HI folks
I just saw this link on anouther forum
http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5478,8907485%255E2862,00.html

The new law seems to me to be a bit of an overkill. I am not to worried that it will spread. what do you all think?
I do know there is NO WAY I will ship anything sharp to Victoria now.
MP

Tell me they just did not say "fortnight" in that article.

400 some odd metal detectors to search people they "reasonably suspect" are carrying a sword? How about..."Hey that guy has a freakin sword". Unless of course they are carrying concealed and if thats the case I don't want to know where they are hiding them.
Mace

is that a sword in your pocket or are you just happy to see me:lol :lol :lol

and if thats the case I don't want to know where they are hiding them.

Haven't you ever watched Highlander? You can hide a 4' sword in a bathing suit.

One would think passing a law saying that you CAN'T CARRY A SWORD would be enough!
next thing you know there will be a black market for swords...
when swords are outlawed only outlaws will carry swords???

Realy though this is kind of upsetting as they are also includeing hunting knifes and other tools that have some use other than makeing bloody holes in folks. I still don't think I will ship any thing there. as I don't want a $12,000 fine for selling a knife!!
MP

Australia: New law to ban swords
SOURCE DATE: March 09, 2004
AUTHOR: Peter Mickelburough

Herald Sun, Victoria, Australia

SWORDS will be outlawed from July under new laws to curb the growing use of the weapons in street brawls.
Police Minister Andre Haermeyer said the ban would help police overcome a culture of young people arming themselves with swords.
"For most people running around the street carrying swords there is absolutely no reason for them to be carrying those weapons," he said yesterday.
From July, anyone found possessing or selling a sword without a permit will face up to six months' jail and fines of up to $12,000.
Existing sword owners must surrender their weapons to police, sell them to a #######d dealer or apply to the Chief Commissioner for specific approval.
Collectors and people with legitimate cultural, religious or military reasons to own swords will be exempted from the ban, but must store them under lock and key and have a burglar alarm.
The sword ban follows a string of recent attacks and a regulatory impact statement undertaken by the State Government last year.
Last week, a 13-year-old boy was arrested and charged after allegedly charging police with a sword near Castlemaine, in central Victoria.
A 21-year-old man had his hand severed by a samurai sword in a confrontation between 40 men in the Fitzroy Gardens a fortnight ago -- the second brawl involving swords in 24 hours.
Huy Huynh, 19, was chased from the Salt nightclub and hacked to death nearby in July 2002 by a mob using samurai swords and machetes.
The new laws will make it illegal to sell swords to anyone who does not have a permit.
Sword sellers will have to keep a register of buyers' details and make it available for police to inspect.
Mr Haermeyer said groups such as highland dancers, historic re-enactment groups, bonafide collectors and people with family heirlooms could apply for an exemption from the licensing services branch of Victoria Police.
"Legitimate sword owners understand the importance of ensuring that their swords do not fall into the wrong hands," he said.
"The vast majority of the community would say, 'Look, there's no place for people just being able to go out there and buy these things and carry them around the street'."
Mr Haermeyer said the exact definition of a sword under the new regulations was still being considered.
He said machetes would remain a controlled weapon, requiring a person to have a legitimate reason for carrying them.
The Government is also looking at bans on some other weapons, such as crossbows, and greater restriction on the sale of prohibited and regulated weapons at weekend markets.
Mr Haermeyer warned that police would be actively hunting for knives and swords after being given new powers and 480 metal detectors late last year, allowing them to search people they reasonably suspected were carrying weapons.

Emphasises added

I can see it now... Thug gangsters carrying around swords... The "hood" is going to be a medieval war ground. haha. Really, i dont think you need to search people for swords. Its kinda obious.

New South Wales has enacted similar laws this month. They already have horrendous fines for people carrying knives "without lawfull purpose" and one would think that would be enough. Unfortunatly the new laws have nothing to do with safety of our citizens or preventing criminal missuse, they are about being seen to do something about a "problem" which was beaten up and portrayed to the population as the begining of a slide into chaos.
It is the same with firearm here. Since 1996 the government has spent $600 million buying back guns confiscated from licenced firearm owners. This has not resulted in any lessening of the incidence of crimes commited with firearms and has wasted money that could have been spent in our schools or hospitals with much greater benefit to our people.

Almost weekly in Victoria there is another gangland slaying and the governments response is to ban swords.

