This is why thier was such an uproar, Zumbo was help to mislead the public.

Well, I didn’t give him a Moron of the Week title, but I did have this to say in a related post:

If the ‘facts’ surrounding the case are true, then the two agents acted reprehensibly. But the lengthy jail terms handed down are way beyond what was warranted. I would even argue that tossing them, being Border Patrol agents, in a medium security prison filled with illegal aliens from Mexico is bordering on cruel and unusual punishment. So from that perspective, I think it’s great that these Republicans Congressmen are displaying their outrage at Bush for not pardoning the two men. They are standing up for the rights of wayward citizens who have become victims of the Decider’s relations with Mexico.

The primary focus of that post was on Dana Rohrabacher’s threats of impeaching Bush over this issue, rather than the other impeachable offenses he’s already committed. I don’t know all of the details of the case, but even if they are guilty they should not have gotten the punishment that they did.

Much (if not nearly all) of the media coverage and printed information relates to basically one thing. So called assault weapons should not be in the hands of citizens. It seems, as even in your case, that the misconception of so called assault weapons include every semi- automatic weapon available to the public. Very few reporters and editors have even the basic understanding of the difference between NFA (registered machineguns) and civilian legal semi auto rifles (or pistols). All are lumped into one group. Therein lies the problem.

As pointed out more than once in the previous posts, they are indeed two different animals. Once that is understood and grasped by the many media writers, maybe, just maybe, this topic would take on a whole new perspective. Until then, it’s simply a matter of the uninformed media and politicians forcing uneducated ideas and policies on people that know the truth and the facts. Calling them “assault TYPE weapons is just another way of lumping all guns together – a tool used extensively by the anti-gun lobby.

I hope all the comments above have opened your eyes enough that you really do some research. I think if you do, you will realize there are tremendous inconsistencies of assault weapon terminology used to try and sway the public into supporting ridiculous bans on mythical terrorist rifles and (misconstrued) automatic weapons.

Amendment II (the Second Amendment) of the United States Constitution, which is part of the Bill of Rights, declares the necessity for “a well regulated militia,” and prohibits infringement of “the right of the people to keep and bear arms.”
It does not state that a regulated militia can bear arms (which many people assume). It declares the necessity for “a well regulated militia” as well as the right of the people to keep and bear arms.

The original text was:
The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed; a well armed and well regulated militia being the best security of a free country; but no person religiously scrupulous of bearing arms shall be compelled to render military service in person.

It later modified to:
A well regulated militia, composed of the body of the people, being the best security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed; but no one religiously scrupulous of bearing arms shall be compelled to render military service in person.

And finally to:
A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the People to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed

You will note there is no Hunting or sporting use clause in the second amendment, or any restrictions on ammunition (type or capacity) for that matter.

Any (so called Assault) weapon ban would effectively restrict ownership of a weapon no more advanced than a rifle designed 117 years ago (bolt action rifle). The Semi-Auto rifle has been around since before 1936 (71 years), and even the AR15 is 50 years old. The ban is about a legal citzen owning an ergonomically designed self loading weapon (not true Assault rifles, or Machine Guns).

Most weapon inovations come from the public (none government) and R&D is paid for by the public (via sales), the government then updates it’s own weapons systems based on those innovations and without spending billions of dollars doing so. Banning 50 year old designs does nothing for crime, it hurts the economy, puts a ban on innovation, and would cost us more as tax payers. The only ones it helps are the criminals as they are not effected by bans.

1) Sights.

It would be missing the sights you commonly see on guns. Instead, it would have a rail on top to which a scope can be attached. The scope itself would cost nearly $1,000 because quality scopes cost that much.

2) Tuning

It would have a special barrel. This barrel would come from a *precision* manufacturer and would be installed by a professional gunsmith. It would be carefully attached, measured, fluffed, buffed, and coo’d over so it would be *just right*. The trigger alone would cost nearly $200. Special grips would be installed to prevent interference with the barrel harmonics and be more comfortable. Finally, it would be painted some neat colors…maybe red with flames or something.

The overall cost would probably run around $2,000.

And yes, I’d have a 30 round magazine for it.

The whole point is that the government would consider such a weapon to be an evil weapon, but the reality is that it is a sporting gun. I’d never take something like that into battle. That would be like taking a Ferrari into the invasion of Fallujah.

There have been absolutely no civilian owned NFA items ever used in any crime since they were restricted in 1934. However, a Dayton PD officer used a department issue MAC-11 to murder a witness. Civilians with machineguns are quite trustworthy.

