Hi, Folks -

Our own Mary Maxwell posted a 'scoop' regarding who might really have been the Port Arthur Massacre shooter. (See the post this one is in reply to.)

Many Americans are aware of the term, "Port Arthur Massacre" but may not understand what the fuss is all about. Here's Wikipedia's introduction on the topic:

The Port Arthur massacre of 28–29 April 1996 was a killing spree in which 35 people were killed and 23 wounded. It occurred mainly at the historic Port Arthur former prison colony,[1] a popular tourist site in south-eastern Tasmania, Australia.[2]

Martin Bryant, a 28-year-old from New Town, a suburb of Hobart, was found guilty and given 35 life sentences without possibility of parole.[3] Following the incident, it emerged in the media that Bryant had significant intellectual disabilities. He is now imprisoned in the Wilfred Lopes Centre near the Risdon Prison Complex.[4]

The Port Arthur massacre remains one of the deadliest shootings worldwide committed by a single person. Following the spree, the Prime Minister of Australia, John Howard, introduced strict gun ownership laws within the country and formulated the National Firearms Programme Implementation Act 1996, restricting the private ownership of semi-automatic rifles, semi-automatic shotguns and pump-action shotguns as well as introducing uniform firearms licensing. It was implemented with bipartisan support by the commonwealth, states and territories.[5]

Wikipedia's article is here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_Arthur_massacre_%28Australia%29

Most RMN Readers will readily grasp that the sequence of events, "massacre, then gun control", is suggestive of, well, something conspiratorial, and the idea that the wrong person might be in jail for it may seem familiar, too.

--hobie

: Port Arthur Massacre and Martin Bryant’s Innocence: A New
: Perspective from Tasmania

: By Mary W Maxwell, PhD, LLB