Err...yeah, that as well!

Also spare a wee thought for the ones who who'd rather face a knife than a gun.

and a thought for those who'd rather face a knife with a gun...spare a thought for the victms.

And spare a thougt for those who'd rather face a gun with a gang of bikies. And maybe a nuke. And perhaps a squad of assassins with dobermans and a satellite guided laserbeam...

TRTL,

Just why are you on the side of the criminals?

What possible justification is there for denying law abiding people some protection.

The State bans the law abiding from having any protection handy in the home or anywhere else, not only guns but it is an offence to keep anything for the purpose of defence. Pressure Pack Oven cleaner is OK in the kitchen but is an offence in the bed room.
However a fire-extinguisher may be kept in any room in the home provided that the stated reason for having it is as fire protection.

Different perspective Is Mise. I don't recall saying I'm on the side of criminals. I believe it's inevitable that when a piece of equipment that has been designed to kill things is increased in quantity, it will be most likely to be procured by more people who wish to kill things.

There's a simple argument - the US has far more lax gun control laws than culturally comparable nations such as Australia, Britain or Canada. They also have a proportion of gun related deaths that is so far beyond these nations, it's sick.

That's as far as the argument really needs to go. That's the ultimate fact. There are all kinds of tangents and alternative interpretations, but that's the cold, hard end of the matter.

Is Mise - putting aside the situation of home invasion for just a moment, what would be your view of carrying handguns in public.

In Australia, I've never seen anyone who wasn't either a police officer or member of the military, carrying a handgun in a public place.

This relieves me. When I step outside into the street, I don't want to see guns in holsters. I don't want to see people carrying guns, and I don't want concealed guns being carried.

Do you? In all honesty, is that what you would prefer? How? Why?

I'm not in favour of the criminals. I just don't want Australia to follow a path that has categorically resulted in increased deaths.

As for skyrocketing crime, the overall figures are pretty static. By and large, we live in a safe nation. I don't want that to change.