Given that there are many thousands of crimes committed with guns every year, it's a shame the gun owners can't secure their weapons so that they're not easily available to the burglar.

Thalia

I don't mean this to be snarky, though it may sound like it, but are you required (in your state or any) to pass any written or practical (physical?) tests to show you understand gun safety and can actually use one safely? Is there any kind of insurance needed in case someone (including yourself) is hurt with the gun (OK, so I think I know the answer to that one). But seriously, what are the kind of restrictions/regulations on owning a gun in your state? Do you think they're adequate? Optimal?

Now with caps!

If you purchase a handgun from a licensed dealer you only have to pass the Federal background check and wait five days. Obviously this doesn't apply if you buy a used handgun from an indvidual, or to the purchase of shotguns and rifles.

Unlike more restrictive states, like Texas, which requires passing a gun safety course, to get a concealed pistol permit in Washington State you only have to submit your fingerprints and pass a felony background check. That's it.

The laws seem to be adequate. I'm not convinced that more guns equals less crimes, but I see no correlation at all between more gun control and less crime.

Obviously this doesn't apply if you buy a used handgun from an indvidual, or to the purchase of shotguns and rifles

What if you were kidnapped by a pacifist alien race with far superior technology, and were purposely stranded on a distant planet, left to face an alien from another planet in a battle for your life? And what if you were in a life or death battle with that alien? And what if you found some potassium nitrate and sulfur and carbon? And a tube of some sort, fortuitously closed at one end? And, what if you came across a carbon crystal that happened to be just about the same diameter as the tube that was fortuitously closed at one end?

What if you happened to grind the potassium nitrate and sulfur and carbon into reasonably fine powders, and if you decided to mix those powders? And, just for shits and giggles, you decided to pour the resulting mixture into the fortuitously closed tube that was, you know, just laying around? And, having no other obvious place to store your carbon crystal, you decide to put it in the fortuitously closed tube?

In no real sense could your activities be said to have involved "a licensed dealer."

That's funny (and in a sense, aren't we all in a life or death battle with our own metaphysical lizardman?), but it makes me wonder. While it's legal to buy guns and ammo from neighbor, I'm not sure if it's legal for me to manufacture a gun and gun powder myself.

It looks like you have to have a type of Federal Firearms License to manufacture firearms and ammunition.  

In regione caecorum, rex est luscus.

Ok, bonus points for referencing one of my favorite Star Trek episodes...but why?

It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine

...bonus points for referencing one of my favorite Star Trek episodes...but why?

Why is it one of your favorite episodes? I have no idea. (Maybe you like guns?)

I was around 8 when I saw this.  8 year olds don't have to suspend reality when they watch tv because there is no reality.  I was relieved to see Kirk kick the lizard guy's ass...but NOT kill him.  How cool was that?

But I still don't know what your point was in referencing it?

It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine

You used to be able to get a "Concealed Weapons Permit", which meant you could legally carry, among other things, large fixed blade knives. At some point they restricted it to just handguns.

...you could legally carry, among other things, large fixed blade knives

Could you carry a stick of dynamite with a lit fuse? That's a hell of a weapon.

Could you carry a stick of dynamite with a lit fuse?

Yes, but only for short periods of time.

I am going to have to go ahead and say that would be a jurisdictional issue and the aliens would have to take up the gunpowder supply legality of your operation with you and not the Feds. In fact, I'd be moderately sure the feds wouldn't care about your operation unless you went to that planet specifically for trafficking in drugs or (<18) porn.

For all intents and purposes it would be like setting up a gun shop in Sealand. As long as the new owners don't care, neither would anybody else have grounds to do so.

I do think there is an individual right to own weapons, BUT I think that we do have the right to "well regulate" that ownership.  

I do worry about the insane guy, maybe because I know one of the lawyers who were killed by a crazy ex-client with a weapon.  I'd like testing for sanity, ability to safely use a weapon, and ability to safely store the weapon.

Thalia

I'd like testing for sanity, ability to safely use a weapon, and ability to safely store the weapon.

I certainly fail your first test and pass your 2nd, but what in your mind qualifies as safe storage?  My gun is stored unloaded in a reasonably well-hidden hard plastic box with a loop/"bike chain" style lock.  No unaided child can get the gun out without the key, but any fool who takes the box and has access to power tools can open it in 5 minutes or less.  I'm not in a position to spend thousands on a proper 500+ pound gun safe (nor am I inclined to do so to store 1 $800 gun), should I not be allowed to own a gun purely on that basis?  Many leases (mine included) don't look kindly on such large installations, should only homeowners and lucky leasers be allowed to own guns?

Humorless. Cretinous. What'd you expect?

I'm not in a position to spend thousands on a proper 500+ pound gun safe (nor am I inclined to do so to store 1 $800 gun),

What's wrong with one of these?

It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine

What's wrong with one of these?

It's a wee bit light at 64 lbs... I'm a renter, I can't floor-mount the thing (otherwise I'd buy one of these) and I'm loath to trust a gun cabinet that weighs less than my TV.  Kind of a no-win situation... anything heavy enough to not be carried off is heavy enough to make a mess of the floor and be a lease violation.

