Here’s something the anti-gun crowd has been trying to promote: Ammunition Accountability. Unfortunately, this has gained momentum in several states. The “Governator” Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a piece of legislation back in 2007 requiring arms manufacturers who want to sell their wares in California, to produce handguns that have to ability to imprint fired ammunition with a special code. Back on February 15, 2008 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, then Senator and Democrat presidential contender Barack Obama called the California legislation the sort of “common sense” gun law that gun owners and victims of gun violence can get behind (Read). Obama was of course, responding to the horrible shooting incident that occurred at Northern Illinois University.

Several questions from gun owners and law enforcement officers have arisen regarding micro-tracing handguns and ammunition: 1.)Are most criminals so stupid that they will actually purchase and register firearms that can easily be traced or buy ammunition that can be traced back to them? 2.)Which group of people does ammunition/firearm micro-tracing protect? 3.)If a responsible gun owner has a gun or ammunition that has been manufactured using micro-tracing technology and the gun and/or ammunition is stolen and the thief uses the gun and/or ammunition in the commission of another crime (e.g., murder), who will the authorities trace the firearm and ammunition back to? 4.)Would you say it would be a useful allocation of law enforcement resources to trace a firearm and/or ammunition back to somebody who had his/her gun and ammunition stolen? How much time, manpower, and taxpayer money was used to track the weapon back to somebody who didn’t even commit the crime in the first place? 6.)What is wrong with the current system used to match ammunition to a firearm and in turn, a firearm back to the criminal? 7.)For the technology to be effectively implemented, would the cost of firearms and/or ammunition rise?

Common sense or nonsense? You decide.