A number of points about Australia and its government stand out, it often commits legislative action on various activities recreational or business that cripple its operation.
Does anyone else have stories like this?
Here's one of these stories.
Bow-Fishing is an archery sport that the equipment can be got together at around the price for a low wage earner.
The main facets of bow-fishing equipment are...
- a special finless heavy fiberglass arrow and special barbed point(s)
- An arrow slider to connect the line to the arrow to prevent a special recoil problem
- * (take NOTE) a bow of around no more than 40 lb draw weight
- * (take NOTE) and A SPECIAL 15 YARD WEBBED LINE (wet damp first before firing)
However, When the invention became settled with various parameters to the equipment, the Australian government decided to model the legal aspects "from the equipment itself that was on the market reliably sold in the USA"! (OR so to say the sales statistics and what made signifigant safety sense as "product quality of operation").
UNFORTUNATELY the equipment "is made and invented and marketed in the USA to USA recreational consumers whom are ALLOWED much more activity with the equipment than Australia or Britain has ever near legalized"!
So what's wrong.
--- USA people can "bow fish" around 80% of freshwater rivers in season with the "state region / river system fishing license".
In Australia 99% of legal bow-fishing is in "salt water" !!!
The only legal freshwater bow-fishing is in South Australia in a short section of the Murray river AND ONLY UPON Carp ! However, of recent there have been trial areas aside in NSW but those are also only for carp!
--- Fishing freshwater rivers and streams in USA does no require a boat "often" because much of it is done in freshwater along stream banks inland for "many species" (note: does not need discussion on personal preference of conveyance convenience in freshwater!)
In Australia the only way of fishing as a standard personal recreation regularly (bow fishing) means standing at least three meters to five meters up on rocks beside the ocean (*to identify the fish clearly through glare - REQUIRED, use polarised spec lenses when lower down) if you do not own thousands of dollars of boat (dingy) equipment (do your trigonometry , it is more than 15 yards a hit shot (usually , but remains close quarter) and run) !
--- *In the USA the 15 yard web line is only because of FRESHWATER FISHING so common and popular among bow fishing regulars, HOWEVER, when USA consumers move into the saltwater ocean, they change to Dacron line and 100 meters or so of it on the reel for the fact a decent shooting fish can still do a good run if it is hit mildly !
The saltwater Dacron line is actually a woven fishing wire like line, the bow-fishing pre-wet line is a fat heavy material.
In Australia it is legal regulation to use a 15 yard bow fishing line of no more than 80lb break strain, on saltwater fish with taking lengths of usually around 1 meter length (rather large and heavy) !
Apart from crippling the foreign tourist sport industry in Australia , the Australian consumer must spend another PERHAPS 6k dollars for boat equipment to fish in the ocean and to be legal also using freshwater designed bow fishing equipment.
So what is wrong is when they decided to let this equipment in the Australian legislators had NO IDEA WHAT WAS USED FOR WHAT AND HOW !!!!
(careful to not shoot Wobbagong sharks they cruise the edge of rocks around small bays and their small young have a similar shape and speckle pattern).
NUMBER 2 (Quickly)
Similar idiocy again exists with light Aircraft, "in 1970 the Australian average DEATH TOLL was average 6000 p/year" on the roads because of the major highways being principly two opposing direction lanes and in terrible condition with unlimited speed (gone past hundreds of those messes in that era).
No mention of light aircraft in an environment and its country requiring(for many reasons) private personal flight in a personally owned private aircraft anyhow, they simply said they would commit a national program of road reconstruction and driver training (roughly it does not win but the toll is now much much much lower and also more often catastrophic injury(swapped)).
So what stories do you know of (by finding ..."this is mad"...) where the legislators could not care less and simply have no idea ?
Select to expand quotelotofwind said..
I have a fishing rod for sale if you like.
Are you saying that "guns shoot people" or ..."you would never dream of defending yourself or your family with a firearm if the criminals were armed with firearms because it is not what firearms are for to shoot people"...?
