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Soon after the assassination there was a ban on mail-order firearms. Was there any outcry on this? If such a thing happened today, the NRA and other gun owners would be outraged. It might even wind up in the Supreme Court.
I remember the uproar over the mail order rifle that lasted for quite some time after the assassination, but nothing was done until October of 1968 after the MLK and RFK assassinations. I don't recall very much opposition to the ban but there probably was some. The three major assassinations in less than five years moved public opinion to support some sort of action.
I remember the uproar over the mail order rifle that lasted for quite some time after the assassination, but nothing was done until October of 1968 after the MLK and RFK assassinations. I don't recall very much opposition to the ban but there probably was some. The three major assassinations in less than five years moved public opinion to support some sort of action.
As you said, there was a huge uproar. People were astounded to learn that a person could fill out a coupon in a magazine and mail to to Chicago and get a rifle by return mail, with absolutely nothing being checked. Oswald had done it using a fake name and had the gun send the a post office box.
They held congressional hearings and discussed banning mail order gun sales. It had widespread support, but had to be crafted in a way that passed constitutional muster regarding the federal government's role in regulating interstate commerce. There was opposition to the first bills that were introduced, although I do not remember that. The NRA was firmly behind the bill. [At the hearings NRA Executive Vice-President Franklin Orth supported a ban on mail-order sales, stating, "We do not think that any sane American, who calls himself an American, can object to placing into this bill the instrument which killed the president of the United States."]
I remember that the public was generally in support of the ban, but do not recall what caused the bills to be opposed in Congress. The attitudes of most people prior to recent times to issues such as this were widely accepting of the regulation of firearms to ensure their proper use.
I certainly hope this thread stays focused on the historical issue presented. Otherwise, I won't hesitate to close and/or remove the thread.
I remember the uproar over the mail order rifle that lasted for quite some time after the assassination, but nothing was done until October of 1968 after the MLK and RFK assassinations. I don't recall very much opposition to the ban but there probably was some. The three major assassinations in less than five years moved public opinion to support some sort of action.
Which all tended to line up with legislation to stop the Black Panther's openly carrying at their events and a lot of white people freaking out about it.
Soon after the assassination there was a ban on mail-order firearms. Was there any outcry on this? If such a thing happened today, the NRA and other gun owners would be outraged. It might even wind up in the Supreme Court.
There was not much opposition to the ban THEN from such groups.... and so there probably wouldn't be much today either in a day that is much much much less reactionary conservative.
It's really no surprise that people in the USA want to hang on to their guns is it? I mean... look at the track record of the past 250 years. Not a lot of facts in favor of turning in the guns. I bet the native Americans wish they'd had some more guns. Including the Hawaiians. In my father's lifetime we had the Klan marching down Pennsylvania Avenue and an auditorium full of America Nazis cursing the Jews and praising Hitler in NYC during WW2. Now we have cartels running wild in the streets and people calling for "defunding the police" while they burn down cities and set up autonomous zones. Nothing makes people want to give up their guns like anarchy and a government that won't enforce the law. The only thing that works LESS than that for promoting gun control is a government that OVER-enforces the law and then only for certain people.
I love banners in their contradictions. Prohibition was the dumbest idea in the world, they say. War on Drugs? It only makes things worse, they pontificate.
But gun control is EXACTLY what we need, they ensure us. While letting felons have an early release at the same time.
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