That said, that's the best solution I've yet seen and I may end up buying one.

Humorless. Cretinous. What'd you expect?

Hey HC, I hope this does work for you.  Perhaps it could be bolted to the wall?  I have lived in drywalled apartments where I needed to put shelves up...when I moved it just spackled the holes, threw on some "landlord off-white" paint, and went on my merry way.  Granted, no lock/safe is perfect, but I always thought that the purpose of such was to make theft inconvenient enough so that the thief went somewhere else for easier pickings.

It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine

Perhaps it could be bolted to the wall?  I have lived in drywalled apartments where I needed to put shelves up...when I moved it just spackled the holes, threw on some "landlord off-white" paint, and went on my merry way.

That could work... I'll have to look into it a bit, but that should be doable, thanks.  (After living here for a decade without putting 1 single nail in the wall, I'm going to bolt something up.  Sheesh.)

Humorless. Cretinous. What'd you expect?

Why is there no law requiring household cleaners or medicines be kept in safes? Children cand and do get into those and die from it.

"1 $800 gun"

Just curious, what's your $800 gun? Target pistol?

Just curious, what's your $800 gun? Target pistol?

A Glock 22 with a sight upgrade, 2 15 round magazines and all the miscellaneous junk a first time gun owner needs, back during the ban when the 15 round mags were expensive as hell.  (Now you can buy the 15 round mags for <$20 each on the web. sigh)  Nice not-so-little gun.  In retrospect I should have gone with something a bit lighter, maybe a 17, but oh well.

Humorless. Cretinous. What'd you expect?

I'd forgotten how expensive things got during the ban. Because of pressure from the Feds lots of small gun dealers got their supplies cut off, that seems to have affected prices too.  

All I own now days is a little SIG P228. It's a fun piece, that I'm incapable of parting with, but if I had to do it over I would go with a large-gun, small-gun battery of the same caliber. Like a large .45 of some sort for in the home, and one of those mini-Glock slim-lines for carry. Even though I haven't had the need to carry in years. But that's what I would do.

Because of pressure from the Feds lots of small gun dealers got their supplies cut off, that seems to have affected prices too.

Exactly.  Exacerbated by being out in the boonies, where if you can't shoot a "bar" with it, most places don't carry it.

All I own now days is a little SIG P228.

Mmm, nice.  If I knew then what I know now, I might have gotten one of those.  (The place where I got my Glock also had a couple SIG 226s or 228s.  But I wanted .40, 9mm being for sissies.  Two boxes later... ow.  Next time I'm buying the "sissy" pistol.)

Like a large .45 of some sort for in the home, and one of those mini-Glock slim-lines for carry. Even though I haven't had the need to carry in years. But that's what I would do.

Interesting.  Professional wisdom vs. amateur thought, I guess, because I would have thought the other way:  smaller gun for home, bigger and hopefully steadier gun for carry situations.  Then again, my Glock is a PITA to usefully conceal so I can see going for the slim-line if you have any hope/need of concealment.

Humorless. Cretinous. What'd you expect?

9mm is for sissies. Have you ever shot any non-Glock .40's? I sometimes think because Glocks have a steep grip-angle for some people lots of recoil gets transfered into the soft part of the hand. I knew a guy who shoots .357 revolvers all the time and he found shooting a Glock 9mm unpleasant. You could see the pattern on the back of the grip imprinted on his fat hand when he was done.  

Have you ever shot any non-Glock .40's? I sometimes think because Glocks have a steep grip-angle for some people lots of recoil gets transfered into the soft part of the hand.

I haven't shot any other .40s, no.  I fired a .45 enough to "know" that it was bigger than I liked, but that was a Glock too.  Smaller Glocks and non-Glocks both without issue, but I haven't ever just sat and fired 100 rounds from one of the smaller Glocks so it likely wasn't enough to notice.  And you describe the problem exactly, so I have no doubt that you're right.  (I never got to the point of an imprint from it, but yeah, right into the soft part of the hand.  Much like drinking, never enough trouble to keep me from shooting, just enough to make me regret it afterward.)

Humorless. Cretinous. What'd you expect?

There is a law that dangerous cleaners and medicines have child safety tops (or I assume there is a law - since every product comes like this).

The SUB is easier to park.

Humorless. Cretinous. What'd you expect?

Owning "assault weapons" was never illegal.

The AWB defined certain guns as "assault weapons", then banned banned the manufacture and sale of new guns that met this definion, as well as all magazines with a capacity of more than 10 rounds. As I mentioned above, loads of pre-ban rifles and high capacity mags were imported prior to the ban taking effect. Since the features which determined what rifles were banned were mostly cosmetic (i.e. grip or stock types, bayonet mounts, etc.), manufacturers also began making modified versions of various rifles to get around being subject to the ban.

I wasn't talking about the AWB.. I was under the impression that there was a law regarding AK and AK look-alike weapons.

Tipping Sacred Cows