Do You Agree With ‘Smart’ Guns

Have you heard the talk of the "smart' gun technology? Germany has been manufacturing the Armatix iP1 pistol for some years now. The Armatix pistol links to a wrist watch type device that must be worn by the owner in order to fire. This technology could be 'Mandatory' in the US in the coming years. How do you feel about that?

I first heard of the 'Smart' Gun on Field and Stream magazine's website in a blog post by David E. Petzal:

In the past few weeks there has been a great hoo-hah about so-called “smart” pistols, handguns that cannot be fired unless they receive a signal from a magic ring, or watchband, or pendant, or subcutaneous implant. The purpose of these firearms, their proponents claim, is to prevent their being operated by anyone but the owner, thereby preventing all manner of mayhem. Gun-rights advocates have objected vehemently to this technology, claiming that it will be used as a tool to limit firearms ownership; i.e., after a certain date, if your gun ain’t smart, you have to turn it in.

I have a different problem with “smart” guns. They depend on microprocessors and electronic power sources, and a great deal of the time electronic devices don’t work. All of us, with very little effort, can come up with examples of how we encounter this.
In my own case, one of our cars persists in flashing a low-tire warning despite the fact that none of the tires are soft.

From CBSNEWS:

It's something straight out of a James Bond movie: a gun that only its owner can fire.

That kind of technology is now available in the real world. It's called a "smart gun." Made in Germany, it requires users to wear a radio-controlled watch to fire it, reports CBS News' Jan Crawford.

Maryland gun store owner Andy Raymond announced plans last week to sell it, but within 30 minutes of news getting out, the protests started coming in.

"Things went crazy," Raymond said. "People just started calling. All three of our lines were just boom, boom, boom. A hundred emails. I mean, just like that."

One caller warned Raymond's business would be burned to the ground. Another threatened that Raymond would get what was coming to him.

It's a weapon that fires up people on both sides of the gun control debate.

 

Forbes Contributer Joseph Steinberg writes:

It should be noted, however, that the debate over smart guns could have major impact nationwide. The State of New Jersey has already legislated that once smartgun technology is available, conventional firearms may not be sold to civilians in the State. One U.S. Senator has considering introducing a bill in Washington that would apply an even stricter law throughout the nation – requiring not only that all weapons imported, manufactured, or sold in the United States be “smart,” but that all conventional arms in civilian hands be retrofitted with “smart” technology. While the likelihood that such a bill would become law anytime soon is next to zero, clearly smartguns will be on lawmakers minds.

There are countless articles on the subject with thousands of comments, some for and some against. What do you think?