'Bump stock' ban makes sense, even if it won't make much of a difference

The Department of Justice on Tuesday made official new regulations to make bump stocks illegal. The move makes sense, even though it isn’t likely to make a major difference in combating mass shootings.

Bump stocks are an attachment that can make semi-automatic weapons capable of rapid fire by taking advantage of the recoil after firing a gun, causing it to move quickly back and forth as the shooter’s finger rests on the trigger. They are not particularly widespread and over the years were mainly a niche item that some gun hobbyists used for recreational purposes. They received national attention after the Las Vegas shooting, when Stephen Paddock used the attachments to help him unleash an avalanche of bullets on a crowd, killing 58 people.