Waves and Tidings

It’s Time to Change Our Gun Laws

How many more stories are we going to hear about of some crazed, lone gunman firing on an unsuspecting crowd with assault rifles, shotguns, pistols, and a big enough arsenal to outfit a small militia?  It is sad and scary to hear about what happened in Aurora, CO last night.  I have a lot of friends that live around there.  What if they were at that movie theater?

Guns are cool, I get it.  I enjoy the power behind them, and the thrill you get firing one.  I like to watch hunting channels and those reality competitions filled with the World’s best sharp shooters.  The stories are amazing watching biatholons, and hearing how a U.S. military sharpshooter took out the enemy from over a mile away.

But why does anyone need to keep a full arsenal at home?  How can a loner with no apparent friends stock up on so many weapons?  Why are there so many missed cases where someone slips through the cracks?  Here are my suggestions on what I think needs to happen with U.S. gun laws; and this should be Federal, not at the State level.

1. Require a minimum of FOUR references for a background check, and they must all be from different associations; such as a family member, a friend, a coworker, classmates, club associations, etc.  This Aurora shooter was a loner.  No one seemed to know much about him.  He should not be able to get a gun with extra background measures.
2. Require that all gun purchases take three days of background checks.  If it takes more than three days to complete a check, so be it.  A gun is not a credit card, so there should not be instant approvals allowed to anyone.  This includes gun sales at a gun show.  How can guns just be given away?
3. Create a national registration system.  Ban giveaways and instant sales at gun shows, unless you are registered as having a full background check, including full psych evaluations.  Registrants would be required to have annual checks and evaluations setting up annual renewals.  You can’t go driving, fishing, or hunting without a license, make gun buyers have one too.
4. Ban the sales of high powered weapons.  People need self-defense, I get it.  Allow licensed individuals to carry handguns.  People hunt, I get that too.  Allow for the sales of hunting rifles.  But do people really need semi-automatic rifles?  What are you going to do with one besides the occasional visit to a gun range?
5. If you can’t ban high-powered weapons sales, ban their storage at home.  Instead of bailing out banks of countries filled with terrorists, the government could use that money to set up gun storage facilities, complete with all of the latest security measures.  They can partner with private companies to deviate some of the costs.  Like a bank or high security government facility.  You can check out your guns when you plan to go to the gun range, or somewhere else.  You must inform the gun storage where you plan to use your guns and how many days they will be checked out.  If you miss a deadline to check the guns back in then authorities could be notified.  This will also create more jobs!
6. Use geotracking technology on all new gun sales.  When a gun is checked out authorities can ensure the gun owners are going where they intend to go.  If they don’t, they can use friendly calls to check on if there are alternative plans.

I am definitely for everyone’s right to own a gun, and these are all merely suggestions.  But the bottom line, something needs to be done to avoid the loss of innocent lives.  Maybe someone else has better ideas.  Responsible gun owners should not be penalized for someone such as the Aurora shooter.

I still remember vividly what it was like to be around the DC Metro area during the sniper attacks, or the “Shotgun Killer”, or when former Maryland Terp Lonny Baxter fired random shots near the White House.  They were all rogue individuals that were overlooked by a weak background system.

What does the NRA do besides use lobbyists to sway the vote from congress?  There needs to be some bipartisan cooperation before another congressperson is shot, before another child is shot, before more innocent people are shot.

The National Rifle Association: Arms and the man | The Economist.

The Dark Knight Rises screening shooting: Gunman in a gas mask shoots dead 12 people – including children – at midnight screening of Batman premiere in Denver | Mail Online.

Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.