Local Government TV

Tuesday, April 12, 2022

Why I Support the Registration of Ghost Guns

What exactly is a ghost gun? It's a privately-made firearm, often assembled from kits sold online. There's no serial number, which makes them untraceable. Criminals have noticed. According to President Joe Biden, they are their "weapon of choice"  Yesterday, after neatly a year of consideration, ATF has decided to include ghost guns within their definition of firearm. What this means is that the same rules applying to other firearms will apply to ghost guns as well.  

There's little dispute that there's been an explosion of ghost guns in recent years. Philly police recovered 95 of them in 2019. One year later, the number of these privately made firearms increased to 250. As of September in 2021, the number for that year was 389. 

I see no reason why these guns should be treated any differently than any other firearm. So I completely agree with this regulation. I am aware that NRA will sue, but believe police should always be able to trace firearms used in criminal activity. I have a personal reason for thinking this is needed. 

Not quite a year ago, I received two letters. One was from the NorCo DA's office. The other was from the courts. 

The letter from the DA was a warning that someone had threatened to kill me. We just thought you should know, they said. Have a nice day. 

The letter from the courts was a copy of a letter a prison inmate had sent, warning that a fellow prisoner was going to assemble one of these ghost guns and use it to kill me. 

So yeah, I do think these should be traceable. 

But that's me. 

31 comments:

  1. What's you take on GANGS, Bernie?

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  2. I am a life member of the NRA and I agree with the law mandating background checks for gun owners. At least once a week you see in the news that a young child is killed through gross neglect of handling firearms or a mass shooting in the schools, not including teenage gang shootings. I'm really sorry to hear that some prisoner is sending threatening letters to kill you and I hope they find the Bastard before anything serious happens, but you are right on this issue. You shouldn't be allowed to buy and assemble handguns with no identifying parts. The gun should have a serial number

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  3. That’s not an irrational request Bernie. I think most people that care for the safety of their common man would agree with your sentiment. Guns are dangerous and the process of who can acquire one should always be supervised.

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  4. I understand the problem. I also understand your personal story. I have a similar one. I don't think any of this will work or help at all. We wrongly assume bad people obey laws. This flawed logic gets us every time. Keep and be proficient with your own firearm. No law will help. Nobody is coming to help. You are on your own.

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  5. We do not have registration of guns, not at the federal level or the state level.

    This is just another feel good, symbolic gesture without substance to stopping violence.

    Stopping violence is easy, just remove violent offenders from society, some permanently.

    It seems this society would rather focus on controlling inanimate objects rather than violent offenders. It will have no effect.

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    1. Removing violent offenders from society will not prevent crime, that in itself, is just a symbolic gesture.

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  6. If someone has already decided to use a gun to commit a CRIME, I doubt they will have any hesitation to use a weapon created by using a few unauthorized components. The criminals will find a way to obtain such parts. The only risk for them will be in picking-up an additional charge when caught for the primary crime. We already have crimes committed using toy guns, and of course, guns stolen from someone else and immediately discarded into a lake or someplace else.

    I support this step, of course, it just won’t result in less gun crimes. Other benefits, maybe.

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  7. Politicians who are opposed to the proposal to ban ghost guns are flat out immoral.
    What is Toomey’s view on this matter?

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  8. I actually think guns are a pretty simple topic radicalized by politicians and the NRA for grifting and profiteering. I have no problem with people owning a gun and even openly carrying a gun. I am fully against concealed carry. I do however think there should be certain things in place. Background checks being the first. Second a waiting period to purchase a gun even if it is 48hours. Third should be mandatory training for gun owners.

    Then on the flip side. If you are caught with an unregistered or stolen gun you immediately are jailable for 1 year federal. The second infraction is a 3 year stint. And the 3 is a 5 year stint. NO plea bargains no bullshit.(This is a yes or no scenario). Then if you commit a crime with a gun you immediately have the 1, 3, 5 year base penalty which cannot be reduce for any reason and then the penalty of the crime on top of it. And on top of that if you are a carrier and you threaten someone with your gun or cause incidental damage with your gun you have a set of laws which apply to you.

    These laws and their application need to become mandatory and apply across all levels. As an example congressmen took their guns to the senate and house chambers. When they are clearly and absolutely ban there. IF you or I did that we would not have seen society again for many many years. Those politicians were basically ignored and let to be common criminals. They should be the first to have the punishments inflicted up on them. Personally I think the security team should have immediately arrested them or shot them on site like if they were contrary as they probably would have done with a common person. Laws can't and should not be applied optionally or they serve no purpose.

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  9. You can regulate and control dangerous drugs and medications but you can't regulate dangerous weapons that are now killing more innocent victims than substances like opioids.

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  10. Bernie
    Not to make lite of the letter threatening your life, you shouldn't worry too much. I still believe you will live to be 96 years old and when you die, you will be the victim of a jealous husband.

    I hope they find out who sent those threatening letters. He deserves to be taken off the streets and belongs in a mental institution.

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  11. I'm surprised it's just one death threat.

    up your game...

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  12. at 8:05
    .....and you think the police can protect you.....

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  13. From the original post: "...warning that a fellow prisoner was going to assemble one of these ghost guns and use it to kill me."

    Really? Specifically mentioned a ghost gun? I guess I'll take you at your word on that, but what did our esteemed DA and court system do in response to these threats that they deemed credible enough to contact you about?

