The NRA's nightmare

This is a pretty good article on the gun controls that were recently enacted in South Africa, where violent crime has been a big problem. While I think some of the provisions of the law are retarded (such as the "motivation" rule and the need for interviews of 3 acquaintances), many of the items seem like they should be standard in any decent country (like ours):

- Cannot be drug or alcohol abusers, spouse abusers, people inclined to violence or "deviant behavior" and anyone who has been imprisoned for violent or sex-related crimes. (The inclined to violence thing is vague, but the rest are good)

- Must pass a firearms course.

- Must install a safe or strongbox that meets police standards for gun storage.

When you consider that you have to have a license and insurance to drive a car, the car must pass inspection, and can have your license revoked for drunk driving, this doesn't look so bad at all. But of course the NRA and the red states will whine about their questionable interpretation of the Second Amendment (which was written at a time when barrel rifling wasn't even invented yet).

It will be interesting to see how their crime rates change over the next few years...