This is a well written letter that I believe addresses the most important issue. There is NO reason for "Joe Public" to have automatic weapons.

Once again, someone has expressed what seems to be reasonable and clearly stated opinions of what should be. However, it should be pointed out to the general reading public and to the self proclaimed "Professionally engaged in the firing range industry" person that he is either completely ignorant regarding the "terminology" he is commenting on or is intentionally misleading the folks reading this letter. He has described the difference between Semi-automatic and automatic weaponry fairly well, however he does not explain that since the early 1980's MOST shotguns, handguns and rifles are semi-automatic and are NOT the "Choice weapons of mass destruction for unstable mass murderers"... I can tell you without question that a 12 guage semi-automatic shotgun would be a much more lethal in closed quarters than ANY semi-automatic handgun because of the "spray' of the shot. This is why it is the weapon used by the first police officer on a "Breach team" but I digress...

All Automatic weapons are completely illegal for the average citizen to own or possess. So, Lyn, the second sentence in your comment is correct but the first sentence is completely incorrect. This is not a well written letter that addresses the most important issue, Automatic weapons in the hands of citizens has never been an issue... There are very few "automatic" weapons out there and they are mostly in the hands of federal agents and certified BATFE registered firearms dealers. The only firearms out there that are NOT "semi-automatic" are revolvers, lever action/bolt action rifles and pump action or double barrel shotguns... Most recreational shooters use semi-automatic weapons for their sport and never have any illegal or murderous intentions. Its never going to be about the style of weapon used. It is completely about how the assailant gets a hold of the weapons used. If they are obtained legally then there must have been a loophole in the background checking system. This NEEDS to be addressed. If he obtained the weapons from someone else who had legally obtained them, that person should be charged as an accessory to the crime. No person who owns firearms responsibly stores them in a way that someone else can access them. EVER! And finally, if the assailant obtained the firearms illegally then there should be stiffer penalties regarding the illegal firearm. Not everyone should have any type of firearm. Its not popular but that is the reality.

Finally, "gun control" will never be successful. Gun ACCESS control would be very successful if it is properly implemented nationally. We do not allow people who have seizures to have a driver license because they could have an episode and hurt or kill people. We do not allow people who have drug problems to operate machinery for the same reason. In order to obtain a firearm in this country, a person should have to: A) Apply for a license to purchase and carry. B) Wait at least a year while they are thoroughly trained and investigated. And C) sign papers agreeing that they will be held civilly and criminally liable if their weapons ever fall into the wrong hands.
This is the only way that these problems will ever be addressed with any type of success. I carry a weapon. My weapons are secured in a safe to which I am the ONLY person with the combination. My wife, a police officer, doesnt even have access to my weapons nor do I to hers. We have to become more diligent in our investigation into prospective fireaem owners. Nobody needs their gun right away unless they plan to act on an emotion right away. A 1 year waiting period would protect everyone and would inconvenience nobody. A thorough investigation into the applicant would protect everyone and inconvenience only bad people. Lets start being realistic and make changes that not only conform with our Constitution but also have a positive effect on these horrific criminal events.Thanks for listening.

One question that the author doesn't discuss is why he thinks that the police need such powerful weapons. Is it perhaps because the criminals they face are that well armed? Are these criminals different than the ones we might encounter? Are we just supposed to hope that our personal defense handguns will hold these attackers at bay while we wait for the police to arrive with their superior fire power? Or should we just submit to their demands and hope we're not slain?

The reality is, none of the above suggestions would have prevented the last 4 mass shootings. The evidence shows that those mass shooters didn't stop shooting until they were met with or faced with return fire. If guns were not available to the shooters, as the letter to the editor suggests, they would have merely used machettes, swords, chemicals, vehicles, etc.. How do you propose to prevent those types of weapons from being used to mass murder?
The notion that a gun owner should be held liable for any harm done by a thief with your gun is absolute nonsense. If someone breaks into your home when you're not there and steals your and your wife's entire gun collections and goes on a rampage at the nearest elementary school, you want to be held liable? Complete BS. You haven't really thought this through very carefully.
What does "..shall not be infringed..." mean to you? To most law abiding gun owners, it means the 2nd Amendment is THE only permit required.