Select to expand quotelotofwind said..
Will throw in a free lure.
I'll clear up a point for you !!!!
There is a picture of me somewhere on our farm dam when i was a kid around 45Kg.
I am standing on a square piece of solid board i put foam under and am floating around on a home made SUP in 1973 !
I do two types of fishing , "bow-fishing" and "fly-fishing" and i once made a "stringy bark" bow string and bow from bark and tree branches and some arrows stone age style (Aust. native trees) and even killed a water bird from it self gratuitously on the side of the dam although i claimed i did not.
I would only be after minimum WF-10-T because it takes at least that in wind (suspicious its WF-14-T) and a fly-rod matching weight!
The bow and reels for the point i have to use from a SUP.
(...Answers that question "Bara")
Select to expand quotebusterwa said..
USA people can also purchase fully automatic wepons from wallmart. I feel safe with the current gun and firearms control.
Its not Australian legislation is State legislation. Over in WA we have had a full hand back of crossbows compound crossbows. What set-up are you running.
The laws for these types of weapon's needs to be licenced. To many young irresponsible kids get there hands on these wepons and go shooting family horses in paddocks. neibours dogs cats etc for fun. / Bow hunting especially using broard heads Its a blood sport with requires skilled shooters and trackers.
Getting lower car insurance premiums means being 25YO or over because people settle down generally after that age, i remember going into pubs and they often were wary if you were known to be under 21 and over 18.
Bows are not a great one for a mass killer . BELIEVE IT OR NOT a bow is not much better than a piece of hard wood or iron bar !!!!
Bows are hard and fiddly to reload!
In the USA , the issue is not finally about "weapons danger", it's about "the danger of not having weapons" because of the massive economic loss from not being able to prevent commercial damage first before it occurs and to not conclusively catch a perpetrator in the act because it would be too dangerous without weapons.
Unfortunately no place on earth is actually safe and it is a matter of doing the right thing with a weapon (as a policeman would do) not shivering and cowering behind the knowledge someone somewhere knows something sometime because "sometime" is often 30 or more years later as we see continually in Australia.
The reason they keep firearms in USA is because it is no good saying to a business client ..."i will be there with it"... if it is not there, it will not earn them a damn cent if it is gone and it will not be replaced by anyone or anything instantly (there is no magic spell) !!!!!
It does not change a damned thing for someone that must pay their bills !!!!!
So they can blow the dirty little F***kS through the head that wreck their business (should blow every little rocky f**k through the head that won't stand and send the terds if they wreck the business ) !!!!!!!!!
Select to expand quotebusterwa said..
I don't completely understand your post Nice. Things have been diverted from Bow fishing to insurance and comparative fire-arms laws in the United States. Im a bit lost.
The bow is a completely silent weapon and extremely effective in taking out a target if its operated by people who have the correct skillset.
Well maybe this makes sense.....
You simply want to understand that when legislators make laws they often have "no idea" what the situational use and operation is !
So it makes many activities impossible to sensibly effect.
Of bows, again they are immensely difficult to operate and well aside to that , many people in Australia have been given or simply are allowed a firearms license alike "Paddock in Las Vegas" that would never be questioned or thought of that have committed firearms massacre and serious offence.
The point of ANY WEAPON in Australia being legislated against is "MUTE!" e.g. Man Haron Monis e.t.c. !!!
The question here is do you have any knowledge of legislation laid down that inhibits and cripples activity and commerce because it clearly shows legislators have no idea what the "parameters" required for effective usage are !?
The question is not how much of a coward (and parasite of power) you or any other person wishes to be at the expense of others lives around them because an article is dangerous!
The question here is do you have any knowledge of legislation laid down that inhibits and cripples activity and commerce because it clearly shows legislators have no idea what the "parameters" required for effective usage are !?
The question is not how much of a coward (and parasite of power) you or any other person wishes to be at the expense of others lives around them because an article is dangerous!
