Originally Posted by JessicaChen
The tinfoil hat nutter in me is making me think that the people in power who want more government control are interested in soft-on-crime approaches. People in a nation under more stress and poverty rely more on government handouts. People who rely on handouts are easier to control. For more government handouts there must be an increase in taxes, after all they might promise that the more taxes you pay the more criminals they will punish or the more compensation they can pay to businesses affected by crime. With higher taxes, the government ultimately has more power and control over how everything goes.
I can't think of any other reason other than pure incompetence as to why they are making things more difficult for the average joe in regards to firearm ownership, but there is so little punishment for illegally armed criminals.