A few thoughts:
Threre are about 300 million legally registered guns in the US. There are probably as many unregistered guns (purchased before registration existed, inhereted, or owned by criminals). Crazy, I know!
It is almost impossibe to get insurance related to gun use. If you have any type of mishap with a weapon, you will be sued here. Even if the use of the weapon was entirely legal. The cost to defend yourself from lawsuit can be staggering. Hundreds of thousands of dollars.
The most common source for insurance against these suits is through membership in the National Rifle Association (NRA). I'm not a fan of the NRA, but if you carry a weapon for work, hunt, live on a ranch or a farm, you probably are a member of the NRA, just for the insurance. The NRA will claim that all members are devoted to the very strange policies that they fund, but I beg to differ.
It is possible to get a conceal-carry gun permit in 49 states. The exception is Illinois. In Chicago, Illinois, it is not possible to legally sell a gun or ammunition. It is legal to own a weapon, but it must be unloaded, and in a locked case. A recent Supreme Court case involved a man in Chicago that used his gun to defend himself from an armed home invader. He was charged with illegally unlocking and loading his gun. He won the suit.
The city with the highest rate of gun violence in the US? Chicago, Illinois.
Contrary to popular belief, it is possible to own automatic weapons in the US (Automatic=1 trigger pull, unlimited rounds fired until the trigger is released). it costs $200 to get the special permit for each gun. Also crazy, I know. It is possible to modify semi-automatic weapons to fully auto in about an hour. The AR-15 is semi-automatic, and NOT an assault rifle. The .223 round that it fires is so small that they can not be used legally to hunt deer in many states because they wound, but do not kill the deer.
Gun ownership is legal in the Netherlands, but I understand that it is nearly impossible to get a license to hunt, even on private land.
I like the system in Germany, where you need to belong to a club to buy a weapon or ammunition. Most weapons and ammunition have to be stored at the club. If you are dangerous or incompetent, the club will kick you out.
I don't know what the rules are in the UK, but I get the impression that you have to be a member of the monarchy to own a gun.
Despite the many glaring, obvious and stupid problems with gun laws in the US, I doubt they will change for two reasons:
1) Gun ownership is protected as the 2nd point in the Bill of Rights, behind freedom of speech. The law is designed in a way so that it is nearly impossible to change. Even subtle, entirely reasonable restrictions on gun ownership have been impossible to enact due to the built-in protections for the 2nd amendment. Fat, loud, drunk and armed. Your rights as an American for the last 250 years. It is more likely that Americans will lose the right to be drunk (for a second time) before they ever lose the right to be armed.
2) Both polital parties like to use this topic to enrage voters, and manipulate voter turnout. Enormous amounts of money get donated to politicians that claim to be the savior with a plan, only to come back asking for even more money for the next election for an even better plan. The money just pours in to both sides, but nothing ever really changes.
Weasel
_________________ ...running around in the shoes of a clown...
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