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Armed and Safe is a gun rights advocacy blog, with the mission of debunking the "logic" of the enemies of the Constitutionally guaranteed, fundamental human right of the individual to keep and bear arms.

I can be reached at 45superman@gmail.com.You can follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/45superman.

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

.50 caliber rifles still not used by terrorists in the U.S.--New Jersey must act!

Apparently, Bryan Miller has some competition for "Most Hysterically Anti-Gun Rights Writer at NJ.com." I refer here to George Amick, who apparently views the banning of large rifles as a choice of "sanity vs. paranoia." Actually, I suppose I agree with that--I just happen to have different ideas about which is which.

Many years have passed since the New Jersey Legislature last dared to cross the gun lobby by passing a piece of legislation that the lobby didn't like
That statement surprises me, but not being a close follower of New Jersey politics, I suppose it might be true (although New Jersey's "smart gun" law--one that I certainly hope would "cross 'the gun lobby,'" passed in 2002--is six years "many years"?). If so, I submit that the reason is that NJ's gun laws are already so draconian that there simply isn't much room for more restrictions.
It soon may have a chance to redeem itself.
Ah--the redemptive power of tyranny.
A2116, sponsored by Assemblyman Reed Gusciora, D-Princeton Borough, would ban private sale and possession of .50-caliber sniper rifles and ammunition. Here's what you should know about .50-caliber rifles:

They are military firearms . . .
Let's assume for the moment that Scott Bach is wrong, and that A2116 will not ban all kinds of hunting guns and historic black powder arms, or that the amendment passed yesterday adequately addresses that problem--let's assume, in other words, that only modern .50 caliber rifles (and handguns like the .500 S&W) would be affected. That would mean that this is a "military firearm" (I am not conceding, by the way, that there's anything wrong with The People keeping and bearing "military firearm(s)"--that is, after all, the point of the Second Amendment--just pointing out the ridiculousness of Amick's assertions):

Speaking of "military firearms," the Colt Single Action Army, the M1903 Springfield, and a great many other guns owned by large numbers of civilians for a hundred years or more have served the military with distinction--should we ban all those, too (on second thought, don't answer that, George and Bryan)?
. . . designed to fire armor-piercing incendiary or explosive rounds . . .
And also designed to fire the lead and copper rounds generally available to civilians, as opposed to being restricted to governments.
Terrorists armed with these guns and posted more than a mile away could find choice targets in what Ceasefire NJ, an organization that works for sensible gun laws, calls "New Jersey's soft civilian infrastructure": airports and planes, rail cars carrying hazardous materials, and refineries and chemical plants where highly flammable, explosive and toxic items are stored.
Funny that with Ronnie Barrett having begun marketing rifles chambered for the .50 BMG cartridge over 20 years ago, not one such attack has occurred in the U.S. It's almost as if terrorists don't really see these rifles as being all that useful for attacking the U.S.
Amazingly, though, .50-caliber sniper rifles are less strictly regulated than handguns.
Easily fixed--just stop regulating handguns (don't thank me--I'm happy to help).
Bryan Miller, head of Ceasefire NJ, and his organization will use the month's delay to tour the state, displaying .50-caliber rifles and demonstrating their destructive power to the public.
Oohh--the Bryan Miller .50 Caliber Hysteria '08 Tour! As for "demonstrating their destructive power," is Bryan going to fire one (it seemingly being rather difficult to demonstrate a gun's "destructive power" without doing so)? Now that would be something to see.

Modern .50 caliber rifles are used so rarely in crimes that it's national news when they are, and have never, to my knowledge, been used to kill anyone in the U.S. Make it impossible to use them legally, though, and the only thing left to do with them is to use them illegally. Is that what you want, New Jersey?

Days of Our Trailers has more on the latest goings-on with A2116.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well, Mr. Miler, you won the debate. Your and Biden's ad hominem attacks carried the day. You got your precious Biden in the White House. Pray that you haven't thus started the next American Revolution, for that war, you will lose.

May the fleas of a thousand camels infest the armpits of both of you, and may they carry the plague!

