The New York Times pointed out this week that campaign polling during the Virginia gubernatorial race found that eight in 10 Virginians favor closing the "gun-show" loophole that allows the sale of weapons at shows by unlicensed dealers without background checks for the buyers.

New Yorkers like Mayor Michael Bloomberg are intensely interested in shutting down such gun deals, because it has been documented how often these weapons are used in crimes in his city and elsewhere.

Predictably, the National Rifle Association is backing the Republican candidate, Bob McDonnell, who would preserve the loophole, over Democrat Creigh Deeds, who favors ending the practice.

It should be said that Mr. Deeds has had NRA support in the past and is no advocate of gun control, but he cites the 2007 massacre at Virginia Tech, in which 32 people were killed in a campus rampage by a mentally unstable student, in taking his eminently sound position. The student purchased his guns in Virginia but might have been stopped through a background check.

The NRA is once again acting the extremist organization on gun ownership, with little interest in compromising even when it is clear criminals are taking advantage of lax laws in some states to cause violence in other states with more reasonable gun laws. In fact, Mayor Bloomberg is mocked for his efforts supporting saner gun laws across the U.S. in an NRA television ad boosting Mr. McDonnell that uses an actor with an

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over-the-top New York accent warning of a "loss of freedoms" if Mr. Deeds wins.

Although changes in the Virginia gun statutes have not been a major campaign issue, it is encouraging that so many people in that state -- and we don't doubt most other states as well -- can see the folly of selling guns anywhere without background checks. That is asking for tragic results, which we, as Americans, must witness on a regular basis.