We don't own a gun, and I wouldn't feel safer if we did have one.
I remember after Sandy Hook people started talking about teachers carrying guns. As a teacher, that scared me a lot. My first thought was "What happens when a student overpowers a teacher, and takes the gun?"
It's true that there will always be criminals who get their hands on guns. However, it needs to be made harder. It's too easy for anyone to walk into a store and get a gun. When it's that easy, you're just encouraging criminals. You won't take the guns out of all criminals hands (at least not in our lifetimes). But you can certainly take them out of the hands of many. And keeping them out of the hands of the mentally ill should be a priority.
Universal background checks, and licensing would be a good start. You need a license to drive a car. I don't think it'd be such a terrible imposition if you had to have a license to own a gun. One that requires you pass a safety course, as well as a background check and mental health exam. And if gun stores sell guns to anyone who is not licensed, then in my humble opinion that store should be held liable for any crimes committed by guns sold to unlicensed owners. People should also be expected to keep their guns locked up where others can't get their hands on them.
The gun violence in America is not acceptable. There needs to be some compromise to reduce those numbers.
I remember after Sandy Hook people started talking about teachers carrying guns. As a teacher, that scared me a lot. My first thought was "What happens when a student overpowers a teacher, and takes the gun?"
It's true that there will always be criminals who get their hands on guns. However, it needs to be made harder. It's too easy for anyone to walk into a store and get a gun. When it's that easy, you're just encouraging criminals. You won't take the guns out of all criminals hands (at least not in our lifetimes). But you can certainly take them out of the hands of many. And keeping them out of the hands of the mentally ill should be a priority.
Universal background checks, and licensing would be a good start. You need a license to drive a car. I don't think it'd be such a terrible imposition if you had to have a license to own a gun. One that requires you pass a safety course, as well as a background check and mental health exam. And if gun stores sell guns to anyone who is not licensed, then in my humble opinion that store should be held liable for any crimes committed by guns sold to unlicensed owners. People should also be expected to keep their guns locked up where others can't get their hands on them.
The gun violence in America is not acceptable. There needs to be some compromise to reduce those numbers.
