How crazies get guns: 3 sorry tales

[Barth]

Background checks, assault weapon bans won't solve problem.

These guys were nuts, not crooks. Criminal background checks wouldn't have stopped them.

By William Saletan

Slate.com

In recent days, investigators in Connecticut and Arizona have released thousands of pages of documents about the Tucson and Sandy Hook massacres.
The documents, coupled with investigative leaks and with testimony about the movie theater shooting in Aurora, Colo., paint a clearer picture of what caused these tragedies.
It isn't just high-capacity magazines or defenseless victims.
It's a failure to link firearms access to mental health information.
http://tbteedition.tampabay.com/ee/t...imes/index.php

[yqtszhj]

Yep. That's what I have said all along.

[Ikeo74]

So, what's your solution?

[downtownv]

Drill there skulls and take a core sample!

[OldLincoln]

I don't think there is a perfect solution. I don't believe the background checks actually look at everything already on the forms we fill out, which include mental issues. If they are going to build the great database and link it to all the little databases, they need to check out all issues. Some are nuisance matters, but some may cut down on the crazies. Of course that is a snapshot at the time of purchase and won't necessarily be accurate 10 years later.

[Bawanna]

The solution is actually rather easy. The problem is agencies don't want to play together sometimes for good reason.

The NICS database could and should easily identify anyone who has been in a nut house. I think they are actually working towards that.

I process pistol transfers and it's ever changing. We used to have to send the transferee's name to Dept of Social and Health services which of course wants to justify their existence and become like Dept of Licensing in our state. All powerful and not to be trivaled with.
They say to allow a certain amount of time for a response and not to proceed until you get a response. That is wrong and stupid. Already enough stuff trying to hold things up.

I don't think their own records are all that good anyhow and it would be a simple matter to enter people within certain guidelines into the current NICS system. It's already been set up so agencies can enter their own data so it doesn't take a month or longer to appear.
An example is a Washington resident applying for a permit. It used to be in our local system instantly and take a month or longer before a cop pulling you over would see it in the national data base.
Now that is entered right here so it shows up everywhere right away.

Get all these agencies that want to be all powerful with their initials and stuff to play together and keep them reined in so they don't become a 3rd world power and we could build a meaningful database.

[ltxi]

So, what's your solution?

Ban private ownership of firearms.

[muggsy]

Since when did we start punishing the law abiding for the crimes of lunatics and criminals. What in the constitution allows for that? What part of "the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed." do they not understand?

[Jeremiah/Az]

]So, what's your solution? [/QUOTE]

Get rid of gun free zones would help!

[muggsy]

The problem as I see it is that if we link mental illness to gun prohibition none of us will be able to have them, because a lot of people think were crazy for owning a gun in the first place. I know there are more than a few people who think that I'm a half a bubble off plumb.

[TheTman]

More than a few Muggsy!

Seriously though, take my experience. They pumped me full of chemo drugs, and it affected my mind, and I was on anti-depressants and some other psych drug. That's been nearly 10 years ago, and I've recovered from the chemo since then, but would that disqualify me from owning a gun? I imagine if all combat vets are disqualified, then they'd go ahead and add anyone who has undergone chemotherapy, as it is known to cause mental problems. The list of side effects is longer than my short little legs.

I suppose all Christians could be labled crazy since we believe in something we can neither touch, or see.