Folks, all of you have good intent, and certainly your own opinions. the one thing no one has ever said or done is: look at it from the killers view. you can instill gun laws. you can instill gun access laws, instill gun safety, and even prey if that makes you happy. your a sane person (id like to think) so your ideas are how the problem is solved by a sane person.
these freaks that kill kids are not sane. no matter what in the heat of the moment all one has to do is head to the seedy side of town, throw $50 a one of the brotha's, and ask for a 'throw away problem solver'. no law or safety training is gonna stop that, nor the killer. you can ban them but youll never ever confiscate them all.
you must 'stop the bullets' where the bullets fly. just a hint for yall, by bunkering our govt buildings are we saying we cant do this for schools? the focus ultimately will be at the schools. you cant stop the killer until he/she gets to the school! simple fact!
PEACE!!!!

PS: and what are you gonna do after you ban guns, and teach the safety and you suddenly realize guns are NOT the only weapon an insane murder can use. what then? SCHOOLS are where we make the stand. only then is the killer on our terms and ground. id rather put our kids in fort knox and the gold in a school, or do you prefer news titles like what happened recently?

Since when does selling rubber mulch for playgrounds make one "professionally engaged" in the industry? By this standard the guy who empties the dumpster at my range is a member of the firearms industry. Anyone who finds himself, or herself, in a situation to defend his life obviously wants a defensive weapon that will stop the threat "as quickly and efficiently as possible." The OP shows his cluelessness with the claim that any good competitive shooter does not need a semi-automic weapon. Doe the mulch salesman thinks that pistol competitions should be revolver only. The vast majority of all handguns sold and carried are semi-automatic. Does the mulch guy tell his range-owner customers they are supporting "unstable mass murderers" since he see no legitimate use for a semi-automatic gun? Do all those "open carry" permit holders he claims to support all carry revolvers? I hope to share this letter with the range owners Mr. Clear sells to so they know how he feels about their business.

The writer obviously knows nothing about ammunition with his comment about hollow-point ammunition. HP ammo is designed to impart its stopping power in the bad guy, rather passing thru bodies and walls. As far as my ammo "stockpile," what is Mr. Clear's arrogant assumption of how much ammo I am allowed at any one time time for practice for competitive pistol matches?

As with most gun control hoplophobes, Mr. Clear spreads FUDD & false information reaped from an equally clueless media.

Tony, Doug and Jim ... thank you for your commentary and critique of my letter.

First Tony, I understand your code very well. Here in central Virgina, and points south, "Tyranny" is now defined as the re-election of the Obama administration. But if you and your cohort by any chance are fantasizing an armed rebellion against the United States government -- guess what? YOU LOSE! Another inconvenient fact: the Second Amendment, which we all revere, refers only to a "well-regulated militia" -- not an "unregulated militia, We the People." The Second Amendment guarantees us the right to bear arms (and the responsibilities that flow from that right). It does NOT guarantee us the right to amass a military-style armory.

Doug ...."Are we just supposed to hope that our personal defense handguns will hold these attackers at bay while we wait for the police to arrive with their superior fire power? Or should we just submit to their demands and hope we're not slain?" No, not at all. Neither police nor armed guards in every school, mall, park, McDonalds, or stadium can protect us. The police arrive after the fact to mop up the blood. Armed guards at Columbine, Tuscon, Ft. Hood, and Queens NY did not exactly cover themselves in Glory. But if you're any good at all with your weapon, YOU now enjoy the element of sudden surprise. A single well-placed head or heart shot will liquidate the problem.

Jim .... I agree with much of what you say (although only by implication in the letter). We both agree that ATF is a sorry misfit of an agency. But, do we agree on the cause? ATF systematically has been gutted by a miserable series of Congresses, in thrall for years to the arms industry ... and its contributions to their election campaigns plus other bribes. Your assertion: "Not everyone should have any type of firearm" is right on the mark. Now, NRA members should convince its leaders of that fact ... or replace them. LaPierre, just this week, demanded No Change, Whatever and Forever.

