The American Academy of Pediatricians (AAP) continues its support for tighter federal regulation of
firearms.
 
On Dec. 19, the group, claiming 60,000 members, wrote a  letter to President Obama calling for new federal legislation that bans assault weapons sales and the sale of high-capacity magazines, strengthens mandatory waiting periods and background checks for all gun purchases, and promotes strict gun safety policies.

 AAP President Thomas K. McInerny, MD, FAAP, said  the policy is a continuation of an advocacy  report the group
issued in October.

That report found that although rates have declined since the AAP issued the original policy statement in 1992,
firearm-related deaths continue as 1 of the top 3 causes of death in American youth ages 15 to 19. The firearm-associated death rate among youth ages 15 to 19 has fallen from its peak of 27.8 deaths per 100 000 in 1994 to 11.4 per
100 000 in 2009, driven by an unexplained decline in firearm homicide  rates.
 
However, the AAP says the rate remains unacceptably high, so it is recommending the regulation of the manufacture,
sale, purchase, ownership, and use of firearms; a ban on semiautomatic assault  weapons; and the strongest possible regulations of handguns for civilian  use.

Interestingly enough, the AAP did not  provide any data justifying its call for a ban on so-called “assault”rifles, and
they did not appear in the statistics, which dated back to  2004:

 “It is estimated that 57 million Americans  owned 283 million firearms in 2004, representing 38% of all households and 26%  of all adults having or owning at least 1 gun. Of these, 60% were long guns and  the remaining 40% were handguns. Of the handguns, 50% were revolvers, 35% were  semiautomatic pistols, and 15% were other  types.”

The AAP maintains that the "most reliable and effective measure to prevent firearm-related injuries in children and
adolescents" is to make sure there are no weapons available. Failing that, the AAP strongly supports safe gun storage (guns unloaded and locked, ammunition  locked separately).

Gatling Gun Removal Service ™ also  strongly supports safe gun storage. That is why we make it easy to relocate
unwanted, unused, or improperly stored guns to a more secure facility. Gatling  does NOT support any type of ban, confiscation, or additional regulation of  firearms. 

- Dr.  Gatling

So you walk into a bar and some guy starts telling you that America is ready for a gun ban. WHOA, pal, where did you get your information?

According to a USA Today/Gallup  poll  taken Dec. 19-22, days after the Newtown tragedy, only 44 percent of those
surveyed are in favor of banning the manufacture, sale, or possession of those  semi-automatic rifles known popularly – although incorrectly – as “assault  weapons.” Fifty-one percent are opposed to a ban on them.

The number opposed to a handgun ban rockets to a  record-high 74 percent. Conversely, the 24 percent in favor of a handgun ban is  the lowest recorded since Gallupfirst asked that question in  1959.

The only proposed ban that seems to have any public traction would be one outlawing the new manufacture or sale of detachable high-capacity ammunition magazines – generally those that hold more than 10 rounds. That number stands
at 62 percent in favor.
 
USA Today/Gallup also says 92 percent of respondents, up  from 83 percent in 1999, favor laws that require people attempting to purchase guns at gun shows, including gun dealers, to undergo background checks. The NRA
claims that closing the “gun show loophole” would lead to a requirement that any private firearm transfer would require a background check.
 
Finally, the new poll also finds that a record-high 47 percent of Americans favor passing new gun laws, up from 35 percent in 2011.  However, since Gallup first asked this question in 2000, majorities have consistently preferred enforcing the current laws more strictly  without passing new laws.
 
Results for this USA Today/Gallup poll are based on telephone interviews conducted Dec. 19-22, 2012, with a random sample of 1,038 adults, aged 18 and older, living in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia.

Gallup says it has 95 percent confidence that the maximum margin of sampling error is plus or minus 4 percentage points.

- Dr. Gatling

The people of Los  Angeles are supposedly sleeping better tonight now that about 2,000 junk guns have been swapped for grocery coupons. 
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-1227-gun-buyback-20121227,0,1983374,full.story

The police and mayor’s office call it a great victory over street violence since some of the weapons were what they call “assault  weapons”in California. The rest of us know them as  semiautomatic rifles that look like military rifles. But there’s no real proof that gun buybacks  work.

Reuters reports: “While officials in  Los  Angeles and  elsewhere have said the gun buybacks help keep streets safe, a 2004 report by  the National Research Council of the National Academies questioned that  conclusion.
 “Among the report's findings were that guns surrendered in buybacks tend to be old or inherited from previous owners, and not likely to  be used in crime. Also, gun owners find it easy to replace their firearms, according to the report, which was titled Firearms and Violence: A Critical Review.”

Among the guns collected in Los Angeles, police say, were 901  handguns, 698 rifles, and 363 shotguns. Seventy-five firearms were semi-automatic rifles resembling military weapons.

