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Following the tragedy of the horrific attack at Bondi, Australia is confronting multiple pressing reckonings. There is a much-needed national focus on anti-Jewish sentiment, an persistent worry about national security, and questions about how such an tragedy could occur. But, from the perspective of a health professional and Australian Jew, the most important dialogue we are finally having centers on firearms.

Ten Years of Cautions and a Proven Response

Public health specialists have been sounding alarms about guns for a minimum of a ten-year period. In the wake of the Port Arthur tragedy, Australians came together and implemented a series of measures to curb gun violence across the country. The strategy succeeded. Before 1996, the nation witnessed roughly one large-scale firearm incident per year. In the decades since, there have been vanishingly few significant tragedies, with none approaching the fatalities of the incidents in the 1980s and 1990s.

This Recent Tragedy and the Function of Existing Regulations

Amidst the Bondi events, the nation's gun laws were partially effective. It has been suggested the individuals involved might have been armed with manually-operated long guns and a straight-pull shotgun. These weapons are limited to firing a single bullet at a time, necessitating a manual operation to ready the subsequent shot. Although these guns are capable of being discharged rapidly with lethal results, they remain significantly less rapid and less efficient than the high-capacity, self-loading rifles commonplace in international attacks. The casualty count at Bondi would've been far higher if different firearms had been available.

Preventing another Bondi demands national cohesion. And unfortunately, we have already seen fissures in the united front.

Legislation Showing Weakness

However, the horrific toll of the attack demonstrates that current gun laws are failing. Designed in the late 1990s with the noblest aims, years have worn away their efficacy. Concerningly, there are now more firearms in Australia than before the Port Arthur massacre, with some individuals in urban areas owning collections of hundreds of weapons.

The nation has grown overconfident and it has exacted a terrible price.

The Path Ahead: Announced Changes

In the time after the Bondi tragedy, there have been multiple declarations regarding strengthened firearm legislation. New South Wales specifically will shortly introduce a package of measures to reduce the collective risk from firearms. The national government has announced a new gun buyback, and there is hope for a countrywide gun database, notwithstanding the inherent challenges of coordinating state and federal governments.

These measures are feasible provided that the nation acts in unison. As noted, when it comes to gun control, the country is only as strong as its least stringent jurisdiction. This is the very nature of the Australian federation – regulations in one state are much less meaningful if they can be bypassed with a journey across a border.

Addressing Frequent Arguments

We hear the predictable response that "guns don't kill people, individuals are". This is accurate in the same sense that planes don't transport people, aviators do. Yes, planes can't fly themselves, but it would be virtually impossible for a captain to move 500 people overseas without the plane. The horrific violence seen at Bondi would be all but impossible without guns, and would have been significantly less lethal if the alleged terrorists had been denied access to the firearms they used.

Balancing Necessity and Security

It is acknowledged there are legitimate needs for some Australians to possess guns. Farm work or culling pests in many places is incredibly hard without them. A complete removal of firearms from the country is impractical, as in some cases they are indispensable.

The achievable goal – the imperative action – is to guarantee that gun laws are modernized to better match the world we live in today. Australia's legislation have long been the admiration of the world, but the passage of years has taken a toll and the nation is less secure as it previously was. It is critical to learn from the tragedy of Bondi to heart, and make certain that future generations are as protected as previous generations have been.

A friend remarked after the Bondi attack, "things like this just don't happen here". This is true, but only because the country has made concerted efforts to maintain its security. As nightmarish as the incident was, there is an aspiration that it can become the final tragedy the nation experiences.