As if we needed more examples of our entrenched gun culture, here’s the latest:?Bullets, sold through vending machines — in grocery stores.

The distributor,?American Rounds, recently began installing such machines in a few stores in Alabama, Texas and Oklahoma. Customer ID is scanned using facial-recognition software. Yet, there are no checks into criminal, mental-health or domestic-violence backgrounds.

The machines, defenders say, provide more oversight than online purchases which often does not require proof of age. But having more ways for weapon buyers to avoid scrutiny and accountability makes little sense — if there is any real intention to reduce gun violence. Several mass shootings have even happened inside grocery stores.

This development is relevant because the Kentucky legislature has a habit of copycatting pro-gun laws and policies from other states. That has contributed to the state having some of the weakest gun-safety laws and the 16^th?highest gun-death rate. Between 2014-23, there were at least 6,339 shootings, with 2,767 people killed and 5,078 injured, according to the?Gun Violence Archives.

Selling bullets from vending machines sounds more like at April Fool’s joke than any rational policy, said Terry Brooks, executive director of?Kentucky Youth Advocates, an independent nonprofit concerned with families and children.

“Kentucky has experienced a real spike in child and teen deaths by guns,” he said. “The biggest threats to our grandchildren are bullets, not cancer or car accidents.”

Firearm-related incidents — homicides, suicides and accidents — are now the leading cause of death among Kentucky youth, according to federal data. In 2022, there were 388 firearm-related deaths among those age 19 and under, according to the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s Kids Count report.

That’s a rate of 37 per 100,000 young people dead — higher than the national average and a big jump from 2019, when the rate was 29 per 100.000.

If Kentucky lawmakers are looking for gun laws to duplicate, Brooks said, they should support secure-storage regulations passed by?26 states — including GOP-dominated North Carolina, Virginia, Florida and Texas.

“We’re not trying to take away your hunting rifles,” he said. “But if you have guns in your home, they should be unloaded, locked up and kept separate from bullets. That’s just commonsense.”

Kentucky allows?people to carry concealed guns without getting a permit or completing a background check and safety training. It does not require the removal of guns from those charged with domestic violence. This year, the legislature followed other Republican states with a law that makes it illegal for law enforcers and state employees to help enforce federal gun laws.?The only substantive state restriction is on a firearm dealer knowingly selling to a felon.

Gun violence is a national public-health crisis, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy recently declared. More than 48,000 Americans died from gun injuries in 2022. Weekends this summer have been marked by mass shootings that?left dozens of people dead or wounded.

Most adults have either personally or had a family member impacted by a gun-related incident, such as witnessing a shooting, being threatened by gun, or being injured or killed by a gun, according to a?Kaiser Family Foundation poll.

To drive down gun deaths, Murthy calls for a secure-storage law, a ban on?automatic rifles, universal background checks of gun buyers and restrictions on guns in public. But when it comes to gun safety efforts, it has been one step forward and two steps back.

Congress last year passed a?bipartisan law?that toughens background checks for the youngest buyers, keeps firearms from more domestic-violence offenders and helps states pass laws to take deadly weapons away from people who show signs they could turn violent. The U.S. Supreme Court in June?upheld the banning?of weapons in domestic-violence cases.

However, the court also issued a?2022 ruling?against state restrictions on carrying weapons in public and overruled a bipartisan federal ban on the sale of equipment that turns rifles into more deadly machine guns.

Earlier this year, legislative leaders?refused to hold a hearing?on?a bipartisan bill that would allow courts to temporarily remove guns from those experiencing mental-health crises. Whether a secure-storage law would fare any better remains to be seen.

“I’m optimistic that can happen,” said Brooks. “The General Assembly simply has to decide whether it will advocate for the gun lobby or for kids.”

Meanwhile, the business of making bullets easily available, just yards away the bread aisle, is likely to spread.

Would Kentucky lawmakers draw a line against such an unnecessary risk of more deaths and injuries?