OK.
So if it is a contributing factor, and could be the predominant reason for many of those spree killings, then what sense does it make to not evaluate every gun owner in case there are other shooters just like them?
We know mental illness is the #1 reason for gun suicides, which make up half of all gun deaths...so requiring examinations would not only prevent most -if not all- of those mass shooters, but it would also prevent most -if not all- of those suicides!
Not being able to get a gun because you're suicidal or homicidal is not a punishment for mental illness.
Rehabilitation is the goal, but that requires a massive buy-in by the federal government and society.
I personally don't think you can rehabilitate an addiction to guns.
Because owning a firearm is just one thing a person can do.
A person can buy a fast car.
A person can buy cutlery in a kitchen supply store.
A person can buy a house near a school.
Are we to have a mental evaluation for everybody doing anything?
I suppose some can think it's worth it for guns.
If your shrink gets $400 an hour, that would certainly make gun ownership a little more expensive for those of moderate means.
I see it differently.
I accept that one
genuinely unique feature of being American is the susceptibility to getting your ass capped by anyone including a little nanny pushing a pram.
I can live with that.
I'm more upset with no national healthcare and anti-union "right to work" laws.
Others clearly see it differently.
Guns really bug you and don't bother me that much,
even though I haven't played with mine in years.
I'm sure that there are things that piss the hell out of me that you don't even think about.
That's how it is, right?