With the passage in Connecticut of a bill to require lost and stolen guns reported to police, more people are talking about ways that law-abiding gun owners can prevent their firearms from falling into the hands of criminals.

Coincidentally, the fight over an employee's "right" to take guns onto company property is once again being ignited in Florida. These two stories come together in an Orlando Sentinel article detailing one of the risks of leaving firearms in unattended vehicles.

Gun thefts from motor vehicles are not tracked statewide, but 251 were stolen last year in Orlando and unincorporated Orange County, according to police reports. In 2001, Orlando police, the Sheriff's Office and the 10 other law-enforcement agencies in Orange combined reported only 193 guns taken in car burglaries and car thefts.

The article also cites instances of vehicles being targeted by criminals who knew where to look for guns. It mentions that many guns stolen -- from homes and from cars -- go unreported, making it difficult for police to properly and quickly investigate crimes committed with those stolen guns.

In all the talk about the "rights" of gun owners, very little is said about the responsibilities of gun ownership. Safe storage, whether it's to prevent a tragic accident at home, or to make it harder for a criminal to obtain a firearm by theft, is crucial and uncontroversial.

There is nothing safe about leaving a gun in an unattended (and often unlocked) vehicle.