Looks like someone in AU is onto WL!

What really worries me about this situation is that there are a lot of attention seekers in this world so someone might be shining a laser around outside not pointing near a plane and maybe a pilot notices it takes down some rough coordinates and goes for his 15 minutes of fame with the media. Bad news for us. If need be regulate the sales in a minor way, 21 or above without adult supervision who knows, not a total ban these people are glory hounds, the politicians and the media have nothing better to do? If I was a millionaire I'd do publicity stating the real facts about lasers, the problem is no one will do it to protect the few that get enjoyment from hobby laser use.

The media never ceases to enrage me. Lasers have yet to cause harm to anyone. Yes, there are some stupid people who point them at planes, but as of yet, no planes have crashed, no helicopters have exploded, and nobody in history has ever been directly or indirectly killed by a laser beam. And when it comes to portables, I think you'll be very hard pressed to come up with actual injuries worse then some retinal damage to the operator of the device. Then take a look at knives. You can walk into a knife store and they have hundreds of different knives for you to buy. You don't need to be of a certain age, and they are very affordable, many of them are crafted specifically to look menacing or dangerous. Knives are used all the time to kill and maim people. Knives should be outlawed! "Stop right there," I hear you cry, "knives are useful tools!" Well so are portable lasers. They are used for starpointing and astronomy. Holography and light shows. Education and experimentation. And portable lasers are used in place of larger lasers in many places because of their affordability. There is no reason that the ban of such a marvelous and useful device should take place.

Furthermore, banning lasers will do nothing to stop people who want lasers from getting them. Criminals aren't supposed to have guns, but they get ahold of them anyways, either by smuggling them in or building home-made ones. And lasers will be the same way. The internet exists, and there is no way to stop people from looking up how to build a DVD burner flashlight hack. And those people, who watch things like kipkay's hack, are the ones that everyone should be worried about, because those people are the ones that don't understand the dangers of having such a device. I am lucky to live in a country where lasers have yet to be used offensively by nimrods. And it better stay that way, because I'm not giving this hobby up.

</rant>

I can see it now:
Huge laser bust in Australia….Multi million dollars of lasers and laser equipment confiscated…the perpetrator sentenced to death penalty…

All the while little kids are getting raped and murdered, people are suffering because gas is too expensive, people cant pay for health insurance so they just die when they get sick, etc. etc.

Fear maybe an affective tactic for governing the people, but they all fear the wrong things, lies, manipulations that are created to conceal the truth of which if we actually really knew, we would be much more frightened, probably to the point were we would stand up and retaliate. I say we should ban gasoline! Besides, riding bicycles will keep us all really healthy and fit, our air would be cleaner, we just need to work close to home. “Some people call me a dreamer….but I’m not the only one….Maybe one day you’ll find us…and the world will be as one…”

Event Horizon said:

The media never ceases to enrage me. Lasers have yet to cause harm to anyone. Yes, there are some stupid people who point them at planes, but as of yet, no planes have crashed, no helicopters have exploded, and nobody in history has ever been directly or indirectly killed by a laser beam. And when it comes to portables, I think you'll be very hard pressed to come up with actual injuries worse then some retinal damage to the operator of the device. Then take a look at knives. You can walk into a <i>knife store</i> and they have hundreds of different knives for you to buy. You don't need to be of a certain age, and they are very affordable, many of them are crafted specifically to look menacing or dangerous. Knives are used all the time to kill and maim people. Knives should be outlawed! "Stop right there," I hear you cry, "knives are useful tools!" Well so are portable lasers. They are used for starpointing and astronomy. Holography and light shows. Education and experimentation. And portable lasers are used in place of larger lasers in many places because of their affordability. There is no reason that the ban of such a marvelous and useful device should take place.

