No easy solutions to guns and gun control | GUEST OP

I love social media. Mainly to see what my too cute for words nieces and nephews are up to.

I also love videos of puppies having trouble walking with new legs, videos of “old” bands like AC/DC, and the latest pulled pork recipe.

I also love the exchange of ideas.

But lately, the exchange of hatred and finger-pointing comes from the discussion of guns and gun laws. And, I admit, I like to get into the fray with my 2 cents.

Please understand, I like guns. I always have. I started hunting deer at age 14, and my junior high school offered hunter education classes as an elective.

I quit hunting years ago, not for moral objections, just for the simple fact I don’t like getting up that early to traipse around the woods. But I’ve always enjoyed shooting a variety of guns.

I own a handgun. A .38 special, which is kept locked in a safe next to my bed. My wife and I are the only ones who know the combination.

I enjoy taking it to the gun range and firing at targets. It’s actually a stress reliever, and fun.

So when I see the arguments about the latest mass shootings – who bought what legally, what caliber of weapon it was, how we need to ban this weapon or that one, or how we need to do this to prevent the next tragedy – I have mixed feelings.

I don’t have a problem with responsible gun owners who have concealed weapons permits. I know several people, friends and relatives who carry concealed weapons, and I would trust them with my life. People who have concealed permits are not the type of people you have to worry about.

Unless this country decides to get rid of every gun in circulation, and forbid the sale of all future guns, tragedies like Sandy Hook and San Bernardino will continue.

There is no solution to this problem. However, I believe we may be able to stem this tide, and maybe prevent the next tragedy by implementing more thorough background checks on future gun sales.

Yes, I’ve heard all the arguments. They will get guns illegally. Yes, maybe. They will use something besides a gun to be destructive. Yes, maybe. If you outlaw guns, only outlaws will have guns.

The other arguments include: why make it harder for safe and sane gun owners to get a gun? If it takes three more days for you to buy a gun, are you really that inconvenienced? If it prevents someone from buying a gun when he’s a danger to himself and mentally unbalanced, isn’t that worth it? If it prevents some religious fanatic from shooting up a theatre, isn’t that worth it?

If it prevents just one mass shooting, isn’t it worth it?

As a gun owner I’m willing to wait a few more days to be investigated and checked on for my next gun purchase. And if it saves one life, or 10 lives, so some nut-job, or some fanatic, doesn’t get a gun through legal channels, it would be worth it then, too.

Todd Nuttman contributes to the Kent Reporter.