Attn: American Gun Lovers - The Blessings of Civilization Are Required!

[Atypical Liberal]

84. If you want guns, yes, you have to purchase them.

Ahh...so it's all about the $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Yes, if someone wants to own firearms then they will have to buy them.

So you're for more control but you but you also think there should be "opt-out system to preserve firearm ownership anonymity." How is that a consistent position?

Simple: I am all for a system which inhibits prohibited persons from owning firearms while maximizing the freedom of everyone else.

I'm not going to support any kind of system which inhibits prohibited persons and everyone else alike.

It's bad enough that I should agree to any kind of licensing scheme at all on behalf of criminals. But if I'm going to submit to licensing, it has to be a licensing system that does not allow the government to have a list of all firearm owners. And on top of that, if I have to be licensed to own firearms, then I expect to be able to buy firearms through the mail, to my door, without involving an FFL middle-man.

And as the recently departed "liberal_biker" once stated, "the gun made it easier

First of all, ots of things have made crime easier. Cars. Telephones.

Second of all, the modern firearm is now 100 years old. We have record numbers of firearms in circulation. Violent Crime in the United States is continuing its decades-long decline.

Third of all, guns also make self-defense easier.

But the point here, going back to your previous post, is that guns are not a solution to crime. Most crime is caused by hopelessness and real or perceived lack of opportunity and real or perceived lack of fairness. Crime, at its root, is a social problem. Until and unless you address the underlying social problems, the tools of the trade a pretty irrelevant.

In fact, the tools of the trade are worse than irrelevant. Because as long as you focus on the tools used to commit crimes, you are causing problems for people not involved in crime, and you've done nothing to solve the crime problem.