US Gun Laws - Part 2

Under federal law it is illegal to commercially manufacture or commercially import armor-piercing handgun ammunition as described in 18 USC Chapter 44 §921 definitions (part 21). It is also illegal for federally licensed dealers to sell armor piercing handgun ammunition to anyone other than the government or law enforcement without keeping detailed records, or unless that dealer has a class 10 or 11 Federal Firearms License (FFL) and sells to another class 10 or class 11 FFL license holder as described in 18 USC Chapter 44 §922 (b). Civilians in most states can legally possess pistol-caliber armor piercing ammunition. Only California, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Texas and Washington DC have laws restricting the use of such ammunition. Sale of a firearm by a federally licensed dealer must be documented by a federal form 4473, which identifies and includes other information about the purchaser, and records the make, model, and serial number of the firearm. Sales to an individual of multiple handguns within a five-day period require dealer notification to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). An individual holding a Curio and Relics License (a Type 03 FFL) may directly purchase firearms that are 50 or more years old from anyone and any firearm officially recognized by the ATF as a Curio and Relic (C&R).

Tea Party member Texas Congressman Louie Gohmert on July 21, 2012 said he suggested to radio-show host Ernie Istook that the attack was a result of "ongoing attacks on Judeo-Christian beliefs." Gohmert also wondered aloud why nobody else in the theater had a gun to take down the shooter. Gohmert sought to defend himself over the weekend saying "Ernie is a good friend and former Congressman who asked for the interview long before the horror in Colorado. I had promised him a 10 minute interview and the topic scheduled for discussion was to be the economy and the President’s comments about it". "Instead of the prearranged interview Ernie asked me about the shooting in Colorado mentioning a Washington Post column that already brought up the issue of gun control, as well as, asking about my own personal experience as a judge with years on the bench. Tragedies immediately become personal, and I thought about our shooting in Tyler and what a hero Mark Wilson was along with another prior shooting in Texas." (Wilson was a Tyler, Texas resident who was killed in 2005 after shooting a gunman who began firing outside of a local court house. The gunman had attempted to kill Wilson's wife and son, among others, and Wilson died.) The President said he’ll try and do something to stop the useless killings while Romney said the killer bought the guns illegally – wrong again - Colorado is consistent with federal law in that you must be 18 years old to purchase a rifle or shotgun and 21 to purchase a handgun or ammunition from a licensed dealer, there’s no limit on the number of guns that can be bought and some states allow guns to be carried anywhere without a purpose (on line sales are putting weapons in the hands of those that can’t get legal weapons).

A US News article of July 24 said: Since 2009 advocates for gun rights have spent nearly 25 times more in Washington than those advocating for gun control, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Gun advocacy groups have spent $20 million on political contributions and lobbying over that time while gun control groups have spent $832,000. Gun rights groups focused most of their resources on lobbying which accounts for $17.4 million of its $20 million investment. Led by the National Rifle Association, these groups have spent about $5 million per year since 2009 lobbying Congress and the Department of the Interior which oversees gun regulations on public lands, such as those that govern hunting. The groups also contribute heavily to Republican politicians with House Speaker John Boehner, South Dakota Republican Sen. John Thune and Nevada Republican Sen. Dean Heller being some of their top beneficiaries since 2009.

Okay, I won’t argue with the Supreme Court decision regarding guns being kept by private citizens as the 2^nd Amendment felt we needed a well regulated militia to be a free state. In other words, the amendment was intended to keep us safe from others trying to take us over – it was not intended to allow criminal acts against one another. However, Congress let the Federal Assault Weapons Ban expire. So, the real problem is that Republicans believe people should be able to have guns when and wherever they want while the Democrats want to restrict their use and the type gun carried. It’s reported that on July 23 background checks for guns rose 41% in Colorado and on July 27 it’s said 20-25% of movie goers are now afraid. I don’t understand the Republican upset over one agent being killed in the Fast and Furious incident and not in a massacre on innocent people. It’s reported that attendance at theaters dropped to a 25 year low because of the Colorado incident – the wrong people are suffering. It’s true that it’s the shooter’s fault and not that of the gun manufacturer, God gave us a choice and bad people spread their evil. Whether Holmes was sane or insane shouldn’t matter. An insanity plea only shows the law is imperfect. The science of psychology is also flawed (in 1997 a psychologist’s evaluation of Phillip Garrido 4 years after he kidnapped Jaycee Dugard said “His prognosis is excellent, I do not suspect that he will ever be at risk for violence”). We need more people like Dr. Phil who will try to address an individual’s faults instead of quickly drugging or excusing them. And we need to care more about people than the riches obtained from gun sales. There is more that can and should be done to protect Americans from one another.