The Gun Debate

Now, before you get all up in arms (ha-ha, pun intended), let me preface this post by saying that I grew up in northern Wisconsin, where the annual deer hunt was de rigueur, in a home where an array of guns was displayed on a wooden wall rack hand-crafted by my father, the ammo readily available in a bottom tray. As a child, I learned to shoot a .22 and a shotgun on my grandparent's farm, and shot bow and arrow at targets with my dad and brother. My son and two sons-in-law are all in the military, and are all gun enthusiasts. So, as you can see, I am not totally ignorant of guns and the culture of guns.

However, also as a child, I witnessed an episode where an unnamed relative was hell-bent on shooting another unnamed relative the minute he walked in the door. The only thing that stopped her was the fact that she didn't know how to load the damn gun. Let's just say that that was one hell of a domestic dispute, the memory of which has stuck with me to this day. Many gun murders are crimes of passion, committed by registered gun owners or their loved ones, in their own homes.

But here's the thing. Here in the United States, we register automobiles and require driver's licenses as a means to ensure the safety of all, because automobiles can also become lethal weapons when driven by intoxicated drivers, or unlicensed drivers, or car thieves out for a joy ride.  Licensing and registration give us a means to establish statistics, to identify unsafe drivers, to track down stolen vehicles and to discourage unsafe driving behaviors. Registered vehicles bring in substantial revenues to the states.

Would it be such a horrible idea to establish a similar system for qualifying gun owners and registering guns? It is not a total solution for diminishing gun violence against innocent victims, but it is a start.