When President Obama announced his new Gun Control measures this week, a tremor rattled the technology landscape. One way to control guns - and not truly tweak any part of the 2nd Amendment - would be to create and enforce laws that demand “Smart Guns”.
Though Smart Guns have been around for over 20 years, you probably do not know about them. The Gun Lobby is strong in the U.S., and has worked diligently to stop the research and sales of such guns.
Now, in an age of technology immersion into the very mainstream of our lives, it looks like the golden days of Smart Guns are about to dawn.
What may truly surprise you even further is that New Jersey has been at the forefront of Smart Gun laws for about 15 years - well before they were properly developed.
Here is a primer about Smart Guns.
What is a Smart Gun?
A Smart Gun knows its owners handprint and grip. Like a James Bond action scene brought to life, a Smart Gun will work when held by the owner’s hand, but if anyone else tries to use it, nothing happens.
The idea of a Smart Gun is to prevent anyone other than the legal gun holder access to a live firearm. If a police officer has his gun stolen by someone, that person then cannot use it.
How does it work?
The technology behind Smart Guns is still emerging, but to date, the best models for these guns are those that work on a type of pressure transducer. When the gun owner holds their gun, and then applies pressure in their unique way on the trigger, it can be scanned and saved. As Bob Hirshon, from AAAS (Science Society) reported, “In a months-long trial, a crude prototype gun correctly identified its owner 90 percent of the time, with or without gloves. Their next step is to make the technology reliable enough for the general public.”
This type of Smart Gun system is called “dynamic biometrics”. Biometrics, in essence, refers to the science of using a singular person's unique physical features to identify him. Other types of this biometric identity also can be using the retina and/or iris of a person, or fingerprints (via hi-tech scanners) and even a person’s voice or hand print.
There are now many new ideas being worked on with Smart Guns, which should be tested and on the market within a year or so, depending upon government funding and/or technology and private funding.
What is the New Jersey law about Smart Guns?
The Smart Gun law in New Jersey calls for all handgun manufacturers to sell only Smart Guns within 3 years of their sales to the public. Until now, the sales haven’t happened but with the of this new technology even the massive Gun Lobby teams are not going to be able to stop the production and popularity of such guns.
And, once they are on the market and mass produced, the New Jersey laws are “triggered”.
The development of Smart Guns in New Jersey was lead by New Jersey Institute of Technology, and began during the late 1990’s.
When will Smart Guns be available?
With the rapid growth of all technology, it is expected Smart Guns will be on the market with 2 years. Now, with the new Research and Development demands made by the new Presidential Gun Control measures, this timeline may be greatly shortened.
Why didn't private gun investors make more headway?
Both Colt and Smith and Wesson did try to develop Smart Guns but in both companies, their efforts were allegedly stopped by the NRA.
CEO of Colt from 1996-1998 Ronald Stewart wrote an editorial that started a firestorm, calling for national registration for all gun owners and called for chip deployment in guns in American Firearms Magazine.Stewart was in development of a chip for guns that would work alongside a watch type attachment, and only work for the owner. The incredible backlash he and Colt received after his article not only had him removed as CEO of Colt but also stopped the development.
After this failure, Smith and Wesson agreed with the federal government to work on Smart Guns - but saw a gigantic negative impact upon their sales due to the NRA's fierce opposition of the work, and had to not only reduce their staff but also drop the entire development.
Bloomberg published this about how the NRA feels about the issue:
"NRA does not oppose new technological developments in firearms; however, we are opposed to government mandates that require the use of expensive, unreliable features, such as grips that would read your fingerprints before the gun will fire. And NRA recognizes that the ‘smart guns’ issue clearly has the potential to mesh with the anti-gunner’s agenda, opening the door to a ban on all guns that do not possess the government-required technology."
Can the NRA and gun enthusiasts come to terms with accepting Smart Guns?
If the new Smart Guns are law, but do not in any way ban guns, perhaps this may occur. As of now, the NRA has openly stated, as above, they do not agree with Smart Guns.
Why is the NRA so powerful?
The National Rifle Association (NRA) was founded in 1871 has a $250 million dollar budget and the fierce support of its members, who are noted as politically active and dedicated to protecting the 2nd Amendment, and the right of Americans to bear arms.
In 1977 the NRA formally created its Political Action Committee (PAC) in order to legally channel funds to legislators, and spend millions per year supporting federal and state candidates running for office. Annually, they spend $250 million per year. They also spend $3 million per year on gun lobbying. The number of NRA members is not exact, but published figures range from 3 - 5 million.
Updates to follow.
