Oblivion, you've bought into the NRA knee-jerk to any gun legislation hook, line, and sinker. I haven't. It's that simple. Being so loggerheaded on an issue makes them look as crazy to me as being against cars makes the Sierra Club look to me or as being against animal ownership and leather shoes makes PETA look to me. I tend toward the middle.
I agree with you that I'd prefer less restrictive gun laws in some respects. Not in all respects. Of course, living in the Democratic Republic of Illinois inside the Peoples' Union of Chicago, I suffer the harshest gun laws in the nation. And it pisses me off.
Of course, neither Bush nor Kerry can nor will change my situation.
All that said, I don't vote on one single issue. I look to all issues, see which candidate agrees with me more in the totality of the situation, and vote for that candidate.
I mean, I'm absolutely against the illegalization of marijuana as well, but again, neither candidate will change that, so it's not on my list of "hot button" items to vote for. Even if one candidate had vowed to change it, I think I'd still consider a little doobage to be less of an issue that the economy, balancing the budget, the environment, and some other issues that I simply care more about.