Australian Gun Expert Critiques America: You’ve Lost Control
Although we foreigners can offer no immediate solution to America’s gun infestation, we can see how you lost control of the plague of armed violence. Outsiders are also perplexed to see that you’ve done so little to grant your citizens a basic human right — the freedom to live without fear of death by gunshot. Historically, there’s little mystery as to how it began. The early laws of each European empire relied on two pillars of gun safety: Firearm owners were… [Washington Post, Opinion, via GunPolicy.org]
https://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/rss/go/38875
Most Guns in US Mass Shootings Were Legally Obtained
The weapons used in this week’s massacre in San Bernardino, California, were purchased legally, raising questions about how preventable gun violence is under current U.S. firearm laws. Eighty-two percent of weapons involved in mass shootings over the last three decades have been bought legally, according to a database compiled by Mother Jones magazine that defines a mass shooting as taking the lives of at least four people in a public place. Using that criteria, Mother… [NBC News (USA), via GunPolicy.org]
https://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/rss/go/38874
How a Conservative-Led Australia Ended Mass Gun Killings
In the continuing debate over how to stop mass killings in the United States, Australia has become a familiar touchstone. President Obama has cited the country’s gun laws as a model for the United States, calling Australia a nation “like ours.” On the campaign trail, Hillary Clinton has said the Australian approach is “worth considering.” The National Rifle Association has dismissed the policies, contending that they “robbed Australians of their right to self-defense… [New York Times, via GunPolicy.org]
https://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/rss/go/38872
How Many US Mass Shootings Are There, Really?
On Wednesday, a Washington Post article announced that “The San Bernardino shooting is the second mass shooting today and the 355th this year.” Vox, MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow, this newspaper and others reported similar statistics. Grim details from the church in Charleston, a college classroom in Oregon and a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado are still fresh, but you could be forgiven for wondering how you missed more than 300 other such attacks in 2015. At Mother… [New York Times, Opinion, via GunPolicy.org]
https://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/rss/go/38873
Gun Laws In Puerto Rico
Gun laws in Puerto Rico regulate the sale, possession, and use of firearms and ammunition in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. As Puerto Rico is a commonwealth of the United States, many U.S. federal laws apply, as well as Constitutional rulings and protections. (1) (2) Summary Table Subject/Law? Long guns – Handguns – (Notes) Permit to purchase? No – No – (Firearms purchases are subject to the requirements of US Federal law) Firearm registration? No – No Assault… [Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia (Puerto Rico), via GunPolicy.org]
https://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/rss/go/38871