So Called Assault (a-salt) Weapons and CBS Deception

I have to wonder about the honesty of most of the anti-gun people. They claim that civilian versions of military rifles are the same as the military versions in order to ban them. Why do they feel the need to lie in order to get what they want? Is it because if they were honest people would see how they really are?

What is so deadly about the so called a-salt rifles? The rifles are semi-auto, but then again so are hunting rifles. The military versions are full-auto, but those have been strictly controlled since 1934 or so. The rifles have detachable magazines, but then so do hunting rifles. You can get a large capacity magazines, but that it true for most rifles, plus it does not take long to change a magazine, so I am sure that can't be it. I am sure that it can't be because most of the so-called a-salt rifles have black stocks since that has no effect on shooting. They claim that some of the aspects which make it EVIL (tm) are things like a bayonet lug, a flash suppressor, etc. I guess I don't follow the news enough since I have failed to hear of one drive by bayoneting. Since most people don't even have a bayonet, I don't think that could be the reason. The major difference between a hunting rifle and a so-called a-salt rifle is the rounds that are fired in each. I am not sure of how that could make the rifle so deadly since the so-called a-salt rifles fire a low to medium power round, whereas a hunting rifle often fires a much more powerful round. Perhaps it has something to do with the less is more saying, but I guess I don't understand it. Another difference is that the cheapest ammo the so-called a-salt rifles fires has a full metal jacket, but that actually makes it less deadly since it will go through someone rather than dumping all the energy in target. Less deadly is more dangerous? Many of the shootings which have happened with the so-called a-salt rifles would have been far more deadly had a hunting rifle been used.

They also say that these guns are designed only to kill people. I thought that guns were designed to fire a bullet accurately and that it was the design of the bullet, not the firearm, that had more to do with it being deadly, but what do I know. I would have to say all of my firearms must be poorly designed since they have yet to kill anyone and they have been used quite a bit. One such fine example is a .22LR pistol which is bolt action and has a very heavy barrel. Perhaps I am using it wrong since it might be that it would kill better if instead of shooting it, I used it to physically hit something with it. Many of the so-called a-salt rifles are actually target guns, designed to more accurate than other rifles. Maybe some of these people think that shooting a target is killing it.

There are some that think that all guns are designed to kill people, yet it seems that they have either not investigated or just feel like lying about it. One can wonder if these people belong to a group designed to protect Criminals. The truth is that removing the firearms from law abiding citizens goes a long way in protecting criminals.

A friend who lives back east told me that on the CBS show 60 minutes they were talking about the 50 Caliber rifles, so I decided to tape it. I don't normally watch CBS anymore due to the issues with accuracy (a polite way of saying the truth in what they choose to do). In my opinion it was just another typical biased hit piece by CBS with little regard for the truth or reality. 60 minutes based the piece (of ????) on the ban of 50 Caliber rifles in California, which if one wanted to be accurate one would have to say the ban on rifles designed to shoot the 50 BMG round. Other 50 caliber firearms were not included in the ban. It might be worthwhile to note that a 50 BMG has never been used in a crime in CA, but that does not stop the political people from trying to violate our rights. It is not quite a ban since it is legal to own such firearms, as long as you pay a fee to the state, but sales of these firearms are restricted.

It seems that Arnold Schwarzenegger does not care about the rights of citizens, but instead is just another polititian willing to violate his oath to follow the Constitution and the laws of this state and country. Of course CBS claims that Arnold Schwarzenegger decided that this is a weapon too dangerous to be in the hands of private citizens, which is questionable, at best, since it is far more likely that Arnold did it for political reasons, rather than rational reasons.

It was stated that 50 caliber rifles can do all this EVIL(tm) stuff, such as smash stuff, start fires, etc., yet the "expert" Tom Diaz failed to say that the ammunition is illegal in California, so such statements are bogus. Facts are not important to this crowd. The wording that CBS used makes their bias obvious, such an example is the claim that the 50 caliber rifle is the "Rolls Royce of sniper rifles". So, just how does a target rifle turn into a sniper rifle? Just because the military might use it as a sniper rifle? The fact is that citizens use it as a target rifle, not for sniping, but this reality does not concern CBS.

It is a bit funny that CBS claims that the 50 caliber is the "most powerful weapon you can buy". Well, perhaps the high paid people at CBS can buy them, but most people can not afford one. I suspect that in part this is why it was banned, it did not affect most people. Isn't a cannon more powerful than a 50 caliber rifle? How about the anti-aircraft gun I heard a person over in Europe has in his front yard? Of course to be reasonable one has to ignore automobiles, trucks and planes as weapons since then the statement would be clearly false and no one would ever use such a vehicle as a weapon, right?

