In a divided decision, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit said the minimum age requirement for purchases from federally licensed gun dealers restricts the rights of law-abiding citizens and draws an arbitrary, unjustified line.
Gun laws barring sales to people under 21 are unconstitutional, appeals court rules (msn.com)
I can't wait to see how this works out on appeal. This has the potential to be a landmark case.
Unfortunately and true to the anti-gun argument, the one dissenting judge's claim was that they were basically approving putting handguns into the hands of that "age group" who typically causes the most damage with firearms. Hard to argue with that assertion since most gang members and hoods are in that age group. Now that's not a direct quote of his dissent, but close enough to describe his asinine reasoning, nor is it a condemnation of that age group by me.
I'm not sure where I stand on this particular issue except to acknowledge that even at 18 one has a guaranteed 2nd amendment right to "keep and bear" arms, unless and until they themselves forfeit that right by doing something stupid like a shooting, armed robbery, or a gang hit, etc, etc. So the question at this point is, can we/society afford to allow those in that age bracket to be handgun armed with no restrictions until they do something stupid, or do we/society place some reasonable restrictions/prohibitions on that same group to help prevent that stupidity? And Bassbob has already made a good case for 'what difference does it make whether a handgun or long gun?
At the same time I acknowledge there is much scientific evidence that the human brain doesn't fully conform to certain standards of maturity, clear thinking/reasoning, common sense/logic, and even sympathy and compassion for others until a few years later. It would be such a simple answer if only we could determine those who will do stupid things before they do them, and those who won't. That's a question most any/all parents would give a fortune to know the answer to when they first bring a little one into this world.
I often make the argument that 'way back in the day' almost every >16 yr old had a shotgun or rifle hanging in a rack in the back window of his truck even when parked at school and there was never any mass shootings like we see today, and few of us ever had a need or a want for a handgun at that age. But then I recognize that those kids had a much different upbringing than most of today's kids. Personally, I don't recall even having an interest in handguns until I was in my early to mid 20's. Certainly that's not a qualifier to this question, just a point of fact for me.
Is the upbringing what has caused all the differences in kid's attitudes and actions today compared to back then, is it too much social media and/or immediate gratification they have access to, is it the world of violent video games and access to so much of the outside world that kids a couple generations ago did not have? I don't know those answers, but I do know those serious differences do exist and play a big part in how mature some kids are today compared to back then.
So, in the end, I'm still undecided on the handgun issue. I don't know the answer, but I do know that what we're doing to our country, our world, and especially our kids today ain't it.
