Some highlights:

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One of the executive orders President Obama will sign as part of his gun control plan is to "...lift the ban on federal research on gun violence...' Apparently the NRA actually successfully lobbied to bar the Federal government from even conducting research studies to figure out the causes of gun violence.

But, explains Andrew Rosenberg of the Union of Concerned Scientists, this new executive order isn’t likely to resolve the issue completely: “The White House is making the right move in pushing for more gun violence research. But now scientists will have one interpretation of the law from the executive branch and another from Congress.” Until Congress repeals its law, he says, gun research is likely to proceed only haltingly. And that will make it even more difficult to tell which measures are effective and which aren’t.

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At the moment, only licensed gun dealers have to run background checks on prospective buyers. There’s no such requirement for private sales between individuals. According to Jens Ludwig of the University of Chicago, surveys have found that nearly 80 percent of guns used in crimes are obtained on this secondary market.

“Anything that can add friction to that secondary market could prove very helpful,” Ludwig said. He does note, however, that a lot will depend on how well this rule is enforced.