They also said in the news this morning that 92% of the people support background checks.
I had a daughter who used the prescription medicine "loophole" and died from an overdose.I hear that a lot of heroin is dispensed in private sales due to a similar "loophole". Somebody ought to do something about that...
I'll bet that they had a hard time finding that many people that didn't know that we already have pretty strong background checks.
And prison overcrowding. Have to make room for for the truly evil, like the plastic straw offenders.We won't put them in jail of course because there's a strong belief that the criminally insane and the violent felon are at heart good people, and it's only necessary to keep them away from the evil of the gun.
Background checks poll well because people are not told that the corollary might be gun registration. In turn, that apparent popularity makes UBC legislation more likely.The background check is supposed to be about the fitness of the buyer to own a firearm, not an opportunity to register who owns what possessions.
If it were merely a check of the individual's fitness then few would object to full and accurate background checks... .
Background checks poll well because people are not told that the corollary might be gun registration. In turn, that apparent popularity makes UBC legislation more likely.
The trajectory we are on means that legislators (eventually) will take the path of least resistance, and mandate that all gun sales be channeled through FFL dealers. That means backdoor registration through Forms 4473 and "bound book" entries. Not to mention that the dealers would collect transfer fees.
There are ways to have universal background checks without registration. One way would be for sellers to have direct access to the state agency doing the checking (or federal NICS), such as what we have here in Virginia on a voluntary basis. No record of the gun is kept. Something like that could be made mandatory.
But, for such alternate systems to be considered, they would have to be proposed by the pro-gun side. Sadly, that's not going to happen as long as the gun community takes the stance of stonewall opposition to everything.
We need to get this stuff straight in our minds if we are gonna confront anyone about this.
Very good post above.
So one question would be for private sellers, is how do I keep from selling a gun to Felon Bob? Do you personally feel comfortable with "dont' ask, don't tell"? Because if Felon Bob uses your/his gun, and the police come knocking, you're gonna be in a world of crap. Not just from the local law enforcement but from civil litigation. One way around this is to use a system already in place.. demand your buyers have a CCP.