No sorry I don't :-)
Bow fishing is a waste of time, couple sticks of dynamite is where its at.
Blow the fish to pieces and gets rid of that pesky coral.
Seriously though there is no requirement for bow fishing, you aint robin hood and this aint feudal england.
You want to shoot a fish? No worries grab your big boy pants an item called "spear gun" jump in and fire away.
Select to expand quoteRazzonater said..
Bow fishing is a waste of time, couple sticks of dynamite is where its at.
Blow the fish to pieces and gets rid of that pesky coral.
Seriously though there is no requirement for bow fishing, you aint robin hood and this aint feudal england.
You want to shoot a fish? No worries grab your big boy pants an item called "spear gun" jump in and fire away.
Spear guns are a bummer, they require loading under water and often commit accidentally self inflicted wounds (except in the case of WA serial killers).
Hand spear is safer, i've seen many people at it with hand spears , one of them was an immense annoyance swimming in the area i was waiting on some rocks with my bow for Bonito or suchlike schools to pass.
All in all bowfishing is not too bad, i would use fly rod but the lines are expensive for saltwater but at least if i did use fly rod i know the fish will chase, pulling the arrow back in to the bow always gets fish grab on the end of the arrow alike a lure.
Seriously though there is a requirement for bow fishing !
Its a millenniums old reasonable way of fishing all over the world ( Hell !!! , the "Viet Cong" did bow fishing and there is black and white of it on youtube ! ). Thousands of cultures since the stone age do either spear or bow-fishing.
There is a need in every Homo Sapiens's soul to do bow-fishing (not least of which in the ocean is women to curb Rubella [ basic cat care info ] ) !!
I'll just recap a point about the subject "story example" ,
99% of legal bow fishing in Australia is done in "saltwater"
WITH
bow fishing equipment designed for freshwater bow-fishing because Australian legislators failed to understand most bowfishing in the country the equipment was developed (USA) most bow-fishing is done legally in freshwater on stream and river banks at short range from the fish (THE ONLY REASON THEY HAVE 15 YARD LINES - AND - THEY ARE NOT LEGALLY OBLIGED TO HAVE ANY LINE ON THEIR ARROW !!! mostly as many videos show in shallow streams they can walk over and pick it up from underwater - line is a serious point in saltwater and in USA is "recommended around something like 100 - 150 yards of Dacron synthetic woven fishing wire" ) , however they do change their equipment over from freshwater to saltwater equipment that is mainly the line and the arrow tip (to soft-fish arrow tip).
While the basic bow fishing equipment is cheap (around 1/2K AUD dollars) and easy to acquire in Australia,
actual use requires another 3k to 8K dollars of boating equipment to be able to "effectively" use the bow-fishing outfit legally unless you are well prepared to sit around 5 meters up on rocks or ledges to wait for identifiable and legal length fish and only if you sensibly change from the freshwater line system to (technically illegal line length and type [ IS NOT A STUPID OR OFFENSIVE MISTAKE ]) the woven synthetic Dacron fishing line of 100 meters long !
The reality is places like China are actually have more freedom to live life as one wants to than countries like the USA, the UK or Australia. Yes there are tons of laws in China outlawing just about all and every non Socialist activity. However the authorities don't enforce the law so people do basically whatever they like. As a result there is a lot of enterprising plus bad behaviour there. There is also a lot of corruption as the regulator turns a blind eye to activity that is illegal in return for a gratuity.
Contrast that to Australia where laws are generally enforced. If the tint on your car windows is too dark or you serve alcohol to a paying customer in your unlicenced restaurant, or drive 10 km/h over the speed limit, expect to get a tap on the shoulder and summons to appear in court.
Select to expand quoteMobydisc said..
The reality is places like China are actually have more freedom to live life as one wants to than countries like the USA, the UK or Australia. Yes there are tons of laws in China outlawing just about all and every non Socialist activity. However the authorities don't enforce the law so people do basically whatever they like. As a result there is a lot of enterprising plus bad behaviour there. There is also a lot of corruption as the regulator turns a blind eye to activity that is illegal in return for a gratuity.
