I like this email:
The Maine-iacs are essentially reverting to the law of the Middle
Ages; the gun in this case is treated as a ‘deodand”, an object that
caused the death of a human and therefore must be punished. That the
NY Times engages in what amounts to a superstition of the Dark Ages,
as part of its “reality-based” philosophy, is not a surprise.
Deodand:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deodand (Yes, I know, but this is quick)
http://www.lectlaw.com/def/d134.htm
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/Deodand