> Someone should come up with a way of cryptographically storing those records so that you can go from model+serial -> purchaser without the ability to do the reverse. That way the feds get what they say they want, but in a way that isn't isomorphic to "gun registry".

Serial number ranges are fairly well-known for gun manufacturers. What stops the feds from brute-force querying the whole database?

Federal law enforcement agencies have a long, sordid history of bending if not outright breaking the law, so “we specifically made a law so they couldn’t do that” isn’t a sufficient answer.

> This article also does an incredibly poor job of describing why people want to avoid a gun registry.

It’s pretty obviously written with a bias if not an outright agenda in favor of more gun control. Fairly representing opposing viewpoints is increasingly unfashionable in journalism these days, in favor of an attitude of “we know best and it’s our job to tell you what to think”.