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On March 1, the Oregonian complains that "all Congress seems prepared
to do is protect gun dealers". Like it or not, gun manufacturers are
facing an imminent threat that Congress does need to deal with: the
same lottery-seeking lawsuit mania that recently ran roughshod over the
tobacco industry. While the tobacco industry may have tried to hide the
dangers of smoking, it's absolutely ludicrous to believe that smokers
didn't realize the danger. I've been listening to warnings about it
for my entire 45 years! And now that the anti-tobacco crowd was successful
there, those opposed to guns want to extort the gun industry in the same
way.
Gun manufacturers are not even trying to hide the dangers of guns. They are simply making a legal product that people legitimately want to buy. It's the owners responsibility to make sure they handle them properly. Gun manufacturers should no more be sued because a gun was mishandled and someone got shot than a car maker should be sued because a driver stepped on the gas pedal instead of the brake pedal and ran over someone.
Clearly, this is merely stopgap --- our country desparately needs some
sanity brought back to the lawsuit industry so that the only people who need to fear lawsuits are those who actually cause damage, not those with deep
pockets who happen to be nearby. Unfortunately, this specific threat is imminent and needs attention now.
Irresponsible gun dealers may be a problem that needs dealt with, but
making it open season for anyone who wants to lash out at everyone in
the vicinity is not the right answer. Even in the case of the DC snipers,
Bull's Eye didn't shoot anyone, the snipers did. If they hadn't gotten
the gun from there, the snipers would have gotten one somewhere else.
While Bull's Eye doesn't appear to be a sterling example of a dealer,
they aren't responsible for the sniper attacks and should be answerable
to the ATF, not lottery-seekers.
In the same editorial, the Oregonian wants to "renew the assault weapons
ban, which has been the law for 10 years." And in that 10 years, it has
done not a thing to reduce crime. They claim the "guns that have no
sporting use will again be widely available in this country". I'm sorry,
but anything that can be used with varying skill levels has a sporting
use, and in any case, the 2nd amendment isn't about either "sporting"
or hunting. These weapons aren't even used very often in crimes.
Gun control isn't about public safety, it's about nipping at the edges
to take away yet another freedom in the name of easy "feel good" politics
instead of dealing with the real issues.
Regarding the Anti-Tobacco movement, I've heard that "For Your Own Good" by Jacob Sullum is an interesting read.