If you support gun control in the U.S., please explain in the poll below how you’d like to see it pan out.
I would like to see greatly increased restrictions on the purchase of new firearms, background checks, restrictions for domestic violence convictions, increased waiting periods, etc. I would also like to see it become easier to confiscate weapons from people who misuse them. In fact I would like to see it become the default action, get arrested, get your guns confiscated. I would also like to see gun confiscation be a civil proceeding, where the state has to prove fault be a preponderance of the evidence, not beyond a reasonable doubt.
I’d also like a pony.
I’ll confess to not having given the matter sufficient thought.
I don’t really favor a lot of gun control, beyond registration (all guns should be registered). I think anyone who wants one (and isn’t currently incarcerated for having committed a crime) should be able to own one.
What I would support is some form of ammunition control. I don’t know what technologies exist or could exist that would make this practical, but some kind of identifier on each and every bullet that allows it to be traced, ideally to both the purchaser and place of purchase of the ammunition and also the gun that fired it.
Common sense but there we hit the YMMV wall because I’m not sure I wouldn’t partly fight against some of the things I really, in my heart, want. Full records available at the federal level of all arrests and convictions, same for anyone believed by a professional (judge or psychologist) to be a possible threat to themselves or others, list of all PFAs, DUIs and related actions ---- in other words a national list that can be quickly and easily accessed to verify the information the person entered on the current form is correct. I’ve seen other things floated now and then I could include but the beefing up in a serious manner of the background checks has always been the first starting point to me.
1 model of handgun and 1 model of bolt-action hunting rifle available to everyone. Everyone can own one of each. No open or concealed carry anywhere in public unless going to, coming from, or in the process of hunting. Having an unauthorized gun in public is an automatic 25 year prison sentence on a remote island where all the turned-in guns are stored and everyone can have whatever they can get while they remain on the island. Live 24 hour video streaming of all parts of the island.
This has already been tried – not sure of the exact years but it was in effect during the middle 1970s – purchasers had to show ID and every purchase of ammo was logged – the program ran for (pretty sure) 14 years – program was discontinued because the number of crimes solved was zero.
I want to see confiscation aka “grabbing” of all personally-owned guns, particularly from rednecks in flyover states. Next, I want to take away their motorcycles, dune buggies, jet-skis and all other forms of loud recreational vehicles. Next, all power tools.
I like lots of peace and quiet.
And your location is Brooklyn?!?
Not sure we’re talking about the same thing.
I’m not sure what I’d like is even technologically feasible, but what I’m talking about is a “fingerprint” of some sort embedded in each bullet, that would enable law enforcement to determine who purchased it and where, and what gun fired it.
No more shotguns?
After the education part (requirement for ownership, since “well regulated militia” and all that), and forfeiture for reckless behavior (not necessarily involving guns, per se), I want the registration to incriminate the owner: if you loan, sell, give away or lose track of a gun and it is used in a crime, you become an accessory (unless you are able to transfer the registration).
Nope.
Door-to-door beating of guns into ploughshares, which the owners may then keep.
Door-to-door confiscation of unmuffled leaf blowers, which are then to be cast into active volcanoes.
Close to the first option, but I’m not sure why I would make an exception for the police and the military. I’d prefer a model where all police and military are trained with weapons, but only certain specialized groups would actually be armed.
I would also make an exception for hunters, farmers, and other people who use guns primarily as a tool.
Also, buy back rather than confiscate, with a transitional period. Confiscation seems designed to create resentment and and underground gun trade.
But yes, by all means restrict gun types and repeal the Second Amendment and do everything governmentally possible to get guns out of the cities and any place where they might be inclined to shoot humans.
[Hedley LaMarr] Too… “Scientologist” [/Hedley LaMarr]
Gun owner licenses should be required along the same lines as drivers licenses. Required training class, including demonstrated competence at a practice range. License revoked for felonies, domestic violence, etc.
Gun manufacture/sales regulations comparable to car regulations. All guns registered. No military style or assault weapons for private ownership. Don’t confiscate guns people currently own, as long as they have a valid license, but prohibit their resale. Use some of the funding from license fees to establish a buy-back program for prohibited guns.
I like this idea, and additionally recommend a complimentary planting of a vine and fig tree at every home.
These 19th century brownstones have very thick walls.
I went with “Common Sense.”
As I understand it, 2/3 of gun deaths are attributed to suicide. While a firearm might improve the chances of successfully pulling off a suicide, it seems like it would make more sense to address WHY people want to kill themselves in the first place. Doing so would not only bring the overall gun death total down, but it would also likely improve the quality of life for people who are down but not yet suicidal. So, common sense legislation making mental health care more easily available and affordable, which redirects the conversation to universal healthcare legislation like all the other civilized nations have.
For the non-suicides…what are the numbers? Perhaps my Google-foo is weak, or perhaps some entity makes the information unavailable, but what sorts of guns are leading to what profile killing what profile? If handguns are accounting for like 75% of homicides and accidents, it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to look at 5.56 & 7.62 rifles no matter how scary they and their events are. So, common sense legislation here would start with mandating the compilation of relevant data. I think anyone would get on board with analyzing crime stats before drafting and executing legislation.
That’s going to make bird hunting damned tough.