@aldacron
“Because of the complaints of such loons (I’ll bet they’re all card-carrying Republicans)”

This black-rifle owning, nonhunter, Buddhist, universal-healthcare supporting, gay-marriage-OK registered Democrat begs to differ.

Here are some more questions you might find the answers interesting:

1. What is the difference between full-automatic and semi-automatic? Is there one?
2. Are machine guns legal to own in the United States? Can they be easily bought over the counter?
3. How many legally owned machineguns have been used in a crime by civilians since 1934, when they were restricted by Federal law?
4. What percentage of American homes have firearms in them? a)10% b)25% c)45%
5. Is there any such thing as a 45mm handgun?
6. Is the crime rate by concealed carry holders greater or lesser than the general population?
7. Are there a greater or lesser number of crimes committed with firearms than defensive uses of firearms?
8. What did the 1994 Assault Weapons Ban actually ban?
9. What is the average income of a gun owner? a)$20K b) $30K c) $50K
10. Are you more or less likely to be injured a) resisting a violent assault with a firearm or b) resisting a violent assault without a firearm c) not resisting at all?
11. If you are a male citizen of the US, between the ages of 17 and 45, and not in the National Guard or other armed forces, are you in the militia according to the United States Code?
12. Thousands of children 0-14 die in gun accidents every year, true or false?
13. What is the ratio between homicides and democides (killed by your own government) in the 20th Century?
14. What is the correlation between restricting firearms and the violent crime rate on a state-by-state basis?
15. Which group shoots a bystander more often in a defensive shooting - concealed carry permit holders or cops?
16. How many guns do private American citizens own? How many guns does the military own?
17. What percentage of murders are committed with a semi-automatic rifle with a protruding handgrip?
18. What percentage of gun owners are not hunters?
19. What does a police department pay for a fully automatic weapon? What does a citizen have to pay for the same weapon because of an artificially restricted supply?
20. How many Democrats lost their seats in Congress because of the Assault Weapons Ban?

ANSWERS:
1. Full-auto fires continuously, semi-auto fires one shot with each pull of the trigger.
2. Yes, they’re legal. No, you can’t buy one without an EXTENSIVE federal background check.
3. Zero of the 300,000 legally owned machineguns have been used in a crime by a citizen since 1934, when they were first regulated. No legally owned silencer, howitzer, or grenade has ever been used in a crime either.
4. C, 45%.
5. No, but a lot of journalists get this one wrong. 45mm is in anti-tank weapon territory.
6. CCW holders are 20 times less likely to be arrested for any crime (source: Texas DOJ).
7. There are 20x more defensive uses than criminal uses (source: US DOJ).
8. Magazine capacities over ten rounds, and certain cosmetic features of military-style rifles. If you think it had something to do with banning machineguns, you’ve been duped - badly.
9. C, $50K. The average education level of gunowners is a Bachelor’s degree. (source: NRA-ILA survey).
10. From most to least likely, b, c, a. You are least likely to be injured while resisting with a firearm (source: UK Home Office).
11. Unequivocally. If you meet these criteria, you are in the militia BY LAW under USC 10 Sec. 311. Therefore, you’re in a “well-regulated” militia.
12. False. Accidental death by firearm accounted for 72 accidental deaths of 0-14 year olds in 2001 in the entire USA. (source: CDC)
13. The instance of democide is 200 times greater than that of homicide. (source: U. Of Hawaii study, “Power Kills”)
14. The correlation is zero. Firearms restrictions do not impact the violent crime rate in any way. (source: Brady Campaign to Reduce Handgun Violence, USDOJ violent crime rates comparison)
15. Concealed carry holders shoot the wrong person 2% of the time. Cops shoot the wrong person more than five times as often - 11% of the time. (source: Kleck study)
16. Private US citizens own 300 million guns. The US Army, US Navy, US Air Force, and the National Guard combined own only 3 million guns. (UN Small Arms Survey)
17. Less than 0.25% of murders involve an “assault weapon”. (Source: Uniform Crime Report)
18. Over 80% of gun owners don’t hunt. (source: NRA survey)
19. A police department can buy a fully automatic M16 from the government for $500. Because mere citizens cannot buy any machinegun made after 1986, a transferrable M16 is $15,000, a government-induced increase of 3,000%.
20. “The fights I fought… cost a lot –the fight for the assault-weapons ban cost 20 members their seats in Congress.” –William Jefferson Clinton