Your proposal ....
In order to obtain a firearm in this country, a person should have to:
A) Apply for a license to purchase and carry.
B) Wait at least a year while they are thoroughly trained and investigated. And
C) sign papers agreeing that they will be held civilly and criminally liable if their weapons ever fall into the wrong hands.
...is interesting, but B) is extreme. One year is neither practical nor realistic. Rangemasters I know can get a novice shooter up and ready inside of a month or six-weeks training, depending upon the course involved. But you're onto the right idea. You do know that gun registration documentation must be destroyed -- Congress expressly forbade a national gun-owner database which would document purchases, sales, stockpiled ammunition, domestic assault, serious misdemeanors, felonies, psychiatric commitments.

Finally, I won't wade into a semantic swamp with you over definitions. The heroics our our Special Forces, SWAT breach teams, etc. all point to the proper home for true automatics -- you argued my case for me very well. My main problem with semi's- is the ease of their conversion to fully automatic. I do disagree with you that "Nobody needs their gun right away" When you suffer an attempted home invasion, you have a life/death decision to make in around 8 Seconds. Call 911, and the police may get there in 8 Minutes ... On one occasion, my wife was very happy to have her Mossberg Mariner 12g at hand; two missionaries, overloaded with religious zeal, came calling uninvited at 9:15 one evening when I was out of town. One unmistakable "click" very quickly convinced them that our own two religions may have been superior to theirs. Also, her Brazilian Taurus .38 is handy when she's driving alone and after dark. So, I really don't need lectures from you on the virtues of armed self-defense. And I am mystified by your snark: "self proclaimed 'Professionally engaged in the firing range industry,'" Range masters, contractors, engineers, fire chiefs, etc, call me many times a day to consult about range construction and ballistic media options. How many deal with you?

But sincerely, Jim -- I do thank you for your Talmudic Exactitude on the finer points of modern arms technology. We do learn at least one thing each day.

Jesse, I'm sorry for your lack of understanding and your highbrow attitude toward me. The Federalist Papers are quite revealing on the subject of citizens "keeping" arms. You could learn a thing or two by reading James Madison #26

Meanwhile, while you folks are debating the worthless meanings of militias, right to carry, banning sales, the 2nd amend, the diff between semi and full auto, and the like.... the next murderer/killer is putting together pipe bombs to stuff in his back pack. maybe even renting a uhaul like tim mcvie(sp) did. its possible some of them are even working on bleach/amonia bombs for the fresh air ducts in the a/c units. and those windows, oh yeah, since your banning guns they will stop bullets just like that! or any other destructive device that can be tossed thru them that you banned.

dam, when are you folks ever gonna listen? <shaking my head> youve been given the answer already and yet lQQk. still doesnt dawn on any of you. tsk tsk tsk. and i bet next week, more articles and answers of the same. when yall are ready, maybe i will give you the answer again. dont hold your breathe, you have alot of talking in circles to do about gun legislation, militias, and what the right to carry means.

ROB GROGAN Thank you for a thoughtful reading of my letter. Unfortunately, "sensible consensus on gun safety..." is far beyond our current reach.
You need look no further than this column.

JIM It seems that we're actually on similar wavelengths. The training you propose, in a nutshell, comprise all Second Amendment RESPONSIBILITIES. Somehow, these seem to have been forgotten otherwise, in the clamor over RIGHTS. Again, I commend you for expressing concern and sympathy regarding the hideous event at Newtown. Realize that you were alone in this discussion for doing so? Speaks loudly about Priorities, doesn't it? Your proposal to "create a standardized method, purchase, storage and carry laws," again is right on the money (read Rob Grogan's treatise on "reasonability).

But I do remain mystified by your musing that there "...must have been a loophole in the background checking system." You know at least as well as I; the great, giant, gaping crevice in our "system" is the Private Sale Loophole -- whether from a rented table at the gun show, from an anonymous ad on Craigslist, from the trunk of a car parked in a sketchy neighborhood, or from a straw buyer. Closing that one truly is a no-brainer .... one would think. Also, another the task at hand is to rid ourselves of the intransigent leadership of the NRA. These people do not represent most of the Membership. And vote out their Congressional toadies.