- Dr. Gatling

Sometimes even those who think they have good intentions can run afoul of draconian laws.
NBC's David Gregory held up what he said was a high capacity ammunition magazine to make a point on "Meet the Press."
Now he's being investigated for allegedly violating the District of Columbia's ban on high-cap mags.
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/world/55529308-68/magazine-police-gregory-nbc.html.csp
Well, David, you can't have it both ways. No matter how impractical, a ban is a ban and police will attempt to enforce it.
Some of my favorite sidearms hold fewer than 10 rounds: a 1911 Government Model .45, a Colt single-action Army six-shooter loaded with five rounds for safety and a J-frame Smith & Wesson Model 37 Chief's in .38 Special.
But I also like the venerable and fun-to-shoot M1 Carbine, with 15-round or 30-round banana clips (technically a magazine, not a clip).
So what does a ban on high-capacity magazine bans accomplish? And how many rounds is too many?
Depending on how you slice the data, 
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/12/24/history-gives-mixed-grade-to-impact-assault-weapons-ban/
mass shootings are not really impacted by high-cap mag bans because such shootings usually involve handguns. Such as the Dunblane shooting in Scotland that resulted in the UK's ammo ban or the Texas Luby's shooting that contributed to passage of the state's concealed handgun license law.
As for the number of rounds, the Aurora shooter used an after-market high-cap magazine that jammed, saving many lives. What if he had used smaller-capacity mags and had reloaded?
- Dr. Gatling

This is a great opinion piece in the Washington Times by Charles Hurt.
 He makes a good case for relocating guns.

"... then there are all the gun-buyback programs that politicians and  the  liberal media love so much. This is where big-city police departments offer  our  tax dollars to residents in exchange for guns they turn in. Then everybody proudly poses beside tables bristling with the hundreds and hundreds of guns they took off the streets.

These displays are a continual reminder that only the people out there on the street who are not armed are the law-abiding chumps like you and me.

Among the rounded-up firearms — destined for destruction in a smelter — are always a few rare and beautifully kept rifles and collectible World War II long  guns, as if antique guns and fireside gun-cleaning is the stuff of urban gunplay.

Am I the only person who suspects that probably every single one of those  nice guns was once somebody’s favorite hunting rifle before it got stolen in a  home burglary?"
Read more: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/dec/25/hurt-gun-grabbers-wont-heed-nras-sensible-advice/#ixzz2G6ucDVdx
- Dr. Gatling

Gun ownership is a constitutional right we enjoy, and  gun safety is a joint responsibility that we share. 
My heart aches every time I hear of a gun crime committed with a stolen gun that was not secured properly.
Even more tragic are the accidental deaths committed in the home by children who encounter a loaded gun.
The gun and ammunition should be stored in separate locked containers. 
I  know you might feel that you might need instant access, so  there are special safes that provide that type of convenience and security.
– Dr. Gatling.

Dear Dr. Gatling: My late husband used to hunt with an assault rifle. Now that he has passed, I am scared to have the gun in my home. What should I do?
- Gun-Shy

Dear Gun-Shy:
 I seriously doubt you have an assault  rifle.
This is a political label attached to semi-automatic rifles made for the  civilian market but that look like military weapons. These look-alikes are very popular for a variety of reasons, including the rugged design required for government adoption. But they are not capable of full automatic fire. (They require a separate pull of the trigger for each individual shot.)
Another potentially scary aspect is that they are capable of holding a large number of bullets.
Game laws in most states prohibit hunters from having more than a certain number of  bullets loaded. But military-style magazine, commonly carrying 20 to 30  bullets, are popular with shooters who like to shoot tin cans or bottles.
Your husband’s gun is probably legal to own and you can take it to a pawn shop or gun store to sell. Please make sure it is unloaded before transporting. If you don’t feel comfortable handing it, call a gun removal service like Gatling to have it
relocated to a new home.  

By the way, there will always be attempts to control evil  by legislating controls on tools of evil. But think of the evil Timothy McVeigh accomplished with a rental truck full of fertilizer and diesel fuel. Consider the Twin Towers brought down by terrorists armed  with box cutters. And, for the record, the worst slaughter of school children in U.S. history took place in Bath Township, Michigan. In 1927, 48 innocent kids were killed by an evil man who used bombs to destroy their
schoolhouse.
- Dr. Gatling 

When my dad was in the 80s, he lived in an assisted  living center with security at the front door and cameras everywhere. A few  years earlier, I had taken his car keys away from him because his vision had  failed. But he persisted in keeping the Colt Government Model 1911 .45 pistol he  had carried in the ETO during World War II.

I had explained patiently that the  230-grain full metal jacket bullet would easily punch through the sheetrock walls, endangering his neighbors. And, because he kept it in the bedside  drawer, any number of nurses, therapists, medical supply delivery people and cleaning staff could have access to it.

Finally, I sat dad down, unloaded the pistol and handed it back to him. “OK, Dad,” I said. “Cycle the slide like you
were loading it.”

He tugged and tugged but his arthritic hands could not get  the slide all the way back. With a wry smile, and a bit of a tear, he handed  the pistol back and said, “I guess it’s time for it to live with you.”

He knew that he could no longer maintain the pistol properly or store it safely, so it  was time for the gun to be removed and relocated to a new home. Now that dad is  gone, I think of him frequently when I take his 1911 to the range. And, yes,
it’s locked up the rest of the time.

– Dr. Gatling.