Education

Saysuncle linked to a gun poll that had these 2 questions:


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TABLE 6
PERSONS ON FBI TERRORIST WATCH LIST
"Do you think persons listed on the FBI's "terrorist watch list", or suspected terrorists should be allowed to buy guns in the United States?"

Base: All adults

Total %

Yes 2
No 92
Not at all sure 6


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TABLE 7
AMERICAN CITIZENS ON FBI TERRORIST WATCH LIST
"Do you think American citizens listed on the FBI's "terrorist watch list", or suspected terrorists should be allowed to buy guns in the United States?"

Base: All adults

Total %

Yes 5
No 87
Not at all sure 7


One in ten! One in ten would deny Ted Kennedy (his name turned up on the list at one time) the right to purchase a firearm when alive. There were plenty of reasons not to like Ted, but there was absolutely no reason to deny him 2nd Amendment protections. I don’t think people in American fully understand the ramifications of the secret, bureaucratically arbitrary, outside of due process, terrorist watch list. I think, perhaps, people think that we shouldn’t sell guns to terrorists. I agree. But the watch list is imperfect on purpose to cast a wide net and not let potential evil doers slip by. But, like a wide net catches a lot of innocent porpoises when you are fishing for tuna, the watch list can deny rights to innocent upstanding Americans. It's not just terrorists in that net.

I think the gun community has educate people a little better on this issue and its hazards.

Other than those 2 troublesome items the rest of the poll shows an improvement in attitudes toward firearms ownership/use rights