We Should Compare Guns To Cars

An increasingly common argument in the discussion over gun control is motor vehicle accident deaths. Liberals spit (figuratively) in disgust at the comparison but gun rights advocates are right. They argue that we don't blame the car, we blame the driver. Regardless of the object's intent neither the car nor the gun can maim without human touch. A car is for getting you from point a to point b at the very basic level, and a gun is for shooting targets, game, skeet and people.

I agree. Comparing guns and cars is actually fair. The two kill roughly the same amount of Americans every year: 33,687 motor vehicle deaths and 31,672 firearm deaths in 2010 (the last year complete data was available.) Also the death rates per 100,000 are almost identical: 10.9 to 10.3.

So why not legislate guns like we legislate vehicles.

• Learners permit at age 15 and a formal test for a license at 16. This kind of law would prevent deaths of young children who are taken by their parents to firing ranges to "try out" weapons as well as in other situations. Just as a nine-year-old isn't allowed to drive a car so too shouldn't they be allowed to fire a 9mm Micro Uzi. Can one really argue that children firing automatic weapons was really the intent of the founding fathers when they crafted the second amendment. Hunting should be no exception. Kids can't drive a car or truck for any reason and nor should they be allowed to shoot a firearm. 
• Require renewal of license every 2-3 years. I have to renew my driver's license in as such time so why shouldn't they? 
• Require a different license for different classes of weapons. A driver of an 18 wheeler requires a different license. Handling a vehicle of that size with air brakes is very different from driving an automatic, 6 cylinder car. If you want to purchase a semi-automatic weapon it should require a different license. 
• Registration. Cars have to be registered so all guns should be too. Remember the argument is that guns are no more lethal than cars. If it's good for the car it's good for the gun. Registering a weapon doesn't infringe on the right to own. Gun licensing and registration will also create more jobs. 
• Require gun insurance. If I intend on driving my car I have to have insurance so that same standard should apply to guns. Safe gun owners (guns not stolen and used in a crime, no accidents around the house, trigger locks, etc) will get breaks and the insurance money can be used to help pay hospital bills. Just like car insurance if you inadvertently injure someone with your weapon. 
• Safety testing. I have to get my car smog tested every 2-3 years so why not bring the gun in for inspection. Failure to present the gun without proof of legal sale would imply illegal sale or theft and impact significant penalties. Gas stations do smog testing and I'm sure there are gun stores that'd step up to the plate eager to inspect a gun for proper gun safety and maintenance. 
• Tax ammunition. Heavily. Gasoline is taxed. Heavily. However, ammo is relatively cheap. For example a 40-round magazine for an AK-47 can be purchased online for $29.99 which is less than a dollar a bullet and far less than a tank of gas. I'd propose a steep tax on ammunition that exponentially increases with the size of magazine. The tax money can go to education about gun safety or to pay for medical bills of victims of gun crimes.
• Prevent online sales of ammunition. Since you can't buy gasoline online for home delivery you shouldn't be able to buy ammo online.  Alaska; California; Cook County, IL; Hawaii; Massachusetts; New York City; and Washington, D.C. already restrict shipping ammunition from online sales, so why not the rest of the country? If it’s illegal in several states and D.C. the laws preventing online sales must have survived legal challenges, so it’s time to go national.
• Require trigger locks. Cars have locks to prevent theft and protect children from climbing in and starting the car. Nobody argues "Cars shouldn't have a key for the ignition in the case you are being chased so you can make a quick get away." If you can take the time to start your car you can take the time to start your  gun. How many stories are in the news of teens and young children accidentally or intentionally killed with a gun from home. 
• Require more of gun manufacturers. If 15 people a year were killed by a Prius in a freak accident Toyota would be all over it. Yet somehow gun manufacturers get away with no press after gun deaths. Not talking about homicides but accidental ones.  For example the five killed on gun appreciation day. Not quite 100 people a year were killed by vehicles backing up but car manufacturers responded with rear-end cameras and alarms. Why can't gun manufacturers find a way to make guns safer? Car manufacturers want to keep drivers and their occupants safe, shouldn't gun manufacturers?