Thank You Second Amendment!

I am busily writing a couple of posts, one on free trade and one on the atrocity in Istanbul, but as we approach July 4, I wanted to put up a little "Thank You" to the Founding Fathers for the Second Amendment to the Constitution.

I have the good fortune to live in a suburban/rural part of the country. It's in Blue California, but this corner of it is more akin to Texas, to wit, lots of pick-up trucks with American flags, lots of veterans, and, surprising for California these days, several excellent gun stores. For the last few days I had suffered from an itch that could only be scratched with the purchase of a quality firearm.

I had been looking for either an AR-15 or an MP-15. Sold out.

I switched my search to a revolver and was debating between the Ruger GP100 .357 and the Smith & Wesson 686 .357. That also proved tough--as one gunstore salesman told me, "Every time Obama talks about guns, we sell out." But the gods of firepower finally deigned to smile on me, and I got a tip that a store in Temecula had a lightly used 686 at a good price. I tore over there in the ol' Mustang GT, and, indeed, there sat a stainless 686 on the shelf! I wasted no time letting the very amiable salesman know that I wanted it. He then proceeded to fill me in on how to purchase a handgun in California.

The process is not very onerous, but it is irritating because you know that not one life will be saved by it.

I had to prove that I lived in California--driver's license and car registration did the trick--and fill out an absurd questionnaire mostly having to do with any convictions or restraining orders for domestic abuse. It even asked me if I were in the country illegally. After I answered all that nonsense, the salesman told me I had to take a 30 question test. I could go home and look up the booklet online on which the test was based, and study it, or I could take my chances right there. I decided to go for it. Went off to a little classroom in the store, sat down, and took the test. The 30 questions ranged from the idiotic to the obvious by way of a couple of trick ones meant to trip up people who read too quickly. I got 29 right; I missed the one about whether a sibling can transfer a gun to another sibling--that is not allowed in California, only a parent may transfer a gun to a son or a  daughter. Each of these steps, by the way, had a price tag, so the State of California gets not only the sales tax but fees for the background check and the test. I then had to sit through a 30-second safety presentation by a licensed trainer, sign that I had sat through it, and then, and only then, was I allowed to plop down my money. I was also required to buy a lock, which the salesman threw in for one cent.

Now this ain't Florida, so I wasn't going to walk out the door with my possession. I have to wait ten days; I can pick up the 686 on July 9 after 11:20 am. Assuming I am not on some mysterious list, I should be able to add this toy to my collection shortly after Independence Day.

After all this, I engaged the store folks in a little chat. Gunstore owners are some of the nicest people on earth. They told me that last Thursday they sold their entire stock of 18 AR-15s and 3 MP-15s. They were almost completely out of Glocks, I had just purchased their last S&W, and Ruger had a huge waiting list. They had a few Charter Arms semiautomatics, one Kimber .45, and some assorted H&K pieces here and there. Lots of shotguns, however. The factories are way behind in meeting the demand. The store had a steady flow of customers, many of them leaving disappointed that their desired weapon was sold out.

Restores your faith in America.