Many of my friends and people who live up here in the country are quite angry about NYS pushing forward to change the gun laws in the wake of Newtown. I have pretty mixed feelings about this. I have already shared my feelings about guns. I stand by them. I do not think a person’s rights should be taken away. They have the right to own an assault rifle if they choose. That is very much in jeopardy here in New York. To drop the magazine size from 10 to 7 is just idiotic. What is the difference? really. NY already has a large capacity magazine ban. I think this push for new laws is just political jockeying. To ban assault rifles completely, just don’t agree. I know most people disagree with me, but a lot agree. I just had to rant about it a little. The only provision I agree with this the part where a therapist that gets a credible threat from a patient, that would involve illegal use of a gun would have to report to a mental health director. The information would be passed on to the state and the gun would be seized. It is dicey because it leaves a lot in the hands of the therapist. What constitutes a credible threat? Not every patient is going to flat-out say ” I’m going to kill my mother and father with the family gun”. I don’t think it would be so cut and dry. How than would the therapist decide when and if the pull the trigger on the stripping of the individual’s rights. That would be tough. Never mind the intrusion of privacy. I don’t know that this provision is going to work. I do however feel that guns should not be in the hands of individuals struggling with mental health issues. There is another difficult rub in this scenario. If the numbers are true, the vast majority of Americans will face a mental health problem in their lifetimes. Maybe something brief, or possible more severe. How do you keep the guns out of the hands of someone who has not displayed any mental health symptoms at the time of gun purchase. It just doesn’t work. I doubt this law will change anything. I just don’t see it working the way the politicians are touting.