I've got this ear worm ....

And his name is Michael Bloomberg:

A federal law repeatedly supported by Congress interfered with the FBI's ability to find out about Hasan's purchase of a handgun. Knowledge of that purchase might -- and should -- have triggered great scrutiny. And it could have saved lives.

Oh my God! If I hear this crap about the Tiahrt amendment preventing the feds from finding out about Nidal Malik Hasan one more time, I believe I'll shit myself.

Currently, a holder of a Federal Firearms License (FFL) is the only person who is required to run a background check on an individual wanting to purchase a firearm.

Private individuals wanting to sell weapons out of their collections don't have to (even at a gun show).

Criminals don't have to (even though that's illegal).

FFL's only. They have to run the purchaser against the NICS database, which is the National Instant Criminal Background Check System. Please note that this is a check for criminal status.

The NICS checks the purchaser for deficiencies to owning a firearm - the FFL will have the purchaser fill out form 4473 (pdf), answering questions 1-15 (including 12a-l, and 13) personally. The NICS checks this information. If it comes back clear, the NICS gives a transaction code and some other information for the FFL to record on the form, and the sale goes through. FFL and firearms purchaser are happy, the government doesn't keep any information they don't need, and God bless America.

Please note that the FFL is not required to run a check against the FBI Terrorist Watch List, or the State Department List of Terrorist Nations, or the Richard Nixon Hit List, or the Organizing for America Good Cookie List.

The National Instant Criminal Background Check System. And this is where the FFL learns if the purchaser is eligible to purchase the firearm, because his crimes will be listed there (hopefully .... garbage in, garbage out). Not his accusations, or his might-do-something-bad-one-day, or his he's-had-a-bad-hair-day-three-days-in-a-row, or she-voted-Green-Party-so-let's-watch-her.

A crime ..... a disqualifying crime. This is why you don't see very many criminals trying to buy from an FFL.

Now, Bloomberg can make somewhat of a point by pointing out that the FBI used to have access to firearms purchase information for 180 days after the sale. So what if Hasan had bought the weapons 190 days prior? Yes?!

The Tiahrt amendment denied access to gun purchase data because there's no real reason that they would need that. In order to be productive, then the FBI would have to be allerted by the FBI everytime an FFL ran a NICS check from the FBI on someone buying a firearm. Notice that the FBI is the first stop in this convoluted process.

Now, since there are only three answers that NICS can give a FFL dealer, the proper flow of imformation might be helpful. An FFL can be told that the sale is approved, denied, or delayed. If the answer is delayed, the FFL can wait 3 business days, and if he gets no more information, then the sale can go through.

That's where the FBI should be sharing the information that they have. If they've got someone on their watch list, the terrorist bubbas need to be having the NICS boys put some kind of placeholder in the NICS database, letting the firearms bubbas know to alert someone if the subject tries to purchase a firearm .... at least they'd have 3 days to either shit or get off the pot. If the relevant information is properly shared, then everyone at least has a chance to get things straightened out. But understand, if the FFL doesn't hear something in the 3 days, then the sale goes through.

The problem isn't that the NICS boys aren't sharing with the other kids, it's that the other kids aren't telling the NICS boys to be looking.

Of course, our FBI had Hasan under investigation, but didn't think he was violent .... so a fat lot of good this system would have done for the soldiers (and the one civie doctor) at Ft Hood.

Bloomberg, you're a fucking idiot.

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