One of the things that terrify anti-gunners is so-called ghost guns. They don’t like the idea of Americans having access to guns without getting permission from the government first. And we already know how it really does seem to boil down to getting permission.

So, they want to crack down on these incomplete receiver kits.

Now, a number of state attornerys general are asking U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland to close the “loophole.”

Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro said Monday he is leading a coalition of 18 states that wrote U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, asking him to close a loophole in the interpretation of the federal Gun Control Act that allows those prohibited from buying firearms to buy 80 percent receivers to assemble “ghost guns.”

 

The unserialized and untraceable weapons are easily assembled by criminals, domestic abusers and others, allowing them to skirt U.S. gun laws, Shapiro said in a press release.

 

“Ghost guns are quickly becoming the weapon of choice for criminals and fueling the gun violence epidemic,” Shapiro said. “These DIY gun kits should be subject to the same background checks and qualifications as fully functioning firearms to prevent criminals who are not legally able to purchase or possess guns from getting their hands on these deadly, untraceable weapons.”

 

Shapiro said his office has spoken to administration officials and consistently brought up concerns over this loophole in the federal Gun Control Act during those discussions. 

The Pennsylvania Attorney General said he has also personally spoken to President Joe Biden about the issue of ghost guns.

Ghost guns typically start as “80 percent receivers” that are often sold in kits without background checks, Shapiro said. Currently, he said, the ATF’s incorrect interpretation allows 80 percent receiver kits to be sold online and at gun shows throughout the country without background checks. 

What Shapiro is missing is that the people have been building guns in this country since before it was a country. There’s no “incorrect interpretation” to allowing products that facilitate that action.

The ATF basically only has two designations for things. They’re either receivers or they’re not. There’s no way to change that. All that can change is determining at what point something is considered a receiver.

At that point, the American entrepreneurial spirit will kick in and people will offer incomplete recievers just short of that line.

What they’ll never be able to do is completely shut down people making guns. If a guy can make an AK receiver from a shovel, there’s absolutely no hope of actually stopping homebuilt firearms, especially with advances in 3D printing.

Instead, a more productive use of the government’s time is to go after those who illegally make these weapons for sale. After all, contrary to what the media says, this ain’t a snap-together model kit we’re talking about. It’s technical to a degree that most criminals won’t bother with. That means people building them and selling them to others.

Hit them and leave the rest of us the hell alone for a change. How does that sound?

You know, just to shake things up a bit.