It’s my birthday but I’m sad this evening. 10 people are dead and 13 wounded after an un-named young man stole his Grandfather’s pistol, killed his grandparents and then went to school killing a teacher, a security officer and other students before ending his own life.
OK so we’ll probably never get the NRA and their pals in the Republican party to ban guns entirely but consider this: To obtain a fire-arm in Britain you have to make an application for a firearms licence to the Home Office Firearms Section. Amongst the three strict criteria to get a licence you must prove “you are a fit and proper person of good character suitable to be entrusted with prohibited weapons/ammunition.” As I recall this involves getting letters of good character from your local Justice Of The Peace, Judge or the like.
In addition once you pass the “he’s a decent sort of chap” test all guns must be locked up in a gun case or safe that must be bolted to a structural wall – the Home Office pamphlet regarding these cabinets even goes into great detail about the thickness of steel used to make such cabinets and how the hinges should be built. Also guns need to be locked up separately from ammunition.
I wonder if these simple rules applied here in the USA, rules that need not interfere with “the right to bear arms,” whether those ten people in Minnesota would all be alive tonight.