Australia – where Police make the rules. This from the Australian Deer Association:
This is the item the ADA are referring to:
Kudos to the ADA for standing their ground and representing shooters. However, as we all can agree only 1200 people affected is not a win in any way, it’s just less worse.
So in other words, Victoria Police have used policy to try and sneak around the lack of legislation that exists to enforce this. The excuse being given is the firearm is not needed, firearm thefts and something something national security. Victorian firearm owners have previously experienced this on Cat H licences when you acquire a third hand gun of the same calibre.
There is nothing in the actual legislation which puts an arbitrary limit on the number of firearms one person may own. There are references to how many firearms you can have before an alarm system must be installed and that’s it. This appears also to be, potentially, a backdoor ploy to push people onto collector’s licences and price them out, by then requiring them to increase storage capabilities which they cannot afford.
Deputy Commissioner Shane Patton is also chasing a career promotion as Graham Ashton is likely to step down as Victoria Police Chief Commissioner around election time in November. Patton, who was the main driver of the new firearms regulations, has seen an opportunity to look relevant and pick a soft target in order to get ahead, at the same time as continuing to push a pre-defined agenda. We’ve mentioned before that being anti-firearm is incentivised in the public service and this is a prime example.
Make no mistake, this is the thin edge of the wedge and exactly the reason why Police in Australia have absolutely no business dictating or making the law. Who is to say that limit won’t change to 10, or 5 or 1?
It also points out the complete absurdity of the “genuine need” criterion. Why someone needs a gun is none of your business and purely an inane, authoritarian proviso. If someone is vetted as fit and proper to own a firearm it matters not how many or what firearms they own.
It is ridiculous to suggest that someone who owns 50 guns is more dangerous than someone who owns 1 gun, when both can only use 1 effectively at a time. Why does someone need 50 vehicles? Victoria has twice seen the carnage that vehicles can inflict in the past twelve months – it is the same logic.
This proposal will do absolutely nothing to stop the scourge of illegal firearms when you have a weak judiciary, over stretched Police force and criminals becoming so brazen they are using tractors to steal safes and holding up gun stores with illegal firearms.
You know what would be a better idea? Going the sensible way of Canada and New Zealand and permanently abolishing the firearms registry because judging by recent events, it is becoming more and more likely there is a leak or 10 coming from within.
Victoria Police may want to look in their own backyard first.
And if you’re really chasing the top job that hard Shane, you might want to think about stopping that whole crime wave thing going on in Victoria right now.
So we are talking about how many guns a person can have, How many cars do the police have?? I bet it’s more than all the guns.