In my state, the buyer and seller are required to go to an FFL, and fill out the paperwork. The buyer fills out federal background check paperwork. Then, there's a 10-day waiting period before the buyer can pick up the gun.
That's the way it is in Florida if you are purchasing a firearm from a dealer or registered out of state seller. They can only send the firearm to an FFL. However, the waiting period does not apply if you have a CCW (which I do). Rightly so, if you have a CCW you've already gone through every possible background and finger printing exercise they can throw at you.
I think the important point of this thread seems to be that no one (other than very extreme gun owning folks) is against common sense rules - many of which are already in place but either do not function well, or at all. No one of any sane mind is against reasonable vetting (which isn't being done right now). But "solutions" like banning all guns simply aren't realistic and are a non-starter to any reasonable conversation. The reason these arguments don't work is because there is no realistic ability to do so, and the political will (on either side of the aisle) does not exist to implement the draconian measures required to put complete gun control in place.
Bullshit narratives by the main stream media don't help the conversation. All that does is make people less willing to discuss solutions. First the bullshit, then the factual response.
Thing is NRA opposes ANY sensible legislation, up to and including improving background checks. Hell, they lobbied hard to kill funding to the CDC to get a study to understand the impact of gun violence
I do not agree with the NRA's methods or stance. They view any effort to moderate anything to do with guns as an attack they have to meet with the full force of their political power. I understand why they do it. They believe, rightly so, that equally rabid forces on the other side of the argument will not stop with just "reasonable" laws regarding guns, they will press on for a full ban of everything. So the NRA cannot afford to let up at all and must treat any attack on gun rights as the enemy battering at the gates. This goes to my point on the above tweet from CBS news (which is total horseshit). If both sides were willing to be moderate, a lot more could be done. But since neither side will relinquish their totally extreme positions, we will get nowhere.
That is good. If we can have a civil discourse it would be good to hear many perspectives. I am going to put together my thoughts and post them here (most have been posted before I will note). Hopefully all of this will drive a civil discussion regarding alternatives and what can be achieved now as a middle ground.
I don't understand why you disagree with the NRA's approach, even as you concede that the other side will never be satisfied with anything short of a total gun ban and confiscation. You can thank the NRA and their approach for your continued ability to be able to buy and own weapons of your choice. You may recall that plenty of "conservative" republicans, eg the Bushes, were prepared to sell us out on guns just as they did on every other issue. I remember Bush senior babbling about gun ownership being linked to legitimate hunting and sporting uses. That is code for banning MSR's and semi-auto pistols. Compromise and concessions are only reasonable when the compromise solution puts an end to the dispute. That will never be the situation with gun control. The left looks at every concession by gun owners as the floor for further concessions, all with the end clear end goal of a ban and confiscation.
I suggest copying Canada's federal gun laws verbatim. Allowing 180 days for all existing guns to be brought into compliance or be declared illegal. Any guns that can not be brought into compliance should be purchased by the Federal Government and that a commission be appointed to establish a fair and equitable pricing mechanism. Note that many guns now in private hands in the U.S. would fall under the restricted category in Canada. Many, if not most, could be brought into compliance within 180 days. It would be of great advantage for all of North America to have uniform gun laws in place! In Canada you do not have to register, as of 2012, except in Quebec I believe, unrestricted guns. Unrestricted are those that, in the main, are suitable for sport. If you want to own a restricted semi-automatic, then you will have to comply with registration and additional restrictions, regulations and qualifications. That seems to me to be a very reasonable trade-off. We should copy Canadian Law with respect to guns. Canadian law permits additional restrictions to be adopted locally. I favor that as well. There are lots of great sportsmen in Canada and lots of guns, but the rate per 100,000 population of mass shootings with semi-automatics is far lower. I'd like to see the Florida Teenagers start a National Movement to press for adoption of Canadian Gun Laws in the U.S. https://www.cnn.com/2017/10/03/americas/us-gun-statistics/index.html