Assault rifles are back! Big time!

[spin]

8. As usual the article makes the assualt weapons ban look like it was a good idea...

But actually it was a total flop. That's why it expired.

The article in the OP says:

After several high-profile shooting incidents in the 1980s and ’90s, the guns became the notorious poster child for wanton violence and Second Amendment over-reaching. Congress enacted and former President Bill Clinton signed the Assault Weapons Ban back in 1994, which made it illegal to sell 19 types of semi-automatic rifles, as well as ammunition clips that held more than 10 rounds.

The article makes it sound like a person could not buy 19 different types of semi-auto rifles during the ban. These rifles were banned because of certain cosmetic features such as a bayonet mount or a flash suppressor. The firearm manufacturers merely eliminated these objectionable items and produced new models that were functionally the same as the banned models.

High capacity ammunition magazines or "clips" that held more than 10 rounds were always available during the ban. They were just more expensive. Everybody that I knew who owned a "black rifle" bought several of these accessories.

The article goes on to say:

The legislation expired in 2004, and since then, assault rifles have come storming back.

Actually the biggest failure of the assault weapons ban was that it made these weapons popular. Prior to the ban few shooters had much interest in owning such a weapon but human nature being what it is, gun owners developed an interest in owning them after the ban. And guess what...shooters found they were far more accurate and reliable than was originally thought.

And the writer makes another stupid statement when he says:

On the one hand, I can’t see why anybody really needs one of these blasters. They’re not practical for hunting, and in the wrong hands they’re powerful weapons capable of killing an awful lot of people at one time.

Bullshit. They are used for hunting.

F&S Picks the 25 Best AR-Style Rifles
Photo Gallery by Michael O. Humphries. Uploaded on May 13, 2009
An Intro to the AR-Style Rifle

Black guns often get a bum rap. They can look a bit menacing, and their configuration and controls are radically different than those found on traditional sporting firearms. But the hunter who automatically dismisses AR-style rifles as legitimate sporting guns would be doing himself a major disservice. Why? Because the AR is one of the most capable, adaptable, and appealing firearm platforms on the market today. And these characteristics are helping it gain traction in the civilian market in its semi-automatic-only form.

***snip***

Over the past 50 years manufacturers have taken advantage of the gun’s modularity to attach optics and accessories, add new operating systems, allow larger chamberings, and even create civilian-legal semi-automatic-only versions. These guns have proved capable and popular with shooters of all stripes, especially varmint hunters. And recent developments have expanded the platform to big-game hunters as well....emphasis added

This is because the qualities that make AR rifles so successful as a military design also make them highly capable as hunting firearms. Many models boast sub-MOA accuracy right out of the box, with some variants featuring performance that rivals that of custom target rifles.
http://www.fieldandstream.com/photos/gallery/hunting/2009/05/fs-picks-25-best-ar-style-rifles

It's obvious that the writer of the article has an agenda and has no intention of allowing facts to stand in its way. That is what so often disappoints me about most of the articles I read in the mainstream media about firearms.

Firearms and gun control are fairly simple subjects and a reporter doesn't have to be a rocket scientist to understand them. Any interested individual can quickly learn the facts about firearms by researching the web and surely any reporter who is worth his pay can do so also.

Other subjects are far more complicated and require far more research to even gain a basic understanding. If the mainstream media can't get its facts straight on simple subjects such as firearms or gun control, how can I believe anything they print about the ecomony or any of the other important issues facing our nation?