unlicensed 'Home Invaders' have given government an undertaking they'll only deploy, semi-automatic weapons to their preferred targets. Instead of resorting hitherto, weapons of a type, that have a select-fire capacity, capable of engaging full 'Rock 'n Roll'. Now that's the spirit of fairness and a true egalitarian outcome I should think? Bravo, ANDREWS Government Bravo. Another clear victory for the Labour Government.

F/A's should always be kept safely locked away from both children; and politicians!

Dear Is Mise,

You're going to have to accept how I saw the
situation at that time. And your interpretation
of the words that I used is not something that
I can control. You seem to have forgotten that
I have worked in public, university, and special
libraries for many years and am quite used to
dealing with all sorts of people and situations.
From rowdy teens, to flashers, to drunk and
disorderly men, to screaming mothers, and elderly
problems. So I can identify potential
trouble when I see it. Yes, this guy did bail me up
yes it was at night (early evening), and yes he was
on drugs, but as I said - I was able to talk to him
and calm him down. As for reporting him to the police?
Over a few dollars? I did not think it was worth it.
As no real harm was done.

You have got that a bit wrong o sung wu.

Rather than locking up the guns to keep the politicians away from them, it would be a much better idea to lock up the politicians, to keep them away from both guns, & passing more than enough stupid laws.

Perhaps today's kids are more immature than when I was a boy. Before Myxomatosis many of us 12 year olds, & early teen boys provided a couple of meals a week for our families, courtesy of our 22s, & plentiful rabbits. The money I earned from rabbit skins paid for a new push bike, that the family could not afford so soon after the war.

Mine was an old single shot with a broken extractor, given to me by a local farmer, who had bought a new Browning repeater to replace it. He wasn't interested in extracting spent cartridges with a pen knife.

I guess the penknife would be illegal today too

Foxy,

I would have thought that you would be familiar with the term "bailed up"; for a representation of the term see Tom Roberts's famous painting "Bailed Up".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bailed_Up

I don't think that the meaning of the words has changed.

//see Tom Roberts's famous painting "Bailed Up".//

I did, and it was beautiful :)

Thanks, Is Mise.

Hasbeen, "I guess the penknife would be illegal today"

Depends on whose fat head the cap is sitting on, unfortunately. Because the discretion is there to confiscate that penknife. Then, in view of the likelihood of a charge and expensive court proceedings, most will capitulate and walk away.

A week ago I was in an ordinary kitchen cutlery shop in Qld to buy another knife for the centre console of my fourby. It is obvious to a country person why it is there, but for others, one purpose is to escape the seatbelt in a rollover.

I lose a few to camp sites and needy borrowers. I prefer Gerber 'Hinderer', but this Swiss Army knife was available, OK and would have to do for the job,
http://www.victorinox.com/global/en/Products/Swiss-Army-Knives/Large-Pocket-Knives/RescueTool/p/0.8623.MWN

As I was about to pay, a gent near, a highway patrol officer with the NSW police holidaying interstate with his wife, sternly advised that if that knife or any of the lesser ones displayed were carried in a car into NSW it would be confiscated and the driver and owner would be lucky to escape a weapons charge. It would have to be locked in a tool kit box or maybe in a fishing kit, but only taken out for that use.

I asked what should be purchased instead. This apparently,
Seat belt cutter,
http://www.spservices.ie/item/EMI_PelicanPlasticSeatBeltCutterLigatureKnife-Orange_0_57_23_1.html

I asked, but what about breaking a side glass, cutting holding rubber for a front or rear glass and general utility?

Answer, buy a glass breaker and for the rest, tough luck.

Got be be careful, the bureaucratic idiocy peaks in some jurisdictions.