OPINION:
Liberals are constantly trying to steer freedom-minded citizens to look to Europe, Australia and other supposedly more civilized countries in attempts to set the standards for firearms ownership and gun control for America.
After Australian college student Christopher Lane was fatally shot by a trio of “bored” Oklahoma teens, many said it would not have happened in Lane’s home country because of Australia’s drastic gun ban. The actual statistics show that is false.
After Australia’s 1997 forced confiscation and buy-back programs, which supposedly eliminated all firearms, crime did not recede, as statists promised. According to statistics on the website of the Australian Institute of Criminology (the equivalent of our FBI), murders, rapes and assaults all stayed level or increased. The 10 percent drop in gun homicides is mirrored by a 10 percent increase in knife homicides. Sexual assaults actually increased 28 percent, as there is no longer an equalizer available for women to defend themselves from attackers.
Furthermore, the ban that was supposed to make the country safer has resulted in a 300 percent jump in accidental gun deaths. This can be attributed to a lack of gun-safety training.
The evidence is clear that the case study in Australia of disarming the good guys does not make people safer. That’s why here in America we are blessed with the Bill of Rights from our Founding Fathers.
DICK HELLER
Washington
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