• Rivalarrival@lemmy.today
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    10 months ago

    You don’t need a driver’s license or registration to own a car. You don’t need a driver’s license or registration to operate a car on private property. You don’t need a driver’s license or registration to transport your car in public spaces.

    Hell, if you get a small dirt bike, you can slap shoulder straps on it and carry it down the sidewalk with no license or registration. You would only violate the registration requirements if you set it down in a public space. Granted, that’s not a typical scenario, but it is a valid one.

    If there were a life threatening emergency and you needed immediate transportation to the hospital, you would be justified in using any vehicle at your disposal, including an unregistered one, to make that trip.

    Can I own and operate a gun on my own property without a license or registration?

    Can I operate my gun on my friend’s property without license and registration?

    Can I transport (not use) my gun through public spaces without a license or registration?

    If I run into a life threatening emergency that can only be remedied by using my gun in a public space without a license or registration, am I justified in doing so?

    If we are to regulate guns the same way as cars, you would be able to carry your gun while walking down the street, and only violate licensing and registration requirements when you draw it in a public place.

    Suffice it to say that cars are regulated much more leniently than guns.

    • Saganaki@lemmy.one
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      10 months ago

      In many states, you actually need (liability) insurance to purchase a car. And you can’t get car insurance without a license. Some states have a grace period, but it is required. Even if you only intend to drive it on your own private property. Is it enforceable? Probably not, but it is the law.

      Not only that, legally you still need to register your car with the state. I’ll concede the “you can buy cars immediately but not guns” argument, but that really only applies to some states. In Wisconsin, you don’t need to register nor is there any waiting period.

      As for the “justified” argument, of course you are justified in those cases—but you can still be charged. Hell, my grandmother had to go to court for driving me (without a license) to the hospital in the 90s.

      • Rivalarrival@lemmy.today
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        10 months ago

        In many states, you actually need (liability) insurance to purchase a car. And you can’t get car insurance without a license.

        No you don’t. That’s a requirement for vehicles that will be operated on the road.

        There is no requirement anywhere in the nation for liability insurance on a vehicle that will be operated solely on private property.

        There is no requirement for liability insurance on a tractor, a ride on lawnmower, a dune buggy, a dirt bike, a demolition derby car, or similar unregistered “vehicles”.

        That is simply false.

        As for your grandmother: a “charge” is merely a question for the courts to answer. “Did this woman break the law for driving her daughter to the hospital?”

        If ever forced to use a firearm against another person, any reasonable person would expect a similar question to be asked, and the courts to supply the answer. “Charges” are nothing a reasonable, responsible person need fear.