New Zealand police have begged for gun law reform for years. They frequently deal with assaults and the deaths of their own, as well as the mangled bodies of the public. The last time they made any headway in gun law reform was following Aramoana. Quote.
In 1992,?New Zealand tightened its gun laws?following the Aramoana massacre in 1990 that left 13 people dead when the shooter used two military-style semi-automatic rifles to carry out the attack. Until Christchurch, Aramoana was the worst mass shooting in the country’s history. End of quote.
Gun laws are, in David Seymour?s words, ?fiendishly complicated?. Combine this with the fact that many New Zealanders legitimately own guns and it makes tackling gun law reform a political hot potato.
The political shoe switched to the other foot after Christchurch, as it had done following Aramoana, and now gun law reform has become a political opportunity. A time to assure the public that the government is doing everything it can to avoid a repeat of Christchurch. No stone will be left unturned.
But don?t be seduced into thinking gun law reform will save lives. It won?t. It?s not the experience of US gun control laws and it won?t be ours. Quote.
New Zealand’s [existing] laws are on par with most of the stricter U.S. states.
US gun laws vary from state to state. The Washington Examiner compared violent crime with different gun laws in Washington and Nevada. California has the most strict “A” rated gun laws and Nevada a laxer “D” rating. quote.
Despite the disparity between these two states, both suffered horrific mass shootings in the last few years.? End of quote.
Washington Examiner
The government must already know this, because that would explain their lack of concern in pushing through a poorly drafted law with huge gaps for information they haven’t had time to collate. It doesn’t matter, when the main goal is to make political mileage from the tragedy.
From the ?political leader?s bedside manual? are the following ?steps to be taken to turn a calamity into an opportunity?:
- Reassure the public of their safety with numerous random displays of armed police and/or military for as long as possible, regardless of the threat having been removed. Tick.
- Publicly censure the actions of the killer(s) and publicly console the bereaved. Tick.
- Reassure the public this will never happen again on your watch:
- Use law reform ? gun control measures tightened ? tick; hate speech law reform ? underway!
- Remove any opportunity for the public to make up their own minds about the killer?s motives by shutting down access to his public declarations. Tick.
- Sit back and enjoy personal adulation and the public?s full confidence.
Either Simon Bridges is missing his copy of the ?opposition leader?s bedside manual? or he hasn?t had time to read it. David Seymour found his and made a plan but unfortunately it was badly executed.
On the AM show Seymour said. Quote.
I am not sure that putting through laws hastily drafted in nine days with no public consultation of any seriousness with very little public scrutiny is the right way to do it because gun laws are fiendishly complex.
Where is the rest of the opposition? There is political mileage to be had by stirring up rightly offended gun owners who will not be heard even if they had time to put pen to paper in the allocated two days for submissions on the draft bill.
Jenna Lynch on the AM show fessed up to being part of the media brigade who contributed to tripping up Seymour. Quote.
Ah, sorry David Seymour. What an own goal. What an embarrassment.
David Seymour wanted to block ah how quickly this legislation was going to go through the house. It actually didn?t end up changing the course of events materially at all. The government would have put the house into urgency anyway but he wanted to make a stand, wanted to make a point, spent too long talking about the point with the media to actually make his point anyway.
What it is at two o?clock all the bells ring around here. You?ve got to get into the house to? he needed to be in the house to vote on that motion. Obviously didn?t make I in there ah because he was too busy talking to us. I think I? I think I actually asked him a question?.? end quote.
And not one of the media reminded him that bell had rung? Well, why would they when there’s a much better story to be had because he missed it.
[Seymour] said it is the first time he has missed anything. Quote.
“I think when people get over the entertainment of it, there is a principle at stake here, that there are 120 MPs in Parliament, and only one of them is saying gun laws are important and they need to be done properly.? End of quote.
“It should be about public safety
Newshub end quote.not political theatre, and I actually think that is an important place to stand.”
He?s right of course. Although in the big scheme of things, a child could write this bill for all the good it will do in preventing future attacks.