NRA Vs. Australia: "15 years later, the NRA's relationship with the truth remains as loose as ever"

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Overall, Neill and I estimate that the Australian gun buyback saved at least 200 lives per year – mostly suicides. For a policy that saved this many lives, governments would typically be willing to pay at least half a billion dollars every year. Because the one-off cost of the buyback was about that much, the policy has paid for itself many times over since 1996.

It's no surprise that the NRA persist in trying to discredit the Australian gun buyback. In 2000, the NRA ran advertisements on US television, fabricating statistics about Australian crime rates. NRA president Charlton Heston​ refused requests from Attorney-General Daryl Williams to correct the ads.

Fifteen years later, the NRA's relationship with the truth remains as loose as ever. Its hardline stance against sensible gun control reflects the extreme nature of the NRA – an organisation that campaigned against banning armour-piercing bullets (so called "cop killers&quot , and went ahead with its annual convention in Colorado just days after the school shootings in Columbine.

The NRA's real fear isn't progressives like me. It's that US conservatives will follow the example of Australian conservatives such as Howard and Tim Fischer. A proliferation of weapons in US bedside drawers, glove compartments and teenagers' waistbands is a key reason why 30 Americans a day are killed by guns.

The legacy of Port Arthur victims like Zoe Hall was to show the world a smarter way: gun laws that allow farmers and sporting shooters to get weapons when needed, but prevent the proliferation of weapons in our homes. There is a better way to control guns, and the Australian gun buyback has a great deal to teach America.


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http://www.theage.com.au/comment/why-the-nra-has-australia-in-its-sights-20150714-gic1a6.html#ixzz3g0aKEOik