That seems a bit over the top IMHO...however I certainly do NOT object to background investigations...and as a matter of fact they are conducted in Arizona when the weapon is purchased...another check for a CCW is redundant. The simple fact is this. Crime rates are lowered when criminals fear their victims.
That may well be so, and I guess to a large extent my views are colored by the fact that I come from a country where all firearms are very strictly controlled. As such, I find the sight of people wandering around in public with guns very disquieting.
I've never really understood why the 2nd amendment is such a sacred cow. In a 21st century democracy, do people really need to have a small arsenal available to them in case the government suddenly decides it's going to turn on them?
I doubt it, and I think the constitution is used by many as a means of ducking the question, but I'm clearly in a minority and I accept that.
However, if you need a permit to operate something designed for something other than killing (like a car), I can't see what the problem is in asking people to get a permit for something like a gun.
My views are probably considered hopelessly naive by people familiar with this discussion, but that's OK. I have no problem with gun ownership (I owned a shotgun myself in Britain years ago - I won't bother telling you what the application process was like), but if people are going to carry them around in public I want to be certain that these people are (a) aware of their responsibility, (b) fully aware of how to use them properly, (c) mentally capable of bearing that responsibility and (d), not people who have already abused their right to own a firearm.
