Keefe Report: “Don't Let Them Register Your Guns, Mate”

by
posted on October 12, 2015
** When you buy products through the links on our site, we may earn a commission that supports NRA's mission to protect, preserve and defend the Second Amendment. **
aussie_gun_claw.jpg

As politicians thrash around for "doing something” about deranged, dejected homicidal narcissists, many have settled on the Australian model of gun control. But few Americans understand what that really means. In 1996 one of the most horrific mass murders perpetrated by a single deranged individual occurred at Port Arthur in Tasmania. Within weeks, then Prime Minister John Howard railroaded through a Draconian gun-control bill.

Australian gun owners were not as organized at the time as National Rifle Association of America (although the Shooting Sports Association of Australia today is very effective). Also, as a former British colony, self-defense was not a valid reason to own a firearm in the eyes of the state. And, of course, the Australians have no Bill of Rights that includes the Second Amendment. Like many other former British colonies after World War I, the fear of Bolshevism spurred restrictions on handgun ownership. Australia also had a licensing scheme in place for all firearms.

The new law rushed through the state governments “Down Under” not only banned the future sale of certain categories of firearms, but put the full force of the Australian government behind confiscation of entire categories of guns from law-abiding firearm owners.

The government voted to pass a tax on all Australians to pay for the one-time “buy back," which begs the question: How does the government “buy back” something that never belonged to it? This was the personal property of law-abiding Australian subjects.

And what guns were banned? Semi-automatic handguns, all self-loading firearms and all pump-action firearms. Ruger 10/22s? Straight to the smelter. Semi-automatic-only service rifles, as used in high-power rifle marksmanship competition, had to go into the shredder. All semi-automatic shotguns, including the Browning A5, too, had to be handed in and destroyed. And the two most popular shotguns in the history of the world—the Remington Model 870 and Mossberg Model 500—were confiscated and destroyed. All of them—because the government had the name of each gun owner, the type of gun and its serial number. The image above appeared on the cover of the Nov/Dec 1998 American Rifleman and shows confiscated firearms that once belonged to Australian citizens being destroyed in mass quantity.  

So when anti-gun politicians say "they don't want to take anyone's guns away" but bring up the Australian model, or even worse the British model, they are being untruthful. The heart of Australian gun-control is the confiscation of firearms from peaceable gun owners.

An Australian acquaintance was recently visiting the United States. This was a man who had served in the Royal Australian Regiment in Vietnam, and had never committed a crime in his life. And he recounted, one by one, his guns that were taken from him—which included some that had been in his family for generations—and he told me in no uncertain terms, "Don't let them register your guns, Mate. Because once they do, they can come for them anytime they want.”

Latest

1889 Belgian Mauser Ihtog 4
1889 Belgian Mauser Ihtog 4

I Have This Old Gun: Model 1889 Belgian Mauser

In the 1880s, Mauser was not the legendary name in firearm making that it is today, but one of the company's first leaps into cutting-edge rifle design came with the Model 1889 Belgian Mauser.

New For 2025: Hi-Point Firearms HP-15 Rifles & Pistols

Hi-Point Firearms, known for its budget-friendly handguns and pistol-caliber carbines, took a step in a new direction in 2025 with the introduction of its HP-15 rifles and pistols.

Review: DNT ThermNight TNC225R

One of the most common campfire debates regarding low-light hunting is whether digital night vision (DNV) is still king or if it’s been dethroned by modern thermal-imaging technology. Products like the DNT ThermNight TNC225R have become popular, as they pack both technologies into one compact unit.

NRA Now Accepting Applications For Public Range Grants

The NRA has reopened its Public Range Fund, which was first established in 2009 to encourage city and county governments to build and improve public ranges across the United States.

Rifleman Q&A: Candelas Or Lumens?

When it comes to lights, I’ve seen a lot more mention of “candelas” being made recently than I have in the past. What is a candela, how does it differ from a lumen and what’s the practical difference between the two from a defensive perspective?

I Have This Old Gun: 1854 Lorenz

The Austrian Model 1854 Lorenz rifle musket, designed by Lt. Joseph Lorenz around 1852, saw use in numerous European conflicts and was the third most common longarm seen in the American Civil War—its popularity being right behind that of the U.S. Model 1861 Springfield rifle musket and British Pattern 1853 Enfield.

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.