[Politics_Observer]

Sad news out of Australia about a shooting. Australia is still a global example though in my opinion for democracy, effective gun control and providing a safe environment for it's citizens:

On the long, bloody list of US gun violence, it would barely be a blip, but the killing of four people in northern Australia has caused shock in the country most often held up worldwide as an example of effective gun control.
At least four people were killed in the city of Darwin and several injured when a gunman opened fire with a pump-action shotgun late Tuesday night in several different locations, police said. A suspect was apprehended soon afterward, and has been identified as 45-year-old local Ben Hoffmann, according to CNN affiliate 9 News. Hoffmann was on parole at the time of the killings.

Australia has long been seen as a potential model for the US on gun control for the effectiveness of its response to the Port Arthur massacre.
Following the shooting, in which 35 people were shot by a lone gunman armed with a military-style semiautomatic rifle in the Tasmanian tourist spot, then-Prime Minister John Howard brought in strict gun control laws, ending a previously lax approach to weapons in the country. Rapid-fire rifles and shotguns were banned, licensing tightened, and more than a million firearms were collected and destroyed.

Since then, multiple other gun amnesties have been held and tens of thousands of other firearms handed-in.
In the decade leading up to the 1996 massacre, more than a 100 people had been shot dead in various shooting sprees. In the years following reform, the risk of dying by gunshot in Australia fell by more than 50% -- and stayed there. Suicide by firearm -- one of the leading causes of gun death in the US -- was also reduced by almost 80% in the decade after Port Arthur.

"Today, there is a wide consensus that our 1996 reforms not only reduced the gun-related homicide rate, but also the suicide rate," Howard wrote in 2013.

https://edition.cnn.com/2019/06/05/aust ... index.html

[Godstud]

They also have the NRL.

[colliric]

They also have the NRL.

Screw you....

Fuck the NRL. Boring as shit. Sydney crap.

AFL is much better (also WAY more popular nationwide)...

CARN THE (MAG)PIES!

I also heard about this shooting. Darwin is in the NT though, quite far away.

[Politics_Observer]

@colliric

A few of my aussie friends introduced me to Australian football. Great sport! Keeps you in good shape too!

[ThirdTerm]

The suspect, 45-year-old Ben Hoffmann, is an outlaw motorcycle gang member, well known to police with a criminal history. It is just like the Mad Max movie and outlaw motorcycle gangs are responsible for much of the nation's organised crime. OMCGs are linked with the drug trade, the use of firearms and arson. Organised crime groups of ethnic Koreans exist in the United States, but there is nothing to suggest they have established any presence in Australia.

Mr Hoffmann was on parole and wearing an electronic monitoring bracelet when he allegedly opened fire with a pump-action shotgun in the Darwin city area about 5.45pm local time (6.15pm AEST) on Tuesday.

Commissioner Kershaw said the suspected gunman was "well-known" to police and previously had a number of adverse interactions with the police force.

Commissioner Kershaw described him as having links to outlaw motorcycle gangs

Q. What is an outlaw motorcycle club?
Not to be confused with mere bike enthusiast clubs who meet to ride and socialise, outlaw motorcycle gangs or OMCG's are responsible for much of our nation's organised crime. OMCGs are tied up in illicit commodity markets, particularly in the drug trade, and often perpetrate high impact violence, including the use of firearms and arson.

Q. Are OMCG's prevalent in Australia?
According to the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission website, there are 39 ‘one percent’ OMCGs operating in Australia, with more than 4,760 patched members, 955 prospects and 4,585 associates. Around 44 of Australia's bikie gangs have been outlawed

Q. What does 'one percenters' mean?
Some OMCGs will refer to themselves as 'the 1%'. This is in reference to their belief that, unlike the rest of society, they are free to operate outside the law.

https://www.smh.com.au/national/multipl ... 51uj5.html