Posted by
Chuck Hakes on Tuesday, October 21, 2008 12:00:00 AM
AN EQUITABLE SOLUTION TO THE GUN CONTROVERSY
The Second Amendment gives the American public the right to be armed. This has been interpreted to mean as individual citizens.
That seems to make gun ownership a matter of personal choice. Yet we have anti-gun people who think no one should have this choice. So let’s make them happy and take that choice away.
That famous negotiator, Al Capone, once said that you can get more cooperation with kind words and a gun than you can with kind words alone.
A less well known quotation from Al was to the effect that “an armed society is a polite society.”
It would be wrong to instinctively dismiss such statements simply because the person who said them is from Chicago and has a murky past and associates. We don’t know how eloquently Big Al said these things. Like many leaders he may have been a fine speaker.
Here’s a solution to the gun problem. Let’s make the gun ownership choice by legislation.
Let’s pass a law that requires all adult citizens to pass a background check to purchase a firearm. Those passing would have to pass a written safety test. Those passing the safety test would be required to purchase a firearm and receive training with it. There would be a time limit on this.
Firearm owners would be required to keep the firearm in their home in safe storage so children couldn’t get it, but adequately accessible so that if it were ever needed for home defense they could get to it and use it. This would take some thought and effort, but – a law is a law. And there is training that is available.
In short, everyone who was qualified would become a responsible firearm owner. There would be nothing haphazard about it. Some criminals would probably still own guns illegally but they would certainly recognize the danger from an armed populace and would think twice about breaking and entering.
Those qualified citizens who wanted to take the next step and qualify for concealed carry could do so. An alternative here might be to dictate open carry. Anyone who wanted to carry a handgun would strap on a clearly visible holster.
Citizens who did not pass the background check and the safety test, and were not qualified with a firearm could not own a firearm. Non-citizens could not own one.
Persons under the age of 21 could not own a handgun but those 18 and older would be allowed to qualify to own a long gun – strictly a hunting weapon. Exceptions to these requirements would be made for those who had served in the military.
There would be stiff penalties for ownership of a firearm by an unqualified person. There would also be stiff penalties for non-compliance with the law requiring firearm purchase and ownership.
There now. That solves it. No one should be allowed to make a personal choice about gun ownership. Everybody should have to own a gun whether they want it or not.
Got a problem with losing your choice in the matter? I understand. As an alternative we could simply leave gun ownership a matter of personal choice as it is at present. But if we do that then don’t tell me you have decided I shouldn’t own a gun.