From: Gabby Giffords and Mark Kelly
Date: November 21, 2013 11:46:48 AM MST
To: Warren Michelsen
Subject: Guns that can bypass metal detectors
Warren –
If you or your family have ever visited an airport, courthouse, or even some hospitals and schools, you know that a metal detector can be the last line of defense between your loved ones and a criminal with a gun.
So in the event of a “criminal with a gun”, run to the nearest airport, courthouse, hospital or school, because they have metal detectors? Yeah, like no one has ever shot up an airport, courthouse, hospital or school. Those are safe havens because of the “last line of defense” metal detectors.
Hey, I’ve an idea. Why not bolster the first line of defense, the armed non-criminal? Why not support legislation that makes it easier, not harder for the Good Guys to defend themselves and others? You waste your time trying to make us safe through disarmament.
But on December 9th, a relatively obscure but important law that prohibits the sale or shipment of firearms not detectable by a walk-through metal detector is set to expire.
You’d think an important law would be anything but “obscure”. The subject of your message is: “Guns that can bypass metal detectors”, which is pretty much any gun at all since “bypass” means to go around. No walk-through metal detector can detect guns that “bypass” it. But you’re not really talking about guns that bypass metal detectors, despite the Subject line.
It’s called the Undetectable Firearms Act and in the age of 3D printers that can produce a gun made almost entirely of plastic, it’s imperative that Congress move to reauthorize the legislation.
So in an age of 3D printers when anyone can make their own Undetectable Firearm, we need a law prohibiting the sale and shipment of Undetectable Firearms? I don’t follow. If I can print my own Undetectable Firearm, I don’t need to buy one or have one shipped to me. Have you thought this through?
With three weeks to go, time is running out. It’s important that you sign our petition urging the House and Senate leadership to bring the Act to a vote before it expires. Add your name here:
Why is it important to sign your petition? Why is this law important, really? How is a law against selling and shipping Undetectable Firearms going to make us safer? Malum prohibitum laws like this do not make us safer. They do little to deter crime. What they do is give prosecutors things with which they can pile on charges when we break a malum in se law.
Criminals who intend to do harm are not going to be dissuaded by laws. It’s illegal to shoot people in the head, but it happens. Adding more useless laws is not a responsible solution. It only serves to give people a false sense of security while failing to address the real problem, the cultural problem that leads people to think that aggression is the solution to their problems.
In the past Republicans and Democrats have come together to renew the law by simple voice votes. Even the NRA has agreed not to oppose the bill.
Silly Republicans and Democrats! And who cares what the NRA has to say? They’ve been selling out to gun banners for decades.
We’re counting on Congress to reauthorize this responsible solution to reduce gun violence. If you make your voice heard, we’re sure they will.
So this “responsible solution” had reduced gun violence? Really? Gosh, I’d love to see the stats on this. How many lives has this law saved? How many Undetectable Firearms have not been sold or shipped? If this is a good law, show us the numbers to back it up. Or is the importance of this law all supposition on your part? Wishful thinking?
All the best,
No, Gabby, if you really wished us all the best, you’d be working to reduce violence of all kinds, not just “gun violence”. You’d be going after the root causes, not trying to treat the symptoms of a deeper problem.
Gabby and Mark
Hoping you get better,
Warren