The horrific shooting that took place Tuesday in Uvalde, Texas, took the lives of 19 schoolchildren and two adults. It has led to another debate about gun control and potential gun reform.
One tweet from the user @irishrygirl has referenced the suspected 18-year-old gunman's ease at acquiring weaponry and ammunition. It has been liked over 91,000 times and retweeted over 17,500 times.
"I can buy 10,000 rounds of ammo and there is no background check, but if I buy 1 box of Sudafed my info goes into a national database," the tweet says.
I can buy 10,000 rounds of ammo and there is no background check, but if I buy 1 box of Sudafed my info goes into a national database.
— Irishrygirl (@irishrygirl) May 24, 2022
According to the Giffords Law Center, Texas does not impose a minimum age for the purchase or possession of ammunition—nor does it require an ammo seller to create a record of the buyer. A license or photo I.D. is also not required to buy or sell ammo.
The suspected gunman, Salvador Ramos, reportedly purchased two rifles in Texas on his recent 18th birthday. Texas, a state that allows residents to openly carry rifles in public without a permit, has expanded gun rights rather than restricted them under the guise of Governor Greg Abbott—even after previous mass shootings in 2018 and 2020.
Ammo is Easier to Get Than...
Aside from having to be 21 years of age to legally purchase or consume alcohol, individuals have to show I.D. to purchase the aforementioned Sudafed and other types of prescription and over-the-counter medicines that contain the ingredient pseudoephedrine, commonly used to make methamphetamine, according to the FDA.
This is due to the Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act of 2005, which was incorporated into the Patriot Act signed by former President George W. Bush on March 9, 2006. Aside from presenting photo identification, the law also limits the monthly amount of pseudoephedrine-containing products an individual could purchase.
It also requires retailers, such as drug stores, to keep personal information about customers for at least two years after the medicines' purchase.
Prescription Medicines
"I can buy 10,000 rounds of ammo, but EVERY FLIPPING MONTH I have to get my ADHD prescription renewed by appt with a doctor because it's a federally controlled substance," one Twitter user replied to the thread. "OH! And if I lose the bottle I'm SOL for 30 days."
Lawn Darts
Over 30 years ago the Consumer Product Safety Commission banned the sale of all lawn darts in the U.S. following the deaths of three children.
Spray Paint
Many states require individuals to be at least 18 years old to purchase spray paint.
Marijuana, in Some States
States like Washington, which has legalized recreational and medical marijuana, require users to be at least age 21 to purchase and use the substances. State law dictates that its medical marijuana authorization database "is in no way connected to any other system" and does not affect an individual's right to purchase or carry a gun.
"However, under federal law, marijuana possession is illegal for both recreational and medical use," the law says, per the Washington State Department of Health. "The federal law affects gun ownership. It is unlawful for a firearms dealer to sell or give a gun to a person who uses or is addicted to a controlled substance that is illegal under federal law."
That is also the reality in the state of Ohio, according to Cincinnati.com.
A February 2022 article published in the Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy described how medical marijuana permits and concealed weapons permits jive with one another due to the federal classification of marijuana as a Schedule I drug.
An analysis of the 39 "shall issue" states found different statutory requirements to deny a concealed weapons permit application, the article noted. Arizona, for example, "does not tie the issuance of a permit to the ability to purchase a firearm, nor does it list the usage of a controlled substance as a disqualifier." Louisiana, on the other hand, "requires that CWP holders both not be an unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana and not be ineligible to possess or receive a firearm."
Recreational marijuana sales in states like Michigan have led to customer concerns regarding personal information being stored in databases, even when not legally required, MLive reported.
How Long Does It Take To Buy a Gun?
In terms of the time it takes to purchase a gun compared to, say, applying for insurance or renewing your driver's license at the DMV, purchasing a gun requires very little time in some states.
A Philadelphia-based reporter, for example, documented her purchase of an AR-15 assault rifle in 2016, saying she was in and out of a gun store in seven minutes, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Nick Mordowanec is a Newsweek reporter based in Michigan. His focus is reporting on Ukraine and Russia, along with social ... Read more
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