Are legal adults citizens?
Well, they can vote, enter into contracts, enlist in the military, get married, and do just about everything they want lawfully, so I'd say so. But there's one thing they can't do – buy or carry handguns in many places. Iowa changed that, but some aren't thrilled by that prospect.
A bill just lowered the age for buying and carrying guns from 21 to 18:
Governor Kim Reynolds has signed a bill into law lowering the minimum age to buy or carry a handgun in Iowa from 21 to 18 years old.
Supporters say the measure aligns with federal standards and respects the rights of legal adults. Critics argue it could increase the risk of gun violence among young people.
The bill has sparked strong opinions on both sides. Rep. Lindsay James (D-Dubuque) called it a dangerous move.
"For me, it has to do with safety and supervision," James said.
She voted against the bill when it first appeared on the House floor, citing concerns about gun violence on school and college campuses.
"I have always been a supporter of common-sense gun safety, and so I did not vote for that particular piece of legislation primarily because of my concerns around young people and increased violence on high school and college campuses," James said.
James pointed to a recent campus shooting at Florida State University as one reason for her opposition.
"We just saw a shooting at Florida State, and so there's a lot of concern about 18-year-olds being able to conceal handguns and bring them into their schools," she said.
That, of course, is an idiotic argument.
If anything, what we saw at Florida State University is evidence of how little gun control currently does.
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Florida bars long gun sales to those under 21 already. Handgun age limits are set by federal law at the same age. It didn't stop this twerp from getting access to a gun and using it to kill two people and injure five others.
That campus is also a gun-free zone.
Even if it weren't, the prohibition against younger adults carrying a firearm – the law replaced in Iowa is similar the the current age restrictions on concealed carry in Florida – meant relatively few people on that campus would have been old enough to carry a handgun they could use to defend themselves or others.
The truth is that Iowa did the right thing, in part because handguns are useful for self-defense, often more so than the long guns they're relegated to buying as things stand right now. As they're able to live alone, they have just as much need to defend themselves as others.
However, we also need to be realistic.
As the age limit on gun sales is set federally, don't expect 18-year-olds to walk into a gun store and be able to buy a handgun. Even if the state allows it, the gun store's license comes from the federal government. They're not going to risk that in any way.
But it looks like it will allow them to buy one via face-to-face transfers as well as permitting them to carry a pistol on their person.
That's still a win.
