From the Department of Running With Scissors.
With the aide of Democratic Senator Mark Pryor (D-AR), several Republican senators have introduced a bill to redefine what it means to be insane so you can purchase a gun.
The Act clarifies that mentally ill people are prevented from obtaining firearms but defines that term narrowly, so as to allow patients who had been treated for mental illness to pass a federal background check and purchase guns.
For instance, federal law prohibits people who are ordered by a court into involuntary treatment, found to pose a danger to themselves or others, or lack the mental capacity to enter into legal contracts from buying weapons — even though individuals can petition to have their rights restored in 22 states. The bipartisan NICS Reporting Improvement Act would allow these people to purchase weapons immediately after being released, unless it can be proven that they pose an “imminent” danger.
Just to be clear — even if you were recently institutionalized by order of a court, which from my experience is a drastic measure reluctantly taken only in extreme cases and for good reasons, Senators Mark Pryor, Lindsey Graham, Mark Begich, Dean Heller, and Jeff Flake want to ensure that you have a right to buy a gun immediately!
Why don’t we just put guns in cereal boxes and Happy Meals? That seems like a good idea, too.