MOULTRIE — Writers and Rant-and-Rave callers have staked out extreme positions on gun control in their contributions to The Observer’s opinion pages over the last two weeks, but respondents to an online poll at www.moultrieobserver.com have come down solidly in the middle of the road.

Visitors to The Observer’s website could respond to the multiple-choice poll for a week, from Sept. 20 through Saturday evening. It asked, “What gun control legislation do we need?” Some 111 people responded, and they said:

• None. Everyone should be able to own a firearm. 10.81 percent.

• Some people — like felons or the mentally ill — should be forbidden from owning a gun. 45.95 percent, the largest single response.

• There should be a waiting period while the gun buyer’s background is checked. 10.81 percent.

• There should be some places where guns are forbidden, like schools, churches or public gatherings. 5.41 percent.

• A person should have to prove a reasonable need before being able to purchase a gun. 0.90 percent.

• The government should keep track of who owns what guns so they can be traced back if they’re used in a crime. 0.90 percent.

• Gun buyers should have to attend a safety class before they can buy a firearm, just like hunters must do to get their hunting licenses. 20.72 percent.

• Private gun ownership should be illegal. 4.50 percent.

Some of those provisions are already part of state and federal law.

To purchase a gun in Georgia, a person must undergo a quick, free background check, according to Scotty Cooper of Moultrie Pawn, one of several Colquitt County stores that sell guns.

Cooper said he calls the FBI, which runs the buyer’s information through its computer. If the check comes back clear, the purchase can go right through.

“Most of the time we can have them able to purchase a gun within 10 minutes,” he said.

Sometimes the FBI says no, and the store can’t sell a weapon to that customer. Cooper said the FBI doesn’t tell him why a particular customer is rejected, although possible reasons include a criminal record or a notation of mental incompetence.