Mr (Ms?) UNKNOWN We're waiting breathlessly to know The Answer we've "been given already." The fact that "guns are NOT the only weapon" does not dismiss them from the equation. Your pipe and chlorine bombs, TONY'S machetes, swords, chemicals, and vehicles; all are fearsome to those on the receiving end. But the vast majority of mass murders are gun related and unparalleled for lethality. Sad but true.

By the way "these freaks that kill kids are not sane" is true, as far as it goes. The Utter Face of Evil, Adam Lanza, put twenty small children and their six teachers in his crosshairs and deliberately pulled the trigger between three and eleven times on each child's face and body, according to the coroner's report. Calling this Reptilian Monster "insane" tends to dismiss him as "suffering from a mental condition." But these Creatures rank well below humanity. The truly incomprensible part: virtually every one of these Things left a long indicator trail preceding their bestial acts. But no one ever connected the dots.

DOUG "Why do police need full-auto firearms...?" Thank you -- you've precisely made my case.

Excuse me TONY, but Alexander Hamilton, not Madison, was the author of #26 (believe it, my brows are much lower than yours...) If you'll recall, the original unorganized militia carefully included WHITE males only. This limitation was not accidental. I happen to live and work 30 miles east of James Madison's "Montepelier" Plantation -- the seat of his slave empire. What terrified our Virginia Founding Fathers most -- even above the British -- were Slave Rebellions, such as occurred in Haiti under Toussaint L'Ouverture, 1791.

ERIC Please tell us then.... which specific "Tyranny" do you plan to confront? ... if not The One which so frightens "the slack-jawed" ilk?

By the way Mr. TURLEY, your insulting screed is beneath contempt and unworthy of reply. But to set the record straight for the rest of us: my main business is Kevlar™-style ballistic rubber media used for military, police, and civilian firing ranges, obstacle courses, combat pit and rappel tower bases. My sidelines are landscape and playground mulches, paving aggregates, athletic field infill, equestrian footing, and civil engineering applications.

This conversation started off well and has now gotten into the weeds. Let's regroup. A few points I'd like to throw into the discussion. My understanding is that 75% of guns used in crimes are obtained through the infamous "gun show loop hole" or private sales. This seems like a red flag and maybe a way to curb a few deaths every year. Plus half of all gun deaths are by suicide. Looks like we need better mental health. Do those two things and we all feel better about ourselves.

Also our definitions of "well regulated militia" and "tyranny" can differ, but remember it is also unconstitutional to take up arms against the government. So the idea that you can stockpile weapons to protect yourself against a possible tyrannical government doesn't hold water in my book. We elect the government and give it its power through the voting booth. We are a civilized Western nation. We don't overthrow our government by force.

Our problem is the amount of weapons available to the public. We have 5% of the world's population and 40% of its guns. There is nothing immediate we can do about it. Our culture has to change and it is. Gun ownership is down. Forty percent of homes have guns - a recent historic low. All the guns being gobbled up this year and over the past four years are being purchased by people who already own guns. If you have a gun in your house, you are 5 times more likely to be shot and typically it is by someone you already know.

And it turns out I did not remember the gun show loophole stat correctly. It is not 75% but 80%. And the stat is for "private gun sales" or sales that occur without a background check.

The Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research published that figure in a 2009 white paper entitled "The Case for Gun Policy in America."

I apologize for not being precise with my numbers. But my point remains the same. We really don't have to limit gun types or clip sizes, etc. We just need to regulate sales better. If most gun crimes are committed with weapons bought without a background check through private sales and gun show private sales then require a background check before the sale. I believe their is a phone number that is called and it take like 90 seconds to provide the buyers address, name, SSN and you get the okay or the denial.

That refinement of regulation along with some better mental health programs (suicide accounts for half of all gun deaths) could greatly reduce the over 30,000 deaths by guns in the US.

And it can be done without infringing on 2nd Amendment rights.

Mac Smith: No, statistics aren't just statistics. It's the conclusions we draw from them that give them relevance. Baseball is probably one of the most "statistic intensive" activities around, and for decades the traditional parameters were accepted as gospel in defining great teams and players.

