Australian Gun Culture, Government Uses Iconic Dakota Arms as Amnesty Example part 5

I was seated in the Eykamp farm kitchen in NSW, Australia when Donald Eykamp stormed in and shoved a paper in my face. 

“Look at this!” He exclaimed. “That is a Dakota rifle! One of the most expensive production rifles in the world!  They cost $5,000 each. Look at the ebony fore end, the wrap around checkering, the grip cap, the classic peep sight, the short fore end, the inside the trigger guard magazine release, the Model 70 end of the receiver! Not one of these rifles have ever been used in a crime!”

I have two of them in South Dakota! I know what they look like!

Dakota Arms is one of the highest priced production rifles on the market.

The picture of the iconic Dakota Arms rifle is in an advertisement purchased by the Australian government for its ongoing firearms amnesty. During July, August, and September, the government will be allowing people to turn in firearms to the Australian government without arresting them for illegal gun possession.

Firearms that are unregistered, but which can be registered, will be allowed to be made legal.  So, an provisional mass murderer, who happens to have hidden away a $5,000 semi-custom version (the black ebony fore end is for an additional price), can now register this weapon of mass destruction after he has dug it up from its burial place. They can do this at a police station or at a gun shop.

Donald thought that the rifle in the picture was probably owned by a high up government official, when some picture of a gun was needed for the advertisement. My thought was that the owner of the advertising firm that the government contracted to do the ad might own it.

The advertisement could have been worse. They could have used a Holland and Holland double rifle in .470 Nitro Express.

I was at Tamworth the other day. If you look at the top article on the left of the picture, it mentions the problems they are having with flying foxes, which are large, fruit eating bats. They make a big mess, with bat scat landing on everything in sight. Donald says the townspeople hate them.

In the United States, those who push for a disarmed population, use pictures of “scary” AR 15 variants, or inexpensive pistols.

In Australia, they use $5,000 semi-custom hunting rifles used by elite hunters, all over the world. Those are the iconic types of guns that must be turned in to “make the community safer”.

Most everything in Australia is a bit higher priced. Gasoline is $5 a gallon ($1.29 a liter).  The United States doesn’t have to worry about flying foxes scat.  We have pigeons and starlings.  If an American gun owner sees a Dakota rifle at a gun turn in, he will offer cash for it. In most American states, it would be legal for him to buy it, without government permission.

©2017 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

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