Guns and Myths....

AS the smoke cleans from the murder scene at a Sikh temple in Michigan, the usual suspects are out demanding we disarm law abiding citizens of this country. For some reason the "fact" guns cause murder, etc doesn't apply to their armed body guards, but that's another point for another post. However, this is an interesting take on their propaganda.

MILLER: Dispelling gun myths - Washington Times

There is evil in the world, and the face of it was seen Monday when James Holmes made his first court appearance since he allegedly killed 12 innocent people at a showing of the Batman movie “The Dark Knight Rises” in Aurora, Colo. As he sat with demonic-looking dyed-orange hair and bizarre facial expressions, it was hard to conceive of any law that could thwart such a maniac intent on mass murder.

That hasn’t stopped those on the left from seizing this tragedy to call for more gun-control laws. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, California Democrat, author of the expired assault-weapons ban, said on Fox News Sunday that firearms like the AR-15 the Colorado shooter used are “weapons of war” that “are only going to be used to kill people in close combat. That’s the purpose of that weapon.”

Though it is one of the most popular rifles sold to civilians, the AR-15 is rarely used in crimes, presumably because it’s not readily concealed. The most recent FBI figures show just 358 of the 8,775 murders by firearm in 2010 involved rifles of any type. By comparison, 745 people were beaten to death with only hands that year, but no one has called for outlawing fists.

Mrs. Feinstein joins notorious gun-grabbers like New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg in seeking to vilify guns based on their appearance, not their performance. The AR-15 series was designed to look like the military’s M-16, but it is semi-automatic. That means it fires only one round when the trigger is pulled, and that round is no more powerful than any shot by an ordinary hunting rifle.

The left applies the scary term “assault weapons” to play on emotional responses, but it isn’t working anymore. More Americans oppose banning so-called “assault rifles” (53 percent) than favor it (43 percent), according to a Gallup poll from October 2011. The poll also showed the lowest level of support for new gun laws in history.

In other words, the public has realized those laws don’t work. Gun-free zones, like the Aurora movie theater, leave criminals armed and unchallenged. Republican Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin pointed out on Fox News Sunday that if “a responsible individual had been carrying a weapon, maybe — maybe — they could have prevented the death and injuries.”...

So it looks like the American people understand an AR-15 is simply a semi-automatic rifle similar in appearance to the M-16, but it (like my 22 Marlin and my Ruger Mini-14) shoot only one bullet at at a time.

Now this fact seems to escape such crime and gun experts as Jason Alexander. He posted soon after the shooting in Aurora who we need gun control and put it in a longer version of Twitter, TwitLonger. With Mr Alexander, seems appropriate . I posted a response and I'll leave you with my initial comments:

Dear Jason

I find this simple sentence useful with the "creative community". Stick to fiction. 



I will quote your Tweet and show your multiple errors.

“...ownership of assault style weapons like the AR-15...”



“... What purpose does an AR-15 serve to a sportsman that a more standard hunting rifle does not serve? Let's see - does it fire more rounds without reload? Yes. Does it fire farther and more accurately? Yes. Does it accommodate a more lethal payload?...”





Jason, I own both an AR-15 and a Ruger Mini-14. I used both as duty rifles as a cop and your own comments who you don’t know the differences, of which there are few. The AR-15 has no upper grip or forward assist, but they both fire one .223 round per trigger pull. Mr Holmes did not have a M-16 or other automatic weapon. You can acquire 50 round magazines for both rifles. 

And what does accuracy due with what is an “assault weapon”? An AK-47 assault weapon (Soviet/Communist block) is a true assault weapon. It fires fully automatically (i.e. it continually shoots and cycles a round until you empty the magazine or the weapon jams) and is notoriously inaccurate at distances more than 50 yards. The purpose is to put out a lot of rounds quickly. That is not the AR-15 or Mini -14, which have adjustable sights and are accurate to more than 300 yards. But the round in a AR-15 is the same used by the Mini-14, the Ruger more commonly used for hunting... 


Don't know how many people saw it or read it, but the facts are this man has no clue what he's talking about. So will will make a great Mayor or Senator.

Thanks Darren at RotLC for the link.