Kopel Writes about Guns, Mental Illness and Newtown

Maybe Virginia Senator Mark Warner, West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin, and now Republican Senator Marco Rubio should have read Dave Kopel's Op/Ed in yesterday's Wall Street Journal before jumping on the modern sporting rifle ban bandwagon:

Back in the mid-1960s, in most states, an adult could walk into a store and buy an AR-15 rifle, no questions asked. Today, firearms are the most heavily regulated consumer product in the United States. If someone wants to purchase an AR-15 or any other firearm, the store must first get permission for the sale from the FBI or its state counterpart. Permission is denied if the buyer is in one of nine categories of "prohibited persons," including felons, domestic-violence misdemeanants, and persons who have been adjudicated mentally ill or alcoholic.

And for those talking about bans on ammunition magazines that hold more than 10 rounds:

Nor are magazines holding more than 10 rounds something new. They were invented decades ago and have long been standard for many handguns. Police officers carry them for the same reason that civilians do: Especially if a person is attacked by multiple assailants, there is no guarantee that a 10-round magazine will end the assault.

Read Kopel's entire article.  He makes some similar points that Western Idaho professor Clayton Cramer makes in this article.