Did that law actually go thru in NSW? :eek:

It appears not yet.
There is no listing on the legeslative assembly web pages and these are the regulation as they stand





Weapons Prohibition Act 1998 No 127



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Schedule 1 Prohibited weapons

(Section 4 (1))

1 Knives

(1) A flick knife (or other similar device) that has a blade which opens automatically by gravity or centrifugal force or by any pressure applied to a button, spring or device in or attached to the handle of the knife.
(2) A ballistic knife that propels a knife-like blade of any material by any means other than an explosive.
(3) A sheath knife that has a sheath which withdraws into its handle by gravity or centrifugal force or if pressure is applied to a button, spring or device attached to or forming part of the sheath, handle or blade of the knife.
(4) An Urban Skinner push dagger or any other device that consists of a single-edged or multi-edged blade or spike that has a handle fitted transversely to the blade or spike and allows the blade or spike to be supported by the palm of the hand so that stabbing blows or slashes can be inflicted by a punching or pushing action.
(5) A trench knife or any other device that consists of a single-edged or multi-edged blade or spike that is fitted with a handle made of any hard substance that can be fitted over the knuckles of the hand of the user to protect the knuckles and increase the effect of a punch or blow, or that is adapted for such use.
(6) A butterfly knife or ?balisong? or any other device that consists of a single-edged or multi-edged blade or spike that fits within 2 handles attached to the blade or spike by transverse pivot pins and is capable of being opened by gravity or centrifugal force.
(7) A star knife or any other device that consists of a number of angular points, blades or spikes disposed outwardly about a central axis point and that are designed to spin around the central axis point in flight when thrown at a target.
2 Miscellaneous weapons

(1) Any bomb, grenade, rocket, missile or mine (or other similar device, such as a tear-gas canister) that is in the nature of (or that expels or contains) an explosive, incendiary, irritant or gas, and whether or not it is ?live? or has been deactivated. A ?live? rocket must have a propellant charge of more than 100 grams, and a ?live? missile must have an explosive or incendiary charge of more than 7 grams, for it to be a prohibited weapon.
(2) A flame thrower that is of military design, or any other device that is capable of projecting ignited incendiary fuel.
(3) Any device that is designed to propel or launch a bomb, grenade, rocket or missile by any means other than by means of an explosive, including a device known as a PVC cannon.
(4) A spear gun having an overall length (being the length of the spear gun when it is not loaded with a spear) of less than 45 centimetres.
(5) A crossbow (or any similar device) consisting of a bow fitted transversely on a stock that has a groove or barrel designed to direct an arrow or bolt.
(6) A slingshot (being a device consisting of an elasticised band secured to the forks of a ?Y? shaped frame), other than a home-made slingshot for use by a child in the course of play.
(7) A Saunders ?Falcon? Hunting Sling, or any other device in the nature of a hunting sling, catapult or slingshot that is designed for use with, or a component part of which is, a brace that:
(a) fits or rests on the forearm or on another part of the body of the user, and
(b) supports the wrist against the tension of elastic material used to propel a projectile.
(8) A blow-gun or blow-pipe that is capable of projecting a dart, or any other device that consists of a pipe or tube through which missiles in the form of a dart are capable of being projected by the exhaled breath of the user or by any other means other than an explosive.
(9) Any dart capable of being projected from a blow-gun or blow-pipe.
(10) A Farallon Shark Dart, or any other similar device that is designed to expel, on contact, any gas or other substance capable of causing bodily harm and which is reasonably capable of being carried concealed about the person.
(11) A dart projector known as the Darchery dartslinger, or any other similar device that is designed to project a dart by means of an elasticised band.
(12) A mace or any other similar article that consists of a club or staff fitted with a flanged or spiked head, other than a ceremonial mace made for and used solely as a symbol of authority on ceremonial occasions.
(13) A flail or any other similar article that consists of a staff or handle that has fitted to one end, by any means, a freely swinging striking part that is armed with spikes or studded with any protruding matter.
(14) A whip that has a lash which is comprised wholly or partly of any form of metal.
(15) A whip known as a cat-o?-nine-tails, or any other whip that consists of a handle to which there is attached any number of knotted lashes.
(16) Kung fu sticks or ?nunchaku?, or any other similar article consisting of 2 or more sticks or bars made of any material that are joined together by any means that allows the sticks or bars to swing independently of each other.
(17) A side-handled baton or any other similar article consisting of a baton, staff or rod that is made of any hard substance and has fitted to one side a handle, whether or not that handle is permanently fixed.
(17A) An extendable or telescopic baton.
(18) Any hand-held defence or anti-personnel device that is designed to administer an electric shock on contact, such as the Taser Self-Defence Weapon or an electrified brief-case, but not including any such hand-held device that may lawfully be used on an animal in accordance with the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1979.
(19) Knuckle-dusters or any other similar article that is made of any hard substance and that can be fitted over the knuckles of the hand of the user to protect the knuckles and increase the effect of a punch or other blow or that is adapted for use as such.
(20) A sap glove, or any other similar article, that consists of a glove (including a fingerless glove) that has a layer of powdered lead sewn under the outer covering and positioned over the knuckle area on the back of the glove.
(21) A studded glove, or any other similar article, that consists of a glove (including a fingerless glove) that has a number of raised studs or spikes made of a hard substance and positioned over the back of the glove to increase the effect of a punch or blow.
(22) Any device designed or intended as a defence or anti-personnel spray and that is capable of discharging by any means any irritant matter comprising or containing any one or more of the following substances in liquid, powder, gas or chemical form:
(a) chloroacetophenone, known as CN,
(b) orthochlorobenzalmalononitrile, known as CS,
(c) dypenylaminechloroarsone, known as DM or Adamsite,
(d) oleoresin capsicum, known as OC.
(23) Any device (not being a device referred to in subclause (22)) designed as a defence or anti-personnel spray and that is capable of discharging any irritant matter.
(24) Any acoustic or light-emitting anti-personnel device that is designed to cause permanent or temporary incapacity or to otherwise disorientate persons.
3 Replicas, imitations, concealed blades etc

