We have a lot to learn…

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But what differs in Australia is that their law makers actually did something to stop it from happening again.

“Within just weeks of that tragedy, elected officials in each of Australia’s six states and two mainland territories—pressed forward by police chiefs across the continent and by the then-newly elected prime minister— banned semi-automatic and other military style weapons across the country. The federal government of Australia prohibited their import, and lawmakers introduced a generous nationwide gun buyback program, funded with a Medicare tax, to encourage Australians to freely give up their assault-style weapons. Amazingly, many of them did,” according to a 2018 Time article.

The people of Australia a land of tough outback survivors that had never embraced government regulations especially about guns did just that. And in the 22 years since there have been no further mass shootings in Australia!

“In 2002, a student at Monash University in Melbourne shot two people dead and injured five others. He came to his rampage with six handguns, not an assault rifle. Australian lawmakers added a new National Handgun Agreement, a separate buyback act, and a reformulated gun trafficking policy to their legislative arsenal,” according to a 2018 Time article.

And guess what—there hasn’t been a similar shooting spree since!

“Gun violence in general declined over the following two decades to a nearly unimaginable degree. In 2014, the latest year for which final statistics are available, Australia’s murder rate fell to less than 1 killing per 100,000 people—a murder rate one-fifth the size of America’s. “ according to 2018 article in Time.

Imagine that! Australia is a place that kids can go to school without wondering if they will be safe. Families can go to church and public events without looking over their shoulders with worry. We can’t do that here in the US can we?

We obviously can learn a lot from the Australian people about what works to end gun violence.

The White House proposes a way to keep kids safe in schools is to have teachers carry concealed guns in schools and shoot to kill.

There are roughly 3,200,000 teachers in the US. The cheapest hand gun I noticed on line was selling for $127, a Cobra Arms Freedom .380 model. It would cost $406,400,000 to arm that many teachers with this gun. It costs $95 for the cheapest a one day training course necessary to carry a concealed weapon in Michigan that I noticed on line. It would cost $304,000,000 for all these teachers to attend that training. Keep in mind however that law enforcement officers receive 60 hours of fire arm skills training and 51 hours of self-defense training at a police academy. I highly doubt that after a very basic training course one is prepared and skilled enough to shoot to kill in a highly stressful situation. It costs $115 for a permit in Michigan to carry a concealed weapon which each teacher would need to have or $368,000,000 for that number of permits assuming all states have the same fee as Michigan. The grand total of this measure could cost us tax payers an estimated hefty: $1,078,400,000.

If this were a measure that would ensure an end to gun violence nationwide it would certainly be worth any price tag. But it’s not. It just adds more not less guns into a Nation already saturated.

Who stands to gain once again are gun manufacturers and the NRA! They continue to line the pockets of our politicians who seemingly work for them!

We need legislation that will put an end to the selling and distribution of weapons that keep killing us like they instituted in Australia. We need to stand up to our law makers and make our voices heard before yet another mass shooting occurs!

Will you write or call your Congressional Representatives and Senators today to make your voice heard and demand that they learn from our Australian friends?

You can use this address to find contact information for your elected officials:
https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials