I’m having lots of trouble getting my head around the latest mass murder committed in Texas by a teenager with an assault weapon. I’m still stuck in the mass murder committed by a teenager at a Buffalo Tops Market with an assault weapon. Prior to the Buffalo murders I thought that the sale of assault weapons in New York State was outlawed by the SAFE Act, but the Buffalo killer bought the weapon he used in the state.

Ever since I became aware of where the Buffalo assault weapon was purchased I’ve been trying to find information about the loophole that exists in the SAFE Act. However, so far I don’t know exactly what that loophole is or how to fix it. My online search has gone in circles with some sites mentioning that the assault weapon used in the Buffalo mass murder was considered a “collectible firearm” so it was exempt from the SAFE Act. Maybe we need a better definition of “collectible firearm” that focuses on Revolutionary War muzzle loaders instead of modern military weapons, an older assault rifle is still an assault rifle. I know that fixing the SAFE Act won’t keep out of state purchased assault weapons from coming into the state, but some state somewhere in the country needs to at least have laws that could be truly effective on the books.

I’m constantly reminded of the analysis I read after the assault weapon murders at the Sandy Hook School. It said that if the killer had been armed with a lever action or bolt action rifle instead of an assault weapon he would have only had the time to kill half as many people as he did before the police arrived.