I think it's time the discussion got its own subject line. :)
While I've made fun of what I consider the sillier arguments of anti-gun
control folks, I don't favor a complete ban on firearms.
I think rifles and shotguns have a legitimate sporting use and should not be
banned. I'm ambivalent about a ban on handguns, but there are plenty of
things I'd like to try before we attempt to get rid of them -- which I have
serious practical doubts about.
I think strongly enforcing the gun laws we already have is great, but it's
not enough.
I think mandatory trigger locks for all firearms are a great idea. Anything
we can do to try to reduce the number of children who kill themselves or
their playmates with carelessly stored firearms is a wondeful idea. And
prosecuting the grieving parents afterward for negligence is not a good
substitute.
I think mandatory safety classes and refresher classes for firearms owners
are a good idea. We test prospective drivers. If you can't be bothered to
take a half-day safety class once a year or so, you don't deserve to have a
firearm.
I think identity checks and waiting periods are good. They don't stop every
loony or criminal from getting their hands on a gun, but that's no reason to
make it even easier for them.
I think gun trade-in programs are great. People should be encouraged to get
rid of firearms they aren't using ... otherwise, they're just waiting around
to be stolen. And I don't think the notion of reducing the number of firearms
out there through voluntary trade-ins is a bad one.
I'm ambivalent on registration. I don't know if it helps any, and it just
riles up the fringe types, like the militias. There's no sense getting police
and ATF agents killed trying to enforce laws that don't do any good.
I'm leery of relaxing concealed carry laws. The idea of a woman defending
herself from a would-be rapist with the pistol in her purse is appealing, but
real life doesn't always work out so neatly. What happens when she misses the
rapist but kills a child playing down the street? What happens when she
overreacts and shoots an obnoxious but harmless street person? What happens
when she gets drunk and pulls it on her boyfriend, or the police who've come
to arrest him? The same, even moreso, for men, of course.
Patrick Sweeney
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
