Hi Miriam,
Good info here on the history of gun ownership and gun manufacturing.
Interesting that the whole concealed carry movement is new and seems to have
very little to do with the second amendment. Also, it's interesting to
compare the NRA before the 1970's to the much more radical organization that
plagues us today.
IMHO, guns should be treated a lot like cars. That is, owning a gun ought to
be a privilege that one earns rather than a right. Also, all gun owners
should be required to obtain a license and training including shooting at
targets with live rounds.
A driver begins with a learners permit which has restrictions that are in
place until the driver graduates to the license level. The same should hold
true for gun ownership. New gun owners should begin with a learners permit
which allows the new user to operate the gun only in the presence of either
an instructor or, perhaps an experienced gun user. In order to be fully
licensed, the gun owner should be required to spend a minimum number of
hours at a shooting range and shoot a minimum number of rounds.
Assuming that this article gets it right, I'd say that both the NrA and gun
owners used to be a much more reasonable group of people than we see today.
BBob Hachey
