Reply #85: And there's your problem...

[DoNotRefill]

"heavily regulate (but don't ban) military-style rifles so that responsible collectors can get them but criminals can't. "

That's simply impossible. If they banned ALL guns in the US, and went around confiscating them all, criminals would STILL be armed. Why? BECAUSE THEY'RE CRIMINALS. If they can bring in hundreds of tons of cocaine a year, why can't they bring in hundreds of tons of guns and ammo?

I think it was U.S. v. Haynes (1968) where the Supreme Court said criminals were exempt from gun registration laws because it would force them to violate their 5th Amendment rights against self incrimination. That's right...if you're a criminal, you CAN NOT be prosecuted for failure to register your illegally owned guns. Only people who OBEY the law can be prosecuted for it. Where's the sense in that?