Contrast that to Australia where laws are generally enforced. If the tint on your car windows is too dark or you serve alcohol to a paying customer in your unlicenced restaurant, or drive 10 km/h over the speed limit, expect to get a tap on the shoulder and summons to appear in court.
And that is what is wrong with Australia by getting its legislation wrong from the writing drafter and consultants themselves having no real comprehension of what it is "of actuality" they are committing their regulations upon.
Bow fishing requires both freshwater table fish species and locations to exploit for recreation and tourist industry , and a proper understanding of the absolute requirement for the Dacron line and length in Saltwater whether in a boat or on rocks.
NOTE: Legislators were well aware when they placed bow-fishing into spear-fishing law category that bow-fishers would participate for most from shore not a boat because of the way a spear fisher with a bow must "locate" them self in relation to the location other people and the start and ends of beach zones , parks and reserves (marine) e.t.c. by law.
TROUBLE IS 15 YARDS OF LINE IN 90% OF LOCATIONS SIMPLY WILL NOT REACH THE FISH AT TRIGONOMETRY AND INCIDENCE OF PASSING FISH AT SUCH A RANGE THAT IS OF BIZARRE UNLIKELY NUMBERS E.G AROUND 1 -2 TWO FISH PER 24 HOUR PERIOD IN SALTWATER WHEN WAITING ON LAND !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
THAT IS NEAR INSANITY TO NOT COMPREHEND THAT REASON OF LINE LENGTH !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (MAYBE IT IS INSANITY MAYBE THE CONSULTANTS WERE INSANE !?!?!?) THE PHYSICS OF THE EQUIPMENT AND SHOT IS UNREAL AND IMPOSSIBLE WITH A 1 METER SALTWATER TABLE EATING FISH !!!
Game fishing boats cost 100k - 200k how much would you spend on game fishing or a game fishing boat for game fishing if "you are only allowed a maximum 80 lb line and maximum 15 yards long to catch Marlin game fishing" ?!
If it is law to have a maximum 15 yard length fishing line to go saltwater fishing with an ordinary rod and reel anywhere in Australia , how much would you spend on a rod and reel and kayak or SUP to go fishing ?!
Same problem with bow-fishing , IT IS essentially only salt-water fishing and the likeliness of fish to pass identifiabley in 24 hours is too rare to bother with a 15 yard line if all the reach for the shot were water (a sweep of 13 yards approximately) , HOWEVER, geography is not that kind or accessible around the shorelines and leaves usually no more than 5 yards firing sweep onto the ocean surface and most fish usually are half a yard to a yard below if ever there.
Not merely are they insane on the physics and tactical principal of use , but also in freshwater there is only carp fishing for people with "killing syndrome" to enjoy.
(So remember ,If you are a foreign tourist and if you have killing syndrome , go to the Murray river in SA to bow-fish for Carp. ENJOY!!! )
The legislators only provided for people with killing Syndrome on bow-fishing freshwater !
Can you bow fish from an unregulated ultra light aircraft, or do you need Australia's first SUP?
Yesterday I swam 2.5kms and was feeling abit doughy as I walked through the shopping centre directly afterwards, so doughy in fact I took someone elses trolley in the veg section and didnt bloody realise till I was looking at a kilo mince!
Where does shotgun fishing come in?
How many seals are you allowed to shoot a day with the bow and arrow.
With shotgun fishing i bagged my first two dolphins today.
The trick is luring them in, always helps if they are in captivity as well, this makes them less shy and easier to shoot.
We are looking at submachine gun fishing at current, there are a few endangered species out there we would like the honour of wiping from this planet.
Select to expand quoteRazzonater said..
Where does shotgun fishing come in?
How many seals are you allowed to shoot a day with the bow and arrow.
With shotgun fishing i bagged my first two dolphins today.
The trick is luring them in, always helps if they are in captivity as well, this makes them less shy and easier to shoot.
