WA: Tacoma Gun Disposal Boxes?

Gun Watch ^ | 8 September, 2015 | Dean Weingarten

[marktwain]

 Tacoma Drug Disposal Box.  Officials are considering a version for guns.

In Tacoma, Washington, officials are considering the idea of a gun drop box where people can turn in guns for destruction without any interaction with police.  The theory is that there are people in poor, crime ridden neighborhoods who want to get rid of a gun, but do not want interaction with police.

The working theory  is that the box would be in a place without surveillance, and the guns dropped off would be checked out by police, then destroyed.  From mynorthwest.com:

The city is investigating how to successfully operate the program. It is trying to find locations away from police intervention, to encourage people wary of law enforcement to turn the guns in. At the same time, it wants to place them in areas that won't cause a disturbance. 

"It's definitely something that is controlled access and one way," Cordeiro said. "You can put something in, but you can't take something out.

The comments at the site are numerous and biting.   The first one, by Xplanes, sumes up much of the latter 167 comments:

This has got to be the dumbest gun related idea in the history of mankind. Do these people live and think in a vacuum? Boxes of guns somewhere out of the reach of police intervention. And they are worried about me handing my best friend my gun for his camping trip without a background check. I would call them Imbeciles, but that would be an insult to stupid people.

My observation is that if someone wants to have a gun destroyed without police being involved, Tacoma has many miles of shoreline on Puget Sound.  Salt water immersion will destroy most guns rather rapidly, and no one has to worry about  whether or not the government was lying about that "no surveillance" thing.

The idea that there are multitudes of poor youth in the hood, desperate to get rid of valuable items anonymously, that they could easily sell for cash to their local gang member or drug dealer... goes beyond Pollyannish.

In this video, a Tacoma official makes the tired old claim that if it just takes one gun "off the street" that it will all be worth it.  There are so many failures in logic in that statement that it deserves more attention.  It concentrates much of what is wrong with disarmist attitudes in one short sentence.

1.  The false assumption is that guns are only used for evil, when in fact, they are often used for good purposes.

2.  The assumption that the boxes benefits will outweigh their costs.  The benefits, of necessity, will be impossible to measure.  Some costs, such as creating the boxes and maintaining them will be easily measured; others, such as crimes committed because a self defense gun was not available, will be as hard to measure as the benefits.

3.  The false assumption that guns have no economic value.

4.  The willful ignorance of multiple other ways to dispose of firearms.

5.  The placement of responsibility with inanimate objects instead of with people.

I doubt the gun disposal box idea will be implemented.  It is so absurd and unrelated to reality as to verge on insanity. 

When politicians are free to spend other people's money, logic, rationality and cost effectiveness are not important considerations.


©2015 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.
Link to Gun Watch

[marktwain]

One of the main pushes by disarmists is to convince people that responsibility belongs with the object, not the person. Some really believe it; the desire *not to be responsible for anything* is very strong. Others only want their victims to believe it.

[Darksheare]

I can see criminals torching open one of these boxes to get at the free guns inside.

[thackney]

So if you shoot someone and want to be “sure” the gun cannot be traced back to you...

[I want the USA back]

No violent criminal is going to drop off a gun in one of these boxes.
It’s a typical liberal feel-good “solution” to a problem. Like the drop your unwanted newborn baby off and we won’t ask you anything boxes.

[Noumenon]

In consideration of public schools brainwashing kids with “gun horror” over things like drawings and pop tarts with bites taken out them, there may be some opportunities for amusement here.

[joshua c]

And no surveillance! Woo hoo!

[Darksheare]

Yup!
No police interference, and if the criminals in the area are feared enough, nobody will bother them as they “work”.

[DuncanWaring]

Especially given the promise of “No Surveillance”.

[fungoking]

Clemenza: “Leave the gun. Take the cannoli....wait, take the gun too. The city has a drop box.”

[Noumenon]

Fill ‘em with pop tarts with a bite taken out of them.

[jughandle]

“The theory is that there are people in poor, crime ridden neighborhoods who want to get rid of a gun...”

You’d think that’s the kind of person who would want to keep one for their own safety.

[unixfox]

Might as well give them a Gift Certificate too. You know, for their good “deed”

[GraceG]

Fill ‘em with pop tarts with a bite taken out of them.

This!

Big Lots! usually sells cheap as hell pop tarts that are weird flavors that didn’t do well in the real stores.

Buy several boxes for a buck a pop and give them pop-tart guns

It is a class 5 firearm after all!

[CrazyIvan]

“I can see criminals torching open one of these boxes to get at the free guns inside.”

No surveillance. Just mug the guy doing a turn in before the deposit.

[TigersEye]

The theory is that there are people in poor, crime ridden neighborhoods who want to get rid of a gun, but do not want interaction with police.

I'll bet there are! Could they install some body drop off boxes too?

[Bringbackthedraft]

the guns dropped off would be checked out by police,............................. finger prints, dna, high value collectible, ............... yea!

[Ann de IL]

It is your fault that my dog is hiding under a chair, I laughed so loud and hard I scared her. Your idea is genius tho, thanks for the laugh.

[GreyFriar]

I”m sure some enterprising thief will have the first box gone within 24 hours.

[Califreak]

Like the ATM in Barbershop?