But then along came Bill James and his Sabermetric Principles, a whole new way of looking at things. He and his methods are widely seen as contributing to the Red Sox World Series wins in 2004 and 2007.

It should also be noted that the "The Case for Gun Policy Reforms in America." paper was produced under the auspices of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Mr. Clear, you are better informed than then usual "Fudd", but still have a lot to learn.
“Semi-automatic and automatic weapons are military and police tools.” Horse hockey. Any weapon is a tool for whoever is using it and the 2nd Amendment makes no distinction of what job citizens have.
“They were designed to kill the enemy as quickly and efficiently as possible.” More crap. Firearms are designed to put bullets into targets, whatever the targets may be. When I use my guns for defense, they are for stopping the threat, not killing anyone. When I use them for target shooting, they are for putting holes in paper targets. When I use them for hunting, then they are for killing animals “as quickly and efficiently as possible.”
“Any distinction is academic between Semi- and Automatic weaponry.” ??? I’ll give you an M-16 and you fire full auto from 300 Meters, I’ll shoot one on semi-auto. Who will put more rounds on target?
“"Conversion kits," readily available on the grey-market, easily can reconfigure a semi- into an automatic weapon.” If you have a full blown gunsmithing shop. You do know it is illegal without the class III license, yes? More ill-informed propaganda from a Fudd.

Definitions: You got it right, then blew it with the parenthetical BS. Selectable semi/automatic fire, with a light to medium power round, is the main characteristic of an assault RIFLE. There is no military definition of "assault weapon". It is a fiction of the gun control advocates (Josh Sugarmann) to confuse the ignorant into thinking they are machine guns.
“Neither style weapon — nor its accoutrements (30 > 50-round magazines, 100-round drums, unjacketed or hollow-point bullets, stockpiled ammunition -- have any business in the hands of civilians.” You are aware that police are civilians? Upon what great work of fiction do you derive your conclusion? Scenario/Question: 5 armed toughs invade your home. You have an AR 15. How many rounds of ammo do want to have in your rifle? If you have a pistol, again, how many rounds do you want in the magazine?

“…I suggest they join a WELL-REGULATED Militia — as detailed in the 2nd Amendment of our Constitution)...the Marine Corps, the Army infantry, the Seals, Delta Force, the Virginia National Guard, or any big-city police SWAT team.) Look up the definition of militia and search on it in the Constitution. Read about militia in the Federalist Papers. You won’t want to make that ignorant statement again.
“For self and property protection, competitive and recreational target shooting, the hunting, skeet, and trap sports — a well-trained gun owner has no need whatever for semis- or automatics.” See Scenario/Question above. What a stupid statement. Two rounds will be enough in an armed home invasion by 4-5 toughs? You must be one hell of a shot.
“They should be banned outright to the civilian gun owner community. Yes...that may well harm a very profitable part of the arms industry. So be it.” So you want to disarm the police? By the way, are you going to come get mine? Yeah, you’ll be right behind Sarah Brady. Brave guy.

Well Mr. Raconteur, you're quite a story teller (in French as well?) Let's take your diatribe from the top.
♦ “Semi-automatic and automatic weapons are military and police tools.” You may recall that the 2nd Amendment was designed and conceived in the era of musketry. Are you saying that the Founding Fathers would have approved anyone/everyone to amass their own private armory?

♦ "When I use my guns for defense, they are for stopping the threat, not killing anyone." I admire your restraint. When my daughter was mugged at throat knifepoint in Baltimore ... she did shoot to kill, with my full approval. The mugger survived ... barely. While I was out of town, my wife was confronted at 9:30 pm with suspicious knocks at the door. Her Mossberg Mariner 12-gauge would have made mincement of (as it turned out, two missionaries full more of religiosity than good sense). They too survived the experience. Do NOT preach to me about armed self-defense.

♦ Had you fully read my original letter and the 35 comments following, you'd have seen that its theme was the overwhelming LETHALITY of armed mass murderers. (Or have you forgotten already the massacre at Newtown CT? ... only one other respondent even mentioned it). So you're little game, semi- vs auto-, at the 300 meter range doesn't wash in this discussion.