We are looking at submachine gun fishing at current, there are a few endangered species out there we would like the honour of wiping from this planet.
They go well with a nice white 
Select to expand quoteRazzonater said..
Where does shotgun fishing come in?
How many seals are you allowed to shoot a day with the bow and arrow.
With shotgun fishing i bagged my first two dolphins today.
The trick is luring them in, always helps if they are in captivity as well, this makes them less shy and easier to shoot.
We are looking at submachine gun fishing at current, there are a few endangered species out there we would like the honour of wiping from this planet.
In USA they do have rules and licenses for rifle(shooting) fishing.
But normally all that is done this way.
Fishing with dynamite..........bunch of amateurs!
Back up the calendar to the early '90's, a local farmer had a leaking dam that needed fixing, but no earthmoving machinery available at the time.
He had heard that a decent underwater explosion could seal such a leak, so he gave me a call.
I figured his theory had some merit, but might just as easily wreck his dam - no hassle he reckoned - it is leaking pretty bad anyway so nothing lost.
So......purely for research and reference purposes I stuffed a heap of leftover explody stuff into a pair of old jerrycans, and then filled the remaining spaces with anfo, poked detcord into a hole drilled through the cap and sealed them up with silastic.
Farmer hooked the jerrycans onto something in the bottom of the [rather icky looking] dam, I hooked up the detcord to a 'leccy det and we unwound my real of wire to where my old rack bar was waiting under the truck about 200 yards away.
Hit the rack and .......jeez........thank gawd we were under the truck as it was raining about 90 years worth of stinking sludge, bits of old carcasses, tangled hunks of rusted fencing wire and chunks of machinery - all of which had been under the remaining water in the dam.
Not to mention about 2565778547233609775 coonacs that were now spread all over the paddock, with a bunch of ducks looking rather sleepy.
All worked out well though, a week or so later it rained - dam wasn't leaking, and with all the gunk blown out it held heaps more too.
Cleaning the truck wasn't much fun, [note to self - never park truck downwind of potentially stinky kabooms]
but as a bonus I had a tuckerbox freezer full of coonacs, and very tender duck. 
Select to expand quotelotofwind said..
I have a fishing rod for sale if you like.
LOL
I got a story but it's nothing likethat. Actual its not even a story.
Something fishy is going on I believe. Sinister even. But I can only talk of my locality because Iam only one man. Here it is. Its Christmas time but -wait for it- wheres all the bloody fuqing christmas beetles? Usually my sink is full of them by now...vewy strange indeed...anybody else notice the lack of beetles?
Select to expand quotesn said..
Fishing with dynamite..........bunch of amateurs!
Back up the calendar to the early '90's, a local farmer had a leaking dam that needed fixing, but no earthmoving machinery available at the time.
He had heard that a decent underwater explosion could seal such a leak, so he gave me a call.
I figured his theory had some merit, but might just as easily wreck his dam - no hassle he reckoned - it is leaking pretty bad anyway so nothing lost.
So......purely for research and reference purposes I stuffed a heap of leftover explody stuff into a pair of old jerrycans, and then filled the remaining spaces with anfo, poked detcord into a hole drilled through the cap and sealed them up with silastic.
Farmer hooked the jerrycans onto something in the bottom of the [rather icky looking] dam, I hooked up the detcord to a 'leccy det and we unwound my real of wire to where my old rack bar was waiting under the truck about 200 yards away.
Hit the rack and .......jeez........thank gawd we were under the truck as it was raining about 90 years worth of stinking sludge, bits of old carcasses, tangled hunks of rusted fencing wire and chunks of machinery - all of which had been under the remaining water in the dam.
Not to mention about 2565778547233609775 coonacs that were now spread all over the paddock, with a bunch of ducks looking rather sleepy.
All worked out well though, a week or so later it rained - dam wasn't leaking, and with all the gunk blown out it held heaps more too.
