Still gotta wait 3 days here I think.
this post was submitted on 03 Mar 2025
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Texan here. This is all correct.
Yes it's a comic but for those that don't know irl most gun owners take the 4 rules of firearm safety pretty seriously and licence or not you're still responsible for every round
The ones that don't....well we see those on the news and the internet
sorry, I'm just a nerd that likes guns enough to "well aktually" about it
Yes, we see them on the news after they’ve had an accidental discharge and murdered an innocent person, so they can say tearfully into the camera “I’ve always been a responsible gun owner.” And we all understand they are very much responsible for that person who is already dead, even if we’re not taking their gun away. So it’s okay, justice has been served.
Certainly nothing preemptive we could do to make it “100% of legal gun owners MUST take the 4 rules of safety seriously.”
Which is why opposing gun control makes no sense. If you're already taking firearm safety seriously then having regulation that verifies you're taking firearm safety seriously would make little to no difference to you.
If an American is against gun control I immediately assume they're not really a responsible gun owner.
The issue is there is that gun laws are difficult to get rid of even when it's proven to be ineffective or unneccesary
One time I ordered something and I had to go through the same paperwork and as if I was buying a belt fed machine gun, including a $200 tax stamp, paperwork, fingerprints etc. After that was filed I went home and waited seven months for the ATF to process and approve that paperwork. Not a wait period, that's just how long it takes for the bureucracy takes to function.
After all that time I finally was able to take home what I had bought I, a suppressor for a .22 pistol so I can teach new shooters without shouting through their hearing protection. That rule has been in place since the 1930s
Luigi Mangione's supressor was 3D printed and the only crime I've ever seen committed with one
Electronic hearing protection is fantastic for just this reason; no one has to shout. (Except at indoor ranges where you have to double up. I'd forgotten how loud those get...)
Indoor is obnoxious! Electronic is great but not very common with new shooters. Why spend the money if you don't know if you'll use it very often?
Which is why opposing voter reform makes no sense. If you're already taking voter security seriously, then having regulations that verifies that you're taking voter security seriously would make little to no difference to you.
If an American is against voter reform I immediately assume that they're not really serious about voter security.
See how dumb that sounds?
Rights are rights, even if you are irresponsible with the use of those rights. Moreover, the majority of attempts to enact gun control are largely about either banning firearm types entirely--e.g., semi-automatic rifles--or making it exceptionally hard and expensive to exercise your constitutionally guaranteed right.
I’d say the right to vote is more important than the right to bear arms. I’d say that’s especially true given the damage votes have caused in the last 3 months, versus the remedies applied by the second amendment to that damage.
What kind of 'voter reform' are you talking about?
Are you talking about making formal requirements for things that are already core safety practices that we really need all voters to do so that they don't accidentally kill someone?
Also depending on the state you definitely might need a pistol license and you probably need a background check regardless of the state.
If you're buying from an FFL anywhere in the US you absolutely are getting background checked. FFL's don't want to open themselves up to more liability than they need to.
The only way you're not getting background checked is private sales from your cousin vinney you suspect is in a gang or your redneck uncle Rob.
That being said, background checks are different from waiting periods. They usually only take 5-10 minutes to get approval. You literally just awkwardly stand by the counter and dick around on your phone while you wait
Yeah that's why I didn't want to say "you're always getting a background check," I know teeeechnically that's not true but like, you're getting a background check lol.
I see local gun shows at my county fairgrounds every month. I've always wondered.....is it really as easy as "This gun costs $400." "Here's $400" "Here's your gun." the end
Is that actually how easy it is? I used to assume you needed permits and liscensing. And now that I'm older, I keep hearing that's not the case.
.......is that seriously not the case???
Most guns shows have FFL dealers on site. Those guys are definitely running the federally and state required background checks in a little room in the back somewhere. And if the sale happens inside the building, it's even highly likely private sales get run through also, (you will pay for it-- someone has to make money off of it). The Paperwork Gods must be appeased no matter what.
But depending on the state/county/city often you can do a private sale in the parking lot with someone that doesn't get the check. This is not universal across all 50 states. Some states, like California require all firearms transfers to go through a licensed FFL.
YMMV
It depends on the state. If they don't have a universal background check law, you can find someone willing to sell you a gun. It won't be someone at a table though. You can find someone willing to sell a "gun," I put in quotes because scammers are commonly selling guns that don't work well or fake collector items.
Try it.
No, seriously, try it.
Go in, tell them you're a first-time gun buyer, and try to walk out without receiving basic safety training, referrals and/or invites to ranges and practical training.
It is theoretically possible to buy a gun with absolutely no experience or training. But, you would have to go in to the process with some sort of malicious intent, even if that intent is just to cast FUD on the purchasing process.
Your first paragraph checks out, but it's absolutely possible to buy a gun with no training or experience but that may depend on your state combined with the type of firearm you are getting.
I am not sure where you are getting that "theoretical" bit. It's not theory.
It generally only gets a bit more difficult when you want a concealed carry license.
I am not sure where you are getting that "theoretical" bit. It's not theory.
