A very large truck will pull up out side your house with Laser Limit Testing Unit on the side and enough equipment to embarass most of major universities. The police will whisk away your laser pointer for testing and emerge an hour later with a $100 on the spot fine.
Of course you will be able to fight this and win in court on the grounds that they were not qualified to use the equipment in the first place.
They will of course appeal, spend millions and lose again. Then there will they enquiries into everything possible.
The ministers and the premiers will then stand on the steps of Parliament house and say that it has all been money well spent to ensure the safety of all Australians.
I sent an email today from my work to the state government regulator and informed them that I will be contacting all the heads of department at my workplace asking them to let me know how many laser pointers are used in their department. I will then be adding them all to our 'LICENCE in respect of IRRADIATING APPARATUS and/or ELECTRONIC PRODUCTS'.
I also informed them that, as I have a few laser pointers at home, I will duly apply for my own 'LICENCE in respect of IRRADIATING APPARATUS and/or ELECTRONIC PRODUCTS' and register my house as the location of the IRRADIATING APPARATUS. I will of course nominate myself as the Chief and Site Laser Radiation Safety Officer (LRSO).
At the moment there is one guy that works two mornings a week handling the laser licences in this state. Currently that's probably about 1 every couple of weeks.
So if there are, let's say, 100,000 laser pointers in this state, and it takes this one guy a week to do the paperwork, then that means that 100,000 applications will take him about 2000 years to complete? Or maybe the Guv'ment can employ another 2000 part-time physicists and then it will only take them 1 year to get through the applications...?
I sent an email today from my work to the state government regulator and informed them that I will be contacting all the heads of department at my workplace asking them to let me know how many laser pointers are used in their department. I will then be adding them all to our 'LICENCE in respect of IRRADIATING APPARATUS and/or ELECTRONIC PRODUCTS'.
I also informed them that, as I have a few laser pointers at home, I will duly apply for my own 'LICENCE in respect of IRRADIATING APPARATUS and/or ELECTRONIC PRODUCTS' and register my house as the location of the IRRADIATING APPARATUS. I will of course nominate myself as the Chief and Site Laser Radiation Safety Officer (LRSO).
At the moment there is one guy that works two mornings a week handling the laser licences in this state. Currently that's probably about 1 every couple of weeks.
So if there are, let's say, 100,000 laser pointers in this state, and it takes this one guy a week to do the paperwork, then that means that 100,000 applications will take him about 2000 years to complete? Or maybe the Guv'ment can employ another 2000 part-time physicists and then it will only take them 1 year to get through the applications...?
Suzy_A,
Great piece of direct action!
Hope you will be adding all your CD/DVD drives and laser printers
to the list.
With a bit of luck the overworked public servant will go off on
compo for stress and nothing will get done at all.
Yes, Geoff, I think there would be significant correlation. These being Google Ads I presume they are picked by the google machinery on the basis of the content of the website. So it would follow that the more threads and posts about something the more likely it will appear in an advert in the sidebar.
"Argh! My eyes! My eyes!" Talby on the Dark Star (1974) after he gets blinded while trying to adjust the Communication Laser in the airlock.... http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0069945/
For us Queensland residents I got the following reply from the Australian Federal Police
Quote:
I recently received your enquiry from Queensland Police in relation to the use of Laser Lights. Please see information below;
Current Legislation: It is not an offence within Queensland at this time to have possession of laser light. However, it is an offence to interfere with the safe operation of aircraft and as such new legislation has been introduced. (There is also a common assault offence QLD legislation, related to shining laser at another person.)
At present it is not illegal to have a laser light and you do not require a permit.
for those residents living in states where a permit is required, declaring they own one and to hell with the law, it has been stated in earlier threads that these threads have been read by the authorities. Dont think you are immune from persual, at present nothing has been done.... but if they wish to... you have openly declared your intent and would lose if prosecuted and fined the maximum amount as you knew the rules and chose to flagrantly disregard them.
Regardless of how unfair/ silly etc these laws may be .... it is the law.