Cleaning the truck wasn't much fun, [note to self - never park truck downwind of potentially stinky kabooms]
but as a bonus I had a tuckerbox freezer full of coonacs, and very tender duck.
Thanks sn, THAT is a story...
Select to expand quotequikdrawMcgraw said..
I got a story but it's nothing likethat. Actual its not even a story.
Something fishy is going on I believe. Sinister even. But I can only talk of my locality because Iam only one man. Here it is. Its Christmas time but -wait for it- wheres all the bloody fuqing christmas beetles? Usually my sink is full of them by now...vewy strange indeed...anybody else notice the lack of beetles?
I've had a few (Port Stephens) but definitely not as many as last year, something fishy buggy going on indeed!
Select to expand quoteJulianRoss said..
Thanks sn, THAT is a story...
there are plenty more.........
Its pretty entertaining taking old earthmover tyres off the rims.......when you use copious amounts of detcord!
[just ask the entire Bindoon townsite - they got to listen to the local J.P. and myself hard at work [who am I kidding....] have an awesome time sending huuuuge smoke rings up over flat rocks road, and booms echoing through the town]
And then on a farm outside Koorda, there was an old concrete house pad that needed demolishing, gave it plenty of "oomph" as it was supposed to be well reinforced.
Found out afterwards that the reo was old recycled rusty chook wire.
Have I mentioned that diving under the tray of a ute can become a reflex action???
Adjoining farm - we got bored shooting rabbits, and loaded up a row of warrens that were hidden under prickles.
The procedure is to stuff a kilo or so of anfo down the burrows, collapse the entrance leaving the fuse poking out of each one, then you walk down the row lighting fuses.
Sometimes rabbits are smart and have a back door to their burrow, which then turns the burrow into a rabbit cannon [yes - rabbits can fly!]
You ever see the episode of mythbusters where they fired a chook through an airplanes windscreen??
well, HQ ute side windows didn't do much better, and bits of rabbit and glass are real fun to get out of upholstery....
As a side note - fox dens got special attention, [ie: just a "little bit " more kaboomy stuff than rabbit warrens] unfortunately though, they can go a long way underground - leaving a messy trench after the den collapses, which is a PITA to fix - especially when the ruddy foxes had put their den under the firebreak/track and under a ruddy strainer post which held up the gate......
Meanwhile, back in Bindoon, dear old Mum had an outstanding selection of lavender growing - thousands of the things of 4 [or5??] different types.
But - there was a ruddy old gnarly dead tree lying in the middle of dear old Mum's pride and joy looking, well...... old and gnarly and not pretty.
Mum had grumbled about this thing one too many times, so I went and dug out my log splitting gun, loaded it up with B.P. and hammered it into the end of the dead tree, thinking I would split it into a few pieces that were easier to drag out from between the rows of Mums precious lavender.
Lit the fuse, [lovely smell that stuff makes] them KABOOM!!
I had a feeling something wasn't right - but I couldn't see what due to the black powder's smoke and dust.
meanwhile.......Mum's prized chooks had scarpered, the bantams had taken off too fast - some got tangled up in the chook fence, our platoon of guinea fowl deserted and went M.I.A. [for several months], my labrador and rottie had both shat themselves and bolted and hid under the ute [kinda developing into a family tradition].
Smoke and dust eventually cleared, and I was in the poo.....the tree had split alright - but a huuuuuuge chunk had spun off and taken out a row of around 30 lavender [and the retic] and another hunk had somersaulted in the other direction - missing all the weedy lavenders and landed on the good stuff.
As I am thinking how to explain all this, Mum calls from the house to ask what am I up too........
S'all right Mum, just clearing up a bit of rubbish.....
As I headed to the shed to get the shovel/axe/chainsaw/chains/petrol/ matches [another story] I notice our two cats [coincidentally - given to us by the previously mentioned J.P.] are making themselves useful by helping remove the bantams stuck in the chook fence.
You know what!! I think I might have got away with that one
well, Dear old Mum doesn't mention it all that often