In theory, you can purchase a gun with no training whatsoever. In practice, you'll have a tough time avoiding the bare minimum safe handling instruction the seller is going to give you. Upon receiving that instruction, you can't really say you have had "no training" whatsoever.
Looking at it another way: I don't personally know anyone over the age of 6 who has never received any sort of training on safe gun handling. In Theory, such people exist and can suddenly decide to buy a gun on a whim with zero research or experience. In practice, not so much.
Some people I have worked with at big box stores don't give two shits and they could probably use a bit more training themselves.
You are correct about the people at my range though. We can spot someone easily who has no training and has never been around a firearm. (It's a private range, and all of us are basically the "range master".) We kinda go out of our way to ensure range safety and provide education regardless if we were asked for it or not.
Also yes, I have known people that have zero training or experience that have bought a firearms with no questions asked and no advice given. It's a thing, unfortunately. When stupid people do stupid things, they tend to migrate to places that are equally as stupid that will sell them a firearm regardless as long as a background check clears.
While I do have appreciation for your specific wording, I just have seen a ton of stupid shit, s'all.
There is a form 4473 that has to be filled out and then you undergo a background check to verify that you are not a felon, have a restraining order, a history of domestic violence etc. If you order a gun online it doesn't get shipped to your house but it goes to an FFL (gun stores federally allowed to do said paperwork) and the same process is done there before you can pick it up, usually for a small fee to the people at the FFL.
As long as the state laws allow for it (no wait periods, addtional hoops) and you don't have a criminal history it can really be that simple. Most gun sales are done in like 30 minutes.
Technically as an individual I can sell a gun to anyone without doing a background check or paperwork but if that gun is used in a crime that is easily tracable back to me and my paper trail at the initial sale. There are new rules in place for the "private sale/gunshow loophole" to say when paperwork is mandatory but I haven't read enough to have a good grasp of it
The only thing they check for is if you have a felony or not, and that's only actual gun dealers like you'd find at a gun show. Usually takes 10-15 minutes and if you don't get an immediate "clear" in that 15 minutes they'll hold the gun for you for 2 days, and after 2 days if the govt has no further reason for the hold you can get your gun. From what I understand if they have no good reason after that 2 day timeframe they HAVE to clear the sale.
Man to man, private sale of a gun? No checks, have a good day sir, bang bang bang
This is all anecdotal to my experience buying my 2nd gun after the one given to me at birth by the state of Texas was no good /s
They check if you are on NICS, which is a list of people who can’t have guns no matter the reason: felonies, misdemeanor domestic violence, involuntary commitment, renounced citizenship, dishonorable discharge, protective orders, etc.
Damn, I was close
There is no waiting period in Texas. 15 minutes and a clear background check, and here's your gun. I was floored the first time I bought and walked out with it.
Maybe they've changed it recently, I bought mine a decade ago.
Depends on local laws. Most of the time there is a license. Waiting period on when you get it, can vary. Background checks, also vary.
As most cases, guns laws vary a lot state by state. A lot of gun owner support checks but the loud ones (people) usually have a different opinions.
so do you like hand grenades too?
Those are NFA items. Each one requires a $200 tax stamp (in addition to the sale price) plus you have to fill out a form and wait for it to be processed. Average times are now around 6 days but it used to be several months on average
I haven't had the pleasure but if I could learn to use one on a range I wouldn't say no!
Not many hobbies allow such bad actors to fall through the cracks though. If someone is a bad actor with tennis, they don't even go and whack tennis balls off of everyone's heads in a school.
It's a proactive vs reactive problem. Arresting someone for maybe possibly thinking about doing something doesn't hold up in court. But having an action happen means harm was done which is not good of course.
Red flag laws being proposed are far from ideal and are seen as a major slippery slope of precedence for privacy and government intervention (think of how an administration could abuse it because odds are one will at some point)
You are correct in what you are saying but I think you missed what I was trying to get at
Plenty of hobbies have majorly bad actors. At least once a year there's someone else being outed as at best a sex pest, and often a straight up solicitor of minors, within the relatively small sphere of "people who play video games for clout" (speedrunners, streamers, indie game devs, esports folks, and assorted ecelebs).
The difference with firearms is the potential for direct loss of human life. Also important to note is that misuse is also much harder to cover up with a gun. Not like sexual harassment where if no one speaks up there is often minimal evidence to be found by the public.
But neither of those have any bearing on the amount of bad actors present. If anything they would indicate to me a lower ratio of bad actors, as fucked up as it feels to say that.
I wasn't talking about the amount of bad actors. It's the severity of what a bad actor can do. I understand your sexual harassment angle but I feel like that's just trying to sidestep what I was saying.
You generally need to do a background check at a store
But random dude online selling a used one? Nothing. No paperwork. Just give money, get gun. Don't even need a record of it.
Neither federal law nor Texas law requires private sellers to keep a record when they sell a firearm.
IIRC if the dude online is shipping the gun (any firearm), it needs to go through an FFL, and that requires a background check. Meetups in person do not, though. That is a private sale.