I oppose mild gun laws, because they don’t work and cultivating disrespect for the law by passing ineffective laws is a bad idea; and I oppose harsh gun laws, because they do work, and disarming the citizenry is a worse idea. That said, I suspect the shootings in Maryland are exactly the sort of crime that Draconian gun laws would discourage. Susanna Cornett plausibly speculates — Susanna is always plausible — that the Maryland perp is employed, reasonably functional, without a criminal record, and an ardent gun hobbyist. (Also white, male and in his 30s or 40s, which is less relevant for our purposes.) If owning guns were essentially illegal, wouldn’t shooting sprees of this type by otherwise law-abiding people be among the first things to go?
The Brady Campaign, oddly, says it will “refuse to capitalize” on the shootings in Maryland, when to do so would be far less dishonest than usual.