Hmm...best I get this 3 metres of 5160 ground and shipped quicksmart then :cool:

they're worried about swords....SWORDS!

hard to miss, unlike a....oh....say....GUN. next they'll be banning belts because its capable of stangling someone. Or holding up your pants.

When you pass a law, it only affects LAW ABIDING CITIZENS !!!!!

Washington, D.C. has the strictest weapon laws in the US. And they have the highest murder rate.

Remember the words of Shane? "A gun is only a tool."

Same applies for knives, swords, screw#######, ....... and even belts.

Want to stop crime? Ya gotta go after the CRIMINALS!

Remember all those people - mostly kids - killed in Waco a few years ago? The government attacked the place because they thought there might be illegal guns on the property. (Which was never proven!) Cost for that little fiasco? Around $100 million.

Now let's say the same equipment was used to raid some inner city gangs. And maybe some of the money was used to put up street lights or pay cops a living wage. It might have stopped some crime. As it was, the state of Texas didn't go after Koresh because nobody gave a hoot that some nut on a farm outside Waco thought he was Jesus. (I've had neighbors weirder than that!) People were killed, hearings were held, and only the dead were found to be guilty.

The world is being taken over by people whose only real education is what they see on TV. As long as the masses are treated to the right sound bites, they are happy. When you lose rights, you lose them forever. And each loss leads them to the next right to take away, until someone (Spielburg?) can run your entire life for you.

Wasn't it the poet e e cummings that wrote: "This is the way the world will end, not with a bang but a whimper."

How STUPID yes I used the "S" word so all the politically correct second graders out there with just have to get over it.

How far will governments go before they realize the folly of it all. I spent many years of my youth training in the martial arts. No I do not claim to be an awesome fighter but I knew folks who were. Wisdom has kept me out of places and providence has kept me out of situations in which I would have need to defend myself. My chioces kept me out of trouble not being defensless.

"Theoretically" my hands and feet are lethal because I have been trained. Using these folks logic I should have to get a government permit to keep my hands and feet from being removed by the police under such Martial Law.

I have read several articles over the past couple years that have statistically shown an increase in violent crime since the disarming of the public (most written about parts of England). They have not made a safer society they have made easier, softer victims.

Growing up I learned my father's phylosophy well. Dad frequently pointed out the fact that if a robber is shot and killed everytime he walks into a bank or someone's house it would not be long until the town is free of robbers.

Is that harsh? #### right its harsh, but how harsh is it for a punk kid (or drug addicted adult) to walk into someone's family business waving a gun around putting everyone in danger? How harsh is it for a man to be run down and beaten to death in the street?

It is about time the world's governments stop looking at criminals as poor disadvataged little darlings who need to be saved from their own actions. A more appropriate attitude is,"He decided to play a rough game and he lost, its going to be a real shame if the state has to pick up the funeral bill".

I'm done ranting now,

ray

This is quite stupid. To ban sword just because of what happened is ridiculous. The Australian police need to get off of their butts and police those who are using these in violent crimes. instead of taking the easy way out and having the government ban them. 12,000$ is just a LITTLE steep too, don't you think? Its about tiime you fixed your logic, mates

Did they happen to mention that alot these items are carried by police. oh I forgot they are above the law, be it in the us or where ever. Just another thought. What is the rape rate thier, if women can't carry mace ( spray ) or other defense items. Hey! Lady, put down those keys or that cop is going to shoot you. You know he is afraid of women with keys. You could poke an eye out. Good luck. Raymond Johnson