Complain about the unfairness and stupidity by all means just be discrete if you know what i mean.
for those residents living in states where a permit is required, declaring they own one and to hell with the law, it has been stated in earlier threads that these threads have been read by the authorities. Dont think you are immune from persual, at present nothing has been done.... but if they wish to... you have openly declared your intent and would lose if prosecuted and fined the maximum amount as you knew the rules and chose to flagrantly disregard them.
Regardless of how unfair/ silly etc these laws may be .... it is the law.
Complain about the unfairness and stupidity by all means just be discrete if you know what i mean.
Of course the funniest part of your comments is that many people on this web site also publish their exact latitutde and longitude of their homes, geez, talk about dob yourself in. Quick, go and change your lat and longs for somewhere in Brazil.
Of course the funniest part of your comments is that many people on this web site also publish their exact latitutde and longitude of their homes, geez, talk about dob yourself in.........
Last weekend I sent an email to the WA police asking about the status of class iiia <5mW green laser pointers and recievied the following response on the 15/04/08:
"Wade
My understanding is that laser pointers will fall within the Weapons Act & Weapons Regulations 1999. Mention is made of an offence where the person, who without lawful excuse, carries or possesses a light pointer; or Has a lawful excuse to carry or possess a ligth pointer commits an offence if the person carries or possesses it in a manner that could reasonably be expected to cause someone to be injured or disabled; or to fear that someone will be injured or disabled.
It will still be lawful to possess a light pointer for a lawful purpose
ie: as in your case astronomical use.
No form of licensing is required.
I hope this information assists.
Regards
Police Licensing Services"
After the ministers comment of the 13th April is it any wonder there is confusion?
Last edited by WadeH; 18-04-2008 at 11:49 AM.
Reason: Did not mean for name to be included
Last weekend I sent an email to the WA police asking about the status of class iiia <5mW green laser pointers and recievied the following response on the 15/04/08:
"...My understanding is that laser pointers will fall within the Weapons Act & Weapons Regulations 1999. Mention is made of an offence where the person.... or Has a lawful excuse to carry or possess a ligth pointer commits an offence if the person carries or possesses it in a manner that could reasonably be expected to cause someone to be injured or disabled; or to fear that someone will be injured or disabled.
....
Jeff Hildebrandt
Sergeant 5374
Police Licensing Services"
I still haven't received a reply to my query to the state licencing section yet...
But with regards to the Sergeant's reply...
So, this means that if someone is 'lawfully' using a LP at a conference and accidently shines it in the direction of the audience, then they have committed an offence?
I remember once when I was at a seminar full of physicists, a speaker was doing this as they kept their finger on the button and you should have seen everyone duck for cover....
So far it seems most states are banning them, but as far as current legislation is concerned, there are valid and exempt practices regarding the lasers, and they don't require licences. Lets hope the trend continues in most other states!
they ban drugs... so people have to make their own which are alot more dangerous.
they ban fireworks... ao people have to blow their hands of making their own.
They ban lasers... people have to burn their eyes out after making their own...
Just for the record Caleb no one HAS to do any of those things at all !!
No one is holding a gun to peoples heads and forcing them to do stupid, illegal and/or dangerous things. IF people choose to do those things themselves, then they have only themselves to blame if things go wrong, not the government.
I am NOT in favour of ridiculously tight legislation or of overly controlling governments, but I DO take responsibility for my own actions, and don't go blaming someone else if I screw up.
The New South Wales Government has announced that it is banning laser pointers after a spate incidents involving aeroplanes.
The new laws mean that the lasers will be illegal without a prohibited weapons permit.
People caught with a laser could face two years in jail.
Recently a number of pilots have reported that lasers have been shone into their cockpits during take-offs and landings.
$5000 fine for those carrying lasers without sufficient cause.
But get this: Class 3 and 4 lasers will be declared a prohibited weapon, which could attract a 14 year maximum jail term. My GSO laser collimator is Class IIIa. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot.
