Guns - not just any old guns and madness

Today I was reading about how Americans were lining up to turn in weapons in a gun buyback program in Los Angeles. A summary of the event is below but what really caught my interest was an associated photo revealing just the kind of guns that were being turned in. My mind went back to 1996 in Australia and it’s fascinating to look back at a photo from that event as a comparasion. Have a look.

Back Story:

Lines of cars formed as Los Angeles gun owners turned in weapons and rocket launchers, in a gun buyback event brought forward after the Connecticut school shooting.

Authorities promised there would be no questions asked at the drive-thru style event, where owners handed over weapons including assault rifles and Uzis directly from their cars, in exchange for grocery store gift cards.

Picture: AFP / Joe Klamar Source: AFP

Two rocket launchers were among the thousands of weapons handed back, with officers telling local media the "shoulder launchers" were decades-old devices bought by collectors or handed down by war veterans to their family.

The Australian Government banned the manufacture and possession of semiautomatic long guns (rifles and shotguns) and high capacity magazines in 1996. They then spent about $500 million buying back existing guns, compensating gun dealers and for loss of business, etc. In total, roughly 650,000 guns were reclaimed and destroyed. Australia has lower overall gun ownership rates, and a higher share of those guns fell into this category.