One thing I would like to find out more is the concept of "military grade weapons". I did not know that there was such a grading. Often civilian firearms are more accurate than the average military rifle, but one must ignore that reality.

Tom Diaz, a gun control advocate, takes the cake on ignoring reality. He claims that the 50 caliber is a menace and is designed to smash things up and set things on fire. Perhaps I am missing something, but as far as I know rifles are designed to fire a projectile, which does not tend to "smash" things up, nor set things on fire. While there is some ammunition which are designed for different things, those are illegal in California and have nothing to do with the design of the rifle. He also claims that the 50 caliber is sold as freely as a 22 caliber bolt action rifle. Hmmm, I guess he has never bothered to price a target rifle, much less a 50 caliber target rifle, since those are very expensive and even though I can not afford one, I don't think that such things should be banned, especially when the government does so it violates the 2^nd amendment. If you were to go to a firearms dealer I doubt that you would find a 50 caliber at most dealers. It is like saying a Ferrari is as easy to get as a Camry. Ever notice that there are more Toyota dealers than Ferrari dealers? Not to mention that even if you have the money, it is not always easy to get what you want since expensive items are typically made in more limited quanities. Sure, if you have around 20 times as much money and happen to have a dealer in your area who has one or is willing to order one, then it is as easy to get, but that is just for the rifle and does not include the ammunition. Considering that surplus ammunition costs around $1.25 to $1.50 or so, but that most of these rifles are target rifles and so match ammunition costs around $4 to $5 per round, this also excludes most people, especially criminals who are not going to spend that much money. While terrorists might have that type of money, I suspect that the law will not have an effect on them since there are tons of drugs smuggled into this country.

One of the ultimate attempts at deception is the claim that the record keeping requirements were reduced from 90 days to 24 hours under Ashcroft. This was only regarding the NCIS information, not the other record keeping requirements of firearms dealers, such as having to keep the 4473, the bound book requirements, etc. I am sure that CBS knew this, especially considering their track record on accuracy. Any original sale is easy to track to the first owner and in states like California where all sales must go through a firearms dealer, there is much more record keeping than they want you to believe. Tom Diaz claims that there are no records kept as to who is buying these rifles. Perhaps he should get an education, but I suspect that he actually knows the truth and the truth is that all firearms dealers are required to keep records, as well as distributors and manufacturers of firearms. At a minimum this is an attempt at deception, but it sure more like a lie to me, especially when he tries to claim that he is an expert.

It is funny that the anti-gun people try to claim that such a rifle could be used to shoot down an aircraft, yet as was briefly mention the military does not train people to do that, most likely because it is far too hard to do and would not tend to work unless you got really lucky. Even the quoted Rand report did not deal with shooting down a plane, but instead dealt with parked or taxiing planes. A Cessna would do more damage than a 50 caliber, but that does not help their claims, so that is ignored.

You have to love it when the term "weapon of choice" is brought out. They don't have to have any facts to base this on. As far as I know there are no reports of a 50 caliber rifle ever being used in a crime in California, but still it is a weapon of choice.

Waco was mentioned, a nice attempt to affect people. What was not mentioned was the lies regarding the government action, which ended up being admitted to later, such as using tear gas which would start a fire, as happened and which killed many people. It was not mentioned that the BATF attempted to raid the compound during a budget time, so it seems that they wanted more money. They did not mentioned that David Koresh could have been arrested when he went jogging and stopped to get coffee, but I guess that would not have made headlines.

Another deception is when they shot at .5" steel plate. Suddenly steel plate becomes armor, yet a short time later they mention that there is armor piercing ammunition available, which is different than standard ammunition.

Deception seems to be the goal of CBS. The recent fake documents used by CBS to attempt to affect the election goes to show that they have a track record, as well as other "journalists". Consider the Chevy pickup which explodes on impact, when you leave the gas cap off and have a burning road flare under the vehicle. The shooting of watermelons with a so-called assualt rifle, but in reality was shot with an officer's duty weapon.

It does not matter that the arguments are bogus since most people will listen and believe what is said and that is the goal, not informing people of the truth. Therefore the only affect that this law has is on the law abiding and will adversely affect the ability of citizens to defend this country. It was also mentioned that Barrett would not exist without non-government sales, which would adversely affect the government's ability to buy such firearms. Is this really what they want?