Issue 375 What's an assault rifle? July 9, 2014

Assault rifle is a scary term.  In fact when you hear assault rifle you may think of the guns the U.S. military uses.  You would be correct to think of it as a military fire arm, but looks does not define an assault rifle as many lawmakers seem to think.  So allow me to define it for once based on my own personal knowledge of firearms.

What constitutes an assault rifle?:  Well the simplest way is to define it is that it shoots 3 or more rounds each time the trigger is pulled.  It may be equipped with a selector switch to enable the rifle to fire a single round at a time or to fire on full automatic like a machine gun (fires until it runs out of bullets or the trigger is released).  Also, it has to shoot rifle rounds.  So ammunition used in a pistol like a 9 mm, or a 45 ACP, do not count (though they would count for a sub-machine gun).  And that is it.  This is what actually constitutes an assault rifle.

Legalities:  However the law would have you believe that a rifle with a telescoping scope, an extra grip, or any other accessories added to the gun make it an assault weapon.  False, the accessories add to accuracy, or capability of the gun to either shoot in dusk or complete darkness and possibly at longer ranges.  That is all.  Collapsible stocks, extended magazines of ammunition and similar accessories serve to either make the gun easier to carry and to shoot, or in some cases for bragging rights.  However, the people in government think things with these accessories are scary and thus deem them to be deadly assault weapons.  Truth is you can have two M-16 rifles (standard issue for the U.S. army) but only one is considered an assault rifle.  The reason, because the civilian model one shoots one bullet at a time, while the military can shoot 3 or more.  So looks mean nothing.  It is all about capability.

Conclusion:  I hope this clears this all up.  While I own no guns, I support the second amendment and our right for self-protection.  My only grip is that they should stop blaming the gun and instead blame the shooter instead.