As with all issues, competent adults should have the right to do whatever they want so long as they do not violate The Live and Let Live Legal Principle. As with all issues, we simply seek to fairly and honestly determine whether The Principle has been violated. If so, the conduct should be illegal. If not, the conduct should be legally permitted even if determined immoral.

As with all other issues, unless and until a competent adult who possesses a gun violates The Principle, that person should be left alone. As such, the peaceful, responsible, competent, adult gun owner has a right to be left alone.

However, people who are not competent to safely handle guns and people who have a history of violating The Legal Principle reasonably pose a substantial risk of violating The Principle. As such, because they violate the Legal Principle by simply possessing a gun, they can properly be legally prohibited from possessing guns.
As with self-defense, people are not required to wait until another’s fist hits their face before using appropriate force in defense. Likewise, it is always appropriate to stop or prohibit a substantial threat of violating The Legal Principle.

As such, laws could appropriately prohibit gun possession by minors, incompetent adults, and violent felons. Precisely defining the contours and edges of words such as “substantial” “minors” “competent” and “violent” may reasonably vary by community as they do now. We analyze all issues around compliance with The Principle.