After extensive discussions with members on another SI board I was informed, being someone not in the USA, that there are quit a few rules and regulations pertaining to gun ownership and sale of guns in the USA.
That sounds like good news. The question is, are those Rules and Regulations adequately implemented and enforced ?
Apparently guns can only be sold to over 18's for rifles and over 21's for handguns.
Well, according to the following Wikipedia article, there were 36 youngsters between the ages of 6 and 17 who were involved in the killing and near killing of others in school shootouts since the year 2000 ...
en.wikipedia.org
.. I can't believe that any responsible and caring citizen of any country would regard that as acceptable.
The obvious question that can be asked is how did those young teenagers get their hands on weapons ?
I had further PM discussions with several members of SI and it appears that there may not be a gun control regulation that requires a legitimate gun owner to keep his weapon safely locked away in an approved safe. That, surely, would be one way to ensure that dangerous weapons do not end up in the hands of under aged gun users.
IMO, if a youngster under the age of 17 is involved in the shooting or killing of innocent citizens then the youngster needs to be charged and convicted according to the laws relevant to their age, AND the parents of that youngster must also be charged and convicted if that youngster used a weapon that belonged to its parent, if that weapon had not been adequately locked away in an approved safe.
In closing, I'm not personally against the owning of a weapon. I own a weapon which I keep locked away in a safe when I do not have to carry it on me.
My home is fully burglar barred, security gated and alarmed, so there is no reason to leave a potentially dangerous weapon lying around.
If I leave the house with it, it is carried on me, under cover, but readily available should I need to use it for self defense.
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