I grew up in D.C., the only people with handguns are the criminals and the police, and the D.C. police have a rotten record of solving homicides. D.C. citizens can only possess long guns. On a side note, that detective from D.C. that comments on FOX is a perfect example of all show no go police. They talk a good line, but when it comes to getting the real criminals, they don't try real hard anymore.

On the other hand there are a couple of good ones, a old friend of mine, narcotics unit det. was key in taking down the murderous Rayful Edmonds forever, this guy was responsible for numerous murders during the early 90's.

Even the "anti-gun" people like me have never been opposed to gun ownership. I just believe there has to be some laws in force that control the purchase of a gun. I mean, nobody needs to own automatic assault weapons. Also, a 10 day waiting period so a criminal background check can be run is no big deal. After all, you can't even get a job these days without one. You can't collect a lottery prize without one. So buying something that can kill should certainly be considered as important as a lottery jackpot. People also need to keep them in a safe place. The only reason I am against 100% gun control is that one of the first things a government does when it moves toward martial law or dictatorship is confiscate weapons from its citizens.

However, Michael Moore (as much as I dislike the guy) made some excellent points in Bowling For Columbine. America is gun crazy. Access to guns is much too easy. About 30,000 people die every year from gun violence. Approx 3,000 of them are children. There is estimated to be around a quarter of a million households with guns in the United States.

Oh, I just wanted to add...cell phones can be as dangerous than guns. I was walking toward a store last night and someone was pulling into the parking lot and talking on his cell phone and almost ran me down. I barely dodged his bumper. As much as I write on boards, I'm kind of timid in the real world, but I called this guy all sorts of nasty things.
Good thing he wasn't carrying a gun! :-)

There are 4.3 million NRA members, I betcha most of them have a firearm. JX I don't know where you got that number, but it is way low.

jarasan, I wrote
"There is estimated to be around a quarter of a million households with guns in the United States."

Yes, I was wrong when I typed my comment, now that I am looking at this. The FBI puts the number at approx 200 million guns owned. I admit that, when trying to sound emphatic, I goofed and changed what was suppoed to be 2.5 million to 1/4 of a million. (thinking of 250,000) Oops. It backfired on me. :=) Anyway, I obviously was saying that there are a lot of households with guns. I also read that 1 out of every 4 homes has a gun. I don't know how many households there are in this country. Pop is about 302 million, right?   So it can't be 1/4 of the population or that would only be a little over 75 million. Of course many people own more than 1 gun. Some people have an entire closet full of guns! My point is that someone shouldn't be able to walk into a store and buy a gun the way you can buy a lottery ticket. Maybe someone should also be forced to pass a test, like when you own a car. I mean, the reason you get a learner's permit and a driver's license is to protect the public, so why not require a 2 day course on using a weapon that can kill?

Justx, don't you know that even if we did have 100 % gun control the criminals would still have guns and the cops will be the ones who supply most of them. Charleston Heston would say "get your hands off my guns you dirty stinking cops"LOL

I agree there should be a waiting period and a background check that bans those that have committed a crime using a gun. Also I don't see the need for assault weapons to protect ourselves.

The government is only one step away from total gun control and confiscation. When the feces hits the fan (e.g., martial law) every registered gun owner will receive a visit from an enforcement team to search their premises and confiscate their guns. If you have a Firearm Owner ID card, they will be knocking on (or breaking down) your door. If you resist, you are a terrorist and will find yourself in a detention center. So the idea of civilian gun ownership to protect ourselves from a renegade government becomes a moot point.

New York state requires anyone who wishes to purchase a handgun to file an application to carry one.
This is filed with the local law enforcement to do all the checks on you.