♦ "....reconfigure a semi- into an automatic weapon.” Wrong again. Have you ever heard of a bump-fire SlideFire Stock®? No? I can convert a Bushmaster into a near M-16 in 20 minutes. If you've got 386 bucks + shipping, you've got a near-automatic. (ATF has declared it 'legal' since the stock recoil itself, instead of your held trigger finger, does the deed. No Class III required. Our Talmudic BAFTE hard at work again!). By the way, don't try filing the sear -- 2 milimeters too deep and you end up with a blown breech with lots o' shrapnel.

... And you're preaching ILLEGALITY to intending mass murderers?

♦ "There is no military definition of "assault weapon". It is a fiction of gun control advocates". There I agree with you. But it's not a contrived "Fiction;" rather a chronic "Confusion."

♦ "You are aware that police are civilians?" Quite ... as are Breach Teams, SWAT, fire-fighters, and others who put their lives on the line for us every day. And they are the folks who truly NEED automatic shotguns and other arms at least equal to the thugs and other misfits who readily get them at private sales, from craigslist ads, from car-trunk salesmen, from straw buyers .... or steal them from mommy or daddy.

♦ Speaking (again) of "militia" -- well-regulated and not -- please give a careful reading of the entire correspondence. By the way, since you seem not that enthusiastic about my proposal to join a Real Militia, let's compare: I'm a triple veteran: USN / Koren War era; US merchant marine / Vietnam; US Foreign Service, / '69 to '95. What's yours?

♦ "By the way, are you going to come get mine? Yeah, you’ll be right behind Sarah Brady. Brave guy." You seem like a pretty tough Hombre yourself ... challenging an individual to come take your toys away. Sorry pal, I'm crazy but not stupid. Take off your tinfoil hat and don't squint for the UN black helicopters. No-one is going to take your guns away -- UNLESS you become a felon, show a history of domestic violence, mental instability, or a streak of civil disturbances. Then, my friend, AUTHORITY will come knocking at your door. And you will answer meekly and respectfully. If you stay clean -- and don't issue implied threats over the internet -- you'll be just fine, and you'll continue to enhance my business.

♦ Finally, just curious...... What, if any, gun-related regulation, WOULD you accept?

RUSS RAMSEY ... Jesse here. Thank you for your edifying note.
♦ First, I thank you for your service and combat experience ... while you neglected to thank me for mine. Second, had you closely read the original letter and following correspondence -- at no time did I ever present myself as a "weapons or tactical expert"... that's clearly your department. Third, the ENTIRE THEME of this effort has been to remember the unspeakable tragedy of mass murders in this country; committed by deranged punks who get their hands on lethal weapons, often legally, through loopholes in the regulations ... or by outright theft from careless owners.

♦ You are yet one more commentor who seems blind to the overwhelming tragedy of Newtown CT ... and earlier catastrophes at San Ysidrio CA - McDonalds, Columbine CO - high school, Aurora CO - theater, Fort Hood TX - Army base, Tucson AZ - shopping mall, Lancaster PA - Amish school, Virginia Tech, Binghamton NY - immigration center, Oak Creek WI - Sikh temple ... shall I continue?

♦ Now I will ask you: WHAT, if ANY gun-related regulations would you support? Regarding your detailing of combat necessities and defense of legal shooting sports -- I totally agree with you on all counts. But that is not the issue here. The issue is the dire necessity to absorb the REALITY (listed above) that evil and degenerate Monsters should have NO access to firepower whatever. But law-abiding gun aficionados -- such as yourself -- seem terrified that our own government plans to confiscate our weaponry. The NRA leadership feeds this frenzy with their "ideologically rigid" stance against any and all regulation. This must and will change. The major thrust will be to cauterize the gaping Private Sale Loophole.

♦ Do not try to shoot the Messenger ... just heed the Message.

All interested: I'm bringing this thread to an end -- at least my own participation in it -- but I encourage further thoughts and commentary. First, I'd like to thank my Supporters for their inputs. And I'd especially like to thank my Detractors ... because you have sharpened my understanding of your positions, contributed valuable insights, and enhanced my resolve to approach this issue in a calm and reasonable way. More about that later.