Anonymous said...

No such luck on the plague hope, Crotalus. That is where the fleas would go to stock up on the plague germs.

Anonymous said...

Retards saying that terrorists are going to be able to sit at an OP a mile off of a target and make shots like it was nothing really show how stupid they are.

Obviously for those who shoot, you don't just set up at that distance and pull a trigger, it takes a hell of a lot of training to make that work.

Anonymous said...

I'm a trained military sniper and a Pro-Gunner. I use the M107 .50 caliber sniper rifle for long range targets. Most anti-gun folks are paranoid and weak. They have no idea that a 4" pocket knife can do more damage when in the hands of a violent criminal than a high explosive round from these rifles. Terrorist?, most of them are done. I had my part in achieving that. The American people are now safe from those guys. But not from the Anti-Gun Communist party that call themselves "Public Safety". The best way to get a gun now days, is to get ones that are illegal. Selections are unlimited folks so get them while they last. That way when the world around you is falling apart like New Orleans, LA, you can defend yourself and your family members from rape, burglaries, and assault. For the Anti-Guns, they can all go to hell.

Anonymous said...

The .50 caliber rifles are never used in a crime, how do I know?. I'm a Police Officer. I hate it when the State decides to put a ban on these type of rifles. I wanted one just for long range competition that I go to . But it's not allowed in my State because they say it's too powerful for any civilian use. That's just a bunch of BS. I bet someone had a grudge on the Gun maker, what a bunch of loosers. If I ever see a guy with a .50 caliber rifle, I'll sure will let him go and give him a high five!. Because it's not weapon for any crime. It takes a lot of training to achieve such thing. Anti-guns should live in China.

Anonymous said...

Any would be terrorist can but a SUV - and drive it into any crowd of people. This HAS been done!
Should we ban SUVs for that reason?
Making guns illegal won't keep them out of the hands of criminals. It will however, raise the price.
Drugs are illegal and they are all gone - right?
Never underestimate market forces.

BornKilla said...

Ok not trying to be a Dick or nothing,But Why the F*** would u need a 50cal Barret sniper rifle ....and mister soldier boy second thing is 50cal's are not meant for killing infantry,But Tanks and Choppers so a Civilian would have no need for it at all because im 100% sure that a Civilian isn't going to run into any tanks or what ever,Third a 50cal sniper is so powerful that u don't even have to hit the target to kill it i mean u can miss by 3 feet and still kill the person your aiming at and with that the clip weighs close to 5-10 pounds and the guns ways 50-70 pounds and last but no least giving a civilian a 50cal sniper would be like giving a terrorist a Hydrogen bomb and saying bomb us plzzz..O yea i forgot the civilian would most likely hurt himself in the prosess of shooting it.

Kurt '45superman' Hofmann said...

I tell ya' what, "BornKilla"--if you ever develop enough literacy to make it worth my while to address your questions, I will. Until then, buh bye.

Anonymous said...

I too am not trying to be a dick but BornKilla, you seriously need to get your facts straight. First of all yes the 50 cal was originally developed to take out things like trucks and tanks, but recently its role has actually been long range sniping against enemy soldiers, so yes it is in fact used to target infantry, just at long distances. Second of all like all rounds you do in fact have to hit your target to kill it. I know a guy who was shot at by the Russian equivalent of a 50 cal machine gun and some of those rounds were less than a foot away from him. Scary, yes. Is he dead from it, no. You mention the heavy weight and large size like that's a bad thing. It's not. That is actually a deterenet against using it for a terrorist or criminal purpose because it's so large and bulky it's impractical. It's not like you can simply walk around unnoticed carrying a 50 under your arm. Hence the fact that a 50 cal has never been used to commit a crime and would not be a weapon of choice for an aspiring terrorist. Lastly, most 50 cal rifles nowadays are very stand up guns made with quality and safety in mind. The odds that someone would give themselves a lethal cut with their letter opener while trying to open their morning mail are more likely than those of a civilian hurting himself with his 50 cal even if he has no experience with the weapon. Seriously you need to get your facts straight before you open your mouth.