Written by Nancy Lee, as part of her Social Marketing Sightings theme.
Sighted on: The Guardian
Social Issue: Mass Shootings
Social Marketing Strategy: Nonmonetary Disincentives
And yet another example of strategies to identify the priority audience for potential gun shootings.
New York would require people applying for a handgun license to turn over a list of social media accounts so officials could verify their “character and conduct” under a bill being considered by the state legislature. The provision was part of a proposed redesign of firearms licensing laws hammered out by lawmakers after the US supreme court struck down rules severely limiting who could get a permit to carry a handgun outside their home.A bill advanced by Democrats would eliminate the most strict barriers to getting a permit but also impose new requirements for applicants. Applicants would have to show they have “the essential character, temperament, and judgment necessary to be entrusted with a weapon and to use it only in a manner that does not endanger oneself and others”, according to the bill. The bill would also fix a recently passed law that barred sales of some types of bullet-resistant vests to the general public but inadvertently left out many types of body armor, including the type worn by a gunman who killed 10 Black people in a racist attack on a Buffalo supermarket. Democrats with supermajorities in both legislative chambers are expected to pass the bill later on Friday. The bill would then get sent to Hochul’s desk for her expected signature, then take effect on 1 September.