There is an ongoing controversy about gun control and background checks. I have written about it, as have dozens of others. Some writers are in favor of the background checks, while others find them invasive and an abrogation of our second amendment rights.
Having been around the block a bit, I am hardly astonished it is a hot button issue. But the passion and reasoning behind either position can be anything from amusing to confounding. I have found it quite interesting that quite a few decent and intelligent souls believe their weapons are necessary to protect themselves from potential assaults during their daily commute. Somewhere between the Starbucks and the office, they believe, you can be assaulted. Possible. But not likely.
But go convince the committed gun folk that you have a far better chance of being injured in a car accident on your way to work than being assaulted by a weapon wielding loon. And sorry to say, but my own experiences may attest to the fact that by the time most people realize there is something amiss, they have lost that precious moment to react. Simply put, it’s not as easy as it looks.
As background check for gun purchases will help filter the convicted criminals an, possibly, those with mental health issues, this sensibility, the anti-gun side of things, is really theoretical. Many states refuse or fail to conduct these background checks for firearms, claiming they have neither the funding nor the resources to do so in a messed up economy. States claim in a lousy economy, with all their budgetary concerns, the money is best spent elsewhere. Possibly so.
Let’s face it, must gun owners are responsible citizens. The anti-gun club likes to paint them otherwise, but most gun owners are home owners with reputable histories and decent jobs. Not the kind to go off and rob a grocery store. The overwhelming majority would never even consider firing a weapon in anger unless in self-defense.
But then people are using guns illegally, and others are getting hurt or dying. So there are two sides to this issue.
I am not proposing a solution here. What I am promoting is rational thought. And with rational thought, there should come some rational discussion. It makes more sense than the conjecture I hear and the responses I get, as well as other who write about the subject.
Gun control and background checks will be an ongoing controversy. I harbor no illusions to the contrary. I just wish it was a smarter discussion.
