Tabby wrote:Perhaps if gun registries had an expiration date the way vehicle registries do? You could have to renew your application every so many years and potentially even a medical check for mental health issues. If you've acquired a certain number of additional guns (or additional types of guns) you could have to provide evidence that you took a course on gun storage or that you have the facilities for the required storage. These could be provided for in the form of receipts or plenty of other non-invasive ways. There are lots and lots of ways to draw up the actual rules.
We have gun control here and cops aren't running around visiting gun owner's searching their homes day in and day out. Just like nobody comes around to check that your vehicle registration is up to date and you have the proper safety/emission checks - only when your registration expires.
I am not necessarily against required on-going training for FOID or CCW holders. However, further legislation and enforcement, as well as administering training and screenings are going to skyrocket the costs of gun ownership which will start to enter the realm of it being an "elitist" hobby. Most Americans are not going to go for that, nor are they going to go for the tax increases these programs would cost.
Yes, part of this mindset comes from the ideology that all Americans are equal, and there shouldn't be preferences given to people who can "afford it". You are talking about changing thought processes and beliefs that have been in place for hundreds of years. Yes, it could be changeable if there was money to put into place new legislation, regulations, testing and screening and that became the "new norm". But, there isn't, so you are coming at this from a place that you have to convince people that this is for the "greater good" and then convince people it's worth funding.
The subject of search and seizure came up as a tangent when the person from the UK mentioned that officials would come around and check residences for compliance. Do I think that would happen here in the US? Doubtful.
Maybe this should be in the other thread about "what changed", but I would like to add further about cause. I think since the Boyscouts programs have become less popular (taught gun safety), and moving towards more suburban and urban environments, gun handling and safety education has gone by the wayside.
Being that I and my SO have guns (his for his job, my for competition and now hobby), we have been very adamant about teaching his son gun handling and safety. Up until recently, he was told in no uncertain terms that if he saw a gun ANYWHERE (in our home or a friend's) that he was to leave the room and alert an adult. As of about 2 years ago, the SO would make time to sit down with him with an unloaded and open gun, and let him handle it with the caveat that he was not to point it at anyone or any animals. He became familiar with guns and how they work. Last weekend, my SO and my brother took the time to teach him how to shoot, one bullet in the gun at a time. They went over safety and range rules with him, and quizzed him throughout the day about them. He is now aware of the damage they can do, how to work the safety, and how to unload a gun. I am not ready to let him have free reign around a firearm, but he was very serious about learning all of this.
I think part of the fallacy is that we make guns a big taboo thing that are dangerous and then they become a curiosity. If there were more programs where kids learned about them, how they work, and what damage they can cause (outside the fantasy of movies and video games), we would probably at least make a dent in accidental shootings by kids and even some young adults.