    Did the DA prosecute to extend the stay of the prisoner in question? That's the real issue.

    I understand that Biden and the democrats have to appear tough on crime and are trying to do so by attacking inanimate objects. But if you're not prosecuting crimes; allowing anyone to walk across our borders; releasing criminals from prison; and defunding the police it really doesn't matter, does it?

    Biden's announcement is just a ruse for political purposes and will do nothing to make anyone safer.

    But hey, that's the democrat way!

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  14. I'm guessing that Biden and the democrats would rather have us talking about yesterday's press conference than today's news on inflation.

    We're all being affected by that.

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  15. I don't know of anyone Who favors 'Ghost Gun's 'I do hope the Authorities lock the person up Who threatened You

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  16. The Lehigh Valley Tea Party loves all kinds of guns.

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  17. Bernie, I too support serial numbers on firearms. I’d like to add, that the WH doesn’t understand the real issues that the problems are caused by screwball people. Like todays NYC subway shootings . I’m going to figure the prep was probably once in the NG or Army discharge with less than HONORABLE conditions. Or- possibly has a beef with social issues. The firearm he used was probably a 9 mm and he had pyrotechnics, gas canisters. Now, the reliability of cheap handguns are dubious. Most fail to cycle properly and the chances of a malfunction are significantly greater than an average or high end revolver. Autoloaders we’re basically a crap shoot 15 -25 years ago until Glock forced other manufacturers to get in line or perish. So having said that ,most home builds by some character in the basement will turn out not functioning pRoperly at a very high rate. Even new manufacturing processes with SAAMI engineering standards have issues at about 40% of that group. Most people in Chicago that were shot were known to have some dealing with the shooter. Admittedly , nice people get car jacked ,shot in robberies. The chances of getting killed with a random shot from a 9mm for example is about 1-3 at best , if your hit at all. The lethality of an old guy with a 5 shot revolver under his coat far exceeds that of a thug with an cheap autoloader. The old guy otherwise wouldn’t step on a bug . It’s not the gun.the tool, it’s the intent.

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  18. Anon 821, please stop talking sanity, you're ruining the arguments and insanity.

    Sarcasm.

    He's right - reasonable regulation and appropriate punishment.

    Maybe one day......

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  19. And Ives said on here prior, somebody could do way more damage with a bottle of Gasoline than a firearm, — Just ask Ukrainians.

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  20. "Really? Specifically mentioned a ghost gun? I guess I'll take you at your word on that, but what did our esteemed DA and court system do in response to these threats that they deemed credible enough to contact you about?"

    Yes, this person specifically mentioned making a ghost gun. I have a copy of the letter sent to the court. The person who made this threat was involuntarily committed. No charges were filed. It is not a terroristic threat unless uttered under circumstances in which I would be likely to discover the threat and be terrorized. Also, the person who made this threat has since denied doing so.

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  21. "I'm surprised it's just one death threat."

    You've got a point, lol.

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  22. You're about my age. When we were kids there were rumors that you could make a gun from a coat hanger. The ones with the cardboard tubes. So if this is true I imagine the argument will be , what are we going to register coat hangers too?

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  23. if in fACT YOUR STORY IS TRUE..THIS IDIOT is too stupid to put the gun together let alone figure out how to use it....LOL

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  24. Somebody threatened to kill you Bernie? I find that hard to believe LOL........Seriously though, I lean conservative and support gun ownership. I see no problem with what is being proposed.

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  25. When our country become civilized then gun ownership will be illegal.

    Bernie, I thought the NRA was out of business? Is their leader Wayne LaPierre going to jail for bankrupting the club of disenchanted
    White conservatives?

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  26. I witnessed a gun build this week , no numbers on it, I was acting as an Range Safety Officer, it failed to function about every 3rd round.

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  27. The NRA ,attributed posts of training to people we needed to go to our wars over time. They still provide funds to train people now so we don’t suck at marksmen if we are to go to war again ,and it will happen. Wars are cyclically predisposed. The NRA provides funds for woman on target ,free . . They are also the facility that tracks marksman skills for competitive scoring. Like me, I was once in top 5% of all competitive military shooters , not top 5 of all military people it’s different. .

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  28. The NRA stands for Not Rational Asses. and those that pay them money are stupider then the organization. Very little of the money they collect ever goes to the cause. It goes for bribery at its finest. The exact same morons who cry for the NRA are the first to freak the F out if someone other then them has the right to bears arms and defend themselves.

    People like MTG and other politicians who cry to have guns for all are the first to dictate that no guns can be brought within shooting range of them. They should be the first to have to deal with the shit storm they have created in this country.

    It is like the morons that Montana Government who tried to pass a low allowing people to protect themselves from any and all threats until they realized that this gave the citizens of Missouri is a questionable right to hunt politicians who were screwing up the common persons lives.

    Question to all you gun loving gun toting fools. If you are carrying and you see someone else take their gun out in a grocery store and kind of point it. Is you first thought to pull yours? Personally I think anyone that pulls a gun in public should automatically be designated a target by everyone else carrying. It would certainly quickly reduce the issues as many of the fools end up shooting each other.

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  29. @6:48 the printer that was being used must not have been a decent one. With a good printer the making of gun is simple enough for a 10 year to do it.

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