First, to my Supporters: May I offer a few admonishments ...
● Do not embrace the fuzzy Utopia of a "gun-free America," that never will, and never should, happen.
● As many detractors have noted, the vast, vast majority of gun enthusiasts are normal law-abiding citizens who inhabit those recreational or hunting cultures ... of which you happen not to be a part.
● Please don't fall for the scarecrow of ambiguous and ill-defined Assault Weapons ... because they "look scary."
● Also, don't fall for the "mental health" maze. This classifies mass murders as "victims" of their affliction. Rather, we must concentrate on BEHAVIOR signposts. Phony psychiatric "diagnoses" have let assassins, such as John Hinkley Jr, almost completely off the hook. Or consider the squalid and on-going soap operas surrounding Jared Loughner's and Nidal Malik Hasan's "treatments."

(cont'd)
● And please be aware that armed self-protection, in our day and age, is a vital concern (I speak from personal experience). While you may shrink at the thought of handling guns (vs getting qualified instruction in their safe use), please tell me YOUR alternative -- when your family or home falls under immediate and violent threat? But please read on -- I count upon your support.

Now, to my Detractors: While I contained my enthusiasm for the tone and attitude of much of your commentaries (ex: "Elmer Fuddery"), I did glean valuable insights from them.
● Many of you have noted the lethality of bombs, knives, machetes, automobiles, even the abortionist's scalpel. True enough. But actually, you side-step the sad fact that the GREAT majority of killings -- whether day-to-day street violence, serial, revenge, or mass murders -- are committed with gunfire, by criminals, drug or alcohol infested minds, or deranged creeps. You are willfully blinding yourself to this reality.
● Please do not succumb to the mass hysterias of "Gun Confiscation," US government "Tyranny," or any other scarecrow that the NRA or other Second Amendment zealots may throw in your face.
● Yes ... I do consider NRA leadership to be the prime obstacle to REASONABLE gun legislation. David Keene and his front-man, Wayne LaPierre, have thrown up a stone wall of opposition to ANY change in legislation. This must Stop ... and they must Go.

(cont'd)
● Finally, please remember that I'm just the guy who keeps the back-splatter and ricochet out of your body and the lead dust out of your lungs. I do know my way around range construction, renovation, and furnishing -- as you know your way around the technicalities of weaponry and ammunition.
=====================================
Within the next few days, I wil submit a petition to the new Gun Violence Prevention Task Force which will call for certain common-sense and reasonable changes in gun law, regulation, and enforcement. Its primary elements will include:

♦ Immediate closure of private gun sales exemption from individual registration (the most glaring loophole of them all).
♦ Enforce the enforcers. BATF has a truly miserable record in this prime responsibility. Establish effective oversight on this agency.
♦ This one is sensitive, but the most important of all. Starting from childhood through adulthood, we must set Behavioral Signposts which can be noted and tracked.
Such behaviors as torturing small animals for pleasure, chronic bullying, death or injury threats of any kind through whatever media, extreme social isolation, repeated attention by police or judiciary for civil disturbance, domestic violence, child abuse. Many of these behaviors preceded and could have predicted individuals who showed capacity and intent to commit violence. Tragically, such dots have ever been connected.

(cont'd)
♦ Require that ALL gun owners re-qualify every year or 18-months by certified range training in accuracy, safe storage, and crisis behavior.
(The Second Amendment conveys Responsiblities as well as Rights. This is one way to honor those responsibilities.)
♦ Institute a national gun and ammunition sales data-base (to identify suspicious frequency, quantity, and timing of buys and sells).
♦ Encourage the real value of responsible gun ownership, periodic training and updating. Recognize appropriate weaponry for recreational, hunting, and self-protection.

We owe at least this much to the Newtown CT massacred children and their teachers ... and all the thousands of other gunned down victims across America, whether by criminals, drunks, dopers, or unhinged monsters in human form. It's clearly true that "guns (alone) do not kill people" .... but entirely too many guns are in too many wrong hands. To identify and incapacitate those hands -- that is our true mission.