Sadly, I wish I could say this is something from The Onion or Babylon Bee, but it’s not. The article that’s being referenced is entitled: “Aurukun Shire Council wants a ban on archery equipment due to ‘weekly’ violent incidents“. The piece was published by ABC Far North Queensland, a news organization in Australia (Australian Broadcasting Corporation). I’m not exactly sure how far I need to go on connecting all the dots here, so we won’t waste much time mincing words. Australia is coincidently known for what we refer to as “Australia style gun bans”. Let’s cut to the chase.

A remote Cape York council is pushing for bow and arrow equipment to be banned from its local government area in response to a rise in crime involving the weapons.

Local police say they have responded to “several” calls for service in recent weeks where archery equipment was involved in acts of violence.

Aurukun Shire Council said it was approached by elders who were concerned about the growing use of the weapons.

The council wants to implement a new local law banning the equipment, but its chief executive Bernie McCarthy says it has been advised it is outside the council’s jurisdiction.

“We’ve sought legal advice on that from the Local Government Association of Queensland and we’re not in that position to have a local law,” Mr McCarthy said.

He said people had been hospitalised due to arrow-related injuries and the council has raised the issue with the state government.

There’s a couple of things going on here worth exploring.

One, the obvious. We’re talking about archery equipment. Bows and arrows. Which are arms. So with the countrywide roundup and destruction of firearms, our friends from down under are left with what some jurisdictions would consider “primitive weapons”. Some apologies to the Aurukun Sire Council, and this is not to diminish the art of making a bow, but can we appreciate you’re looking to ban a stick and a piece of string? Because that’s all a bow has to be. Bendy stick + string = bow.

The matters of knife bans and amnesty programs in the UK always brings sneers and chuckles. “Successful” turn-in programs in Australia show laughable piles of old junk rifles. It’s absurd that this is what things have boiled down to in these other nations. This conversation proves that the anti-freedom caucus, no matter the nation, they will not stop at guns. They go after knives and they also want to go after archery equipment. This should frighten the daylights out of any freedom loving human being.

Meanwhile, there are some nations that have it figured out. For example the Czech Republic’s recent addition of Second Amendment-like protections to their own constitution. That is real “commonsense” gun law reform! Moms Demand Action, Everytown, Handgun Control Inc (Brady) and Giffords will disagree on that point. However, we need to remember their “commonsense” is really “uncommoncents”, as in they’re taking their “sense” from money thrown at them from rich progressive freedom hating socialists.

The other point worth exploring might not be as obvious to those of us not familiar with the region.

The Shire of Aurukun includes much of the traditional country of the Wik, Wik Way and Kugu people. It has rare and beautiful environmental values. We, as the traditional owners, are very proud of our country. We are also proud of our traditional culture which is strong within our community.

…

Aurukun is one of the larger communities in the Cape with a population of approximately 1200. Most residents are Traditional owners of the shire and surrounding lands. There are 5 spiritual clan groups: Apalech, Winchanam, Wanam, Chara and Puutch. There are 15 outstations that are occupied during the dry season.

So, that might explain why bows and arrows are now coming under fire.

Acting Cape York Patrol Inspector Peter Williamson said incidents involving archery equipment were occurring on a weekly basis.

“They’re involved with community unrest between various families,” he said.

“Some individual people can take it upon themselves to produce weapons during the unrest.”

…

Inspector Williamson said preventative work was underway to reduce the number of weapons in the community.

“Police are currently working with the elders and our partner agencies to address this issue,” he said.

“This includes mediation with elders and engagement with individual families involved to calm tension and surrender potential weapons.”

Noted in the first citation: “The council wants to implement a new local law banning the equipment, but its chief executive Bernie McCarthy says it has been advised it is outside the council’s jurisdiction.” This small deviation from the disarmament conversation shows there is greater depth to the situation. Such measures calls into remembrance laws in the United States designed to keep firearms out of the hands of different classes of people. None-the-less, the breadth of the situation is larger than a small op-ed, and I personally lack the historical and cultural education to comment to that specifically. That does not make it meaningless though. It seems there’s history that may go way back on this one.

When people say they’re only going to “come after” one class or type of firearm, we can’t take their word for it. Not at all. What comes after the guns? Apparently the bows and arrows.