Furthermore, banning lasers will do nothing to stop people who want lasers from getting them. Criminals aren't supposed to have guns, but they get ahold of them anyways, either by smuggling them in or building home-made ones. And lasers will be the same way. The internet exists, and there is no way to stop people from looking up how to build a DVD burner flashlight hack. And those people, who watch things like kipkay's hack, are the ones that everyone should be worried about, because those people are the ones that don't understand the dangers of having such a device. I am lucky to live in a country where lasers have yet to be used offensively by nimrods. And it better stay that way, because I'm not giving this hobby up.

</rant>

Click to expand...

It obvious that this post is %100 more intelligent then that stupid article.  Well said E.H. [smiley=thumbsup.gif]

Politicians should all be banned ;D Or the next best thing : taken out and shot .

Oh and they referred to styropyros video (the joke one about how to turn a 5mW pen into a 200mW monster) and they claimed that it was possible. Everyone knows its not possible to do this.

cbrian4 said:

Oh and they referred to styropyros video (the joke one about how to turn a 5mW pen into a 200mW monster) and they claimed that it was possible. Everyone knows its not possible to do this.

Click to expand...

Well I guess if the media are going to spread lies, they might as well believe them too! ;D That article will make people want to buy 5mW lasers and pot mod them or what ever. That is actually a false advertisement in disguise! ;D

LOL! ;D ;D ;D ;D
"Deadly lasers" Everybody knows that the biggest threat to America
is laser terrorist! ;D

Lasers do not kill, the finger at the on/off button does! Oh wait, that's not right...

Petrovski said:

Lasers do not kill, the finger at the on/off button does! Oh wait, that's not right...

Click to expand...

Lasers don't kill people.... people with mustaches kill people!

Can you guy still buy air rifles in AU?

lol au prohibits the import of shock your friend toys. Some guy on dx was complaining because au customs confiscated his "shock your friend" fake computer mice. Apparently they were taken because au banned devices that emit an electric shock.

Take it the police dont use tazers in that case ;D

Diachi

wow look at this list of items you can't import into au.
http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.3441
Novelty erasers? WTF ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

From the australian customs website for postage

Some goods commonly purchased over the Internet that are, or contain, restricted items may be detained or seized by Customs. These include:

performance-enhancing medicines, including steroids and health supplements containing restricted substances;
medications, both traditional and alternative such as herbal preparations;
videos, DVDs, CDs and books/publications with objectionable or offensive content;
wildlife souvenirs and products;
plant seeds;
electronic dog collars;
electronic hand-held insect zappers
Antibiotics
ANZAC
Australian flag and coats of arms
Asbestos
Cat and dog fur products
Ceramic ware - glazed
Cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoises)
Chemical weapons
Chewing tobacco and oral snuff
Cigarette lighters - under the value of $5
Cosmetics - toxic materials
Credit cards - counterfeit
Crowd control equipment
Cultural and heritage goods - general
Cultural and heritage goods from Papua New Guinea
Diamonds - from Liberia
Diamonds - from Cote d'Ivoire
Diamonds - Kimberley Process
Dog collars - electronic and protrusion
Dogs - dangerous breeds
Drugs and narcotics
Embryo clones - viable materials
Endangered animal and plant species - CITES
Erasers - novelty
Firearms and ammunition
Fish and toothfish
Fly swatters/mosquito bats - electronic
Fuel - marked
Growth hormones and substances of human or animal origin
Hazardous waste
Hydroflurocarbons (HFCs)
Industrial chemicals
Kava Knives and daggers
Logs and timber products- from Liberia
Money boxes, novelty - toxic materials
Ozone depleting substances
Pornography and other objectionable material
Pencils and paintbrushes - toxic materials
Pesticides
Radioactive substances
Steroids Suicide devices
Therapeutic drugs and substances
Tobacco - unmanufactured leaf
Toys - toxic materials
Trade Practices Act goods
Weapons
Woolpacks

Australian flags??
not very patriotic

I figured it out!  Australia = PRISON!  All citizens move out before they ban EVERYTHING!  ;D

Edit: I bought one of those fly zappers from DX, my friend stuck his tonge in it for kicks! I'm not so crazy but I can easily put my finger in it. It usually doesn't even kill flys, just stuns really bad! ;D