Can't buy a gun because of Facebook?

[Skanky Vamp]

Hey @white avenger curious to hear your take on this:

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) - A bill has been introduced that would require Illinois State Police to search someone's social media accounts before allowing them to legally own and purchase guns. HB0888 is sponsored by Rep. Daniel Didech and Rep. Jonathan Carroll. The bill amends the Firearm Owners Identification Card Act.

Police would "conduct a search of the purchasers' social media accounts available to the public to determine if there is any information that would disqualify the person from obtaining or require revocation of a currently valid Firearm Owner's Identification Card." Anyone who wants to apply for a FOID card would have to give state police a list of every social media account they have.

The bill was referred to the Rules Committee on Jan. 28.

I think they would also have to do a background check to verify they actually TOLD them all of the social media accounts. I mean, like me, I never use my name. Just like on here I have multiple log-ins with different names. My FB doesn't reference my instagram, which has no ties to my twitter. Granted, I have had to use multiple email addresses but it's for the very reason above. Before people said I was paranoid now I just say 'ah-ha'

By the way, @Buffy Summers don't hit me with the ban hammer, I was just joking about the multiple log-ins for BB.

 

[brinkster130]

This seems bizarre. I mean, I get that people are stupid and post stuff incriminating on social media all the time, but would this actually help with gun control or would it just force people to be better about locking down their accounts. I suppose there have been a number of people who have posted things on social media about their intentions to use guns to kill, but you'd think it would be easy for people to not post that prior to getting the firearm.

It'll be interesting to see how they end up defining what would be disqualifying information.

Apparently this is being proposed to try and close the loop holes that currently allow convicted stalkers to purchase firearms. I can't hate on them trying to do something to stop a clear problem.

 

[HowiMetdaSlayer]

To be fair some people did make rants/threats on social media before killing people.

 

[ILLYRIAN]

Personal rant - not on Facebook/ social media.

Did I read that right, are you supporting killers on the basis they wrote a rant on social media?
Did they address the rant to a police station or a police person asking the person to stop him her or them? Or was the social media rant to inform some shop worker on the other side of the country of what they were going to do?

I am getting very confused by the whole gun control fallacy in America. Does Mexico have a large number of guns in the populace similarly does Canada have a large number of guns in the populace. And if so why don't we here of the shootings in those countries?

Where is the justice system? Why has it failed? Oh that is right it hasn't as now there is a limit on a person buying a gun because of a Facebook account. How bad are the living conditions of refugees who want to live in such a poor community?

 

[white avenger]

I think they would also have to do a background check to verify they actually TOLD them all of the social media accounts.

Another problem with this that I can see, and have, in fact, personally experienced, is that there is no way that anyone could actually be sure of someone's true identity based simply on a log-on title. At one time, there was a neo-nazi website, since removed, thank God, hosted by someone who identified himself as the "White Avenger," I had no connection whatsoever with that site, but it did cause me some distress and embarassment when I found out about it. Another time, someone got my email address on aol.com, and somehow used it to set up a porn business. I didn't know anything about it until I received a very irate email from a parent, blaming me for supplying their son with porn. Either one of those things could, under the proposed law, deny me of my right to legally own a firearm.

It's things like this that make me glad that I live here in Georgia, where firearms ownership is both a guaranteed right and a recognized responsibility.