Reply #20: And How many of these fully auto weapons are the US Govt Supplying?

[RamboLiberal]

News reports and anti-violence organizations suggest that the US civilian firearms market is flooding Mexico with the weapons used by drug cartels and black marketeers to perpetrate violence. These firearms, we are told, are being purchased at gun shops and gun shows in the United States, and smuggled across the border into Mexico. Indeed, we are told that 90% of the firearms seized by the Mexican government and traced by the BATFE are found to have originated in the United States. Senator John Kerry recently told the Boston Globe that 1 of 4 weapons seized by the Mexican government are made available for tracing. Senator Kerry made this statement while he urged renewal of a federal US law banning civilian possession of “assault weapons” (various non-military semi-automatic firearms).

However, we are learning that many arms in the hands of Mexican drug cartels are military-grade automatic weapons, and that the numbers of cartel arms sourcing from the US civilian market are highly exaggerated.

What is being ignored is the fact that the United States government (via Departments of Defense and State) sells thousands of military and non-military firearms to foreign governments, including Mexico and Central and South American countries. The Small Arms Survey (SAS; Graduate Institute of International Studies, Geneva 2006; linked below) is highly informative.

The table below, compiled from the SAS, lists Latin American countries and the number of military rifles and machine guns, as well as non-military weapons, that the US government has sold to those nations during the 5-year period of 1998-2003.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Ll5chfz1qFU/SdPG4ULtdaI/AAAAAAAAD9Q/ngVSS2Ekouw/s400/ScreenHunter_02+Apr.+01+15.54.jpg

http://www.examiner.com/x-1417-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2009m4d2-Do-US-government-arms-exports-play-a-part-in-arming-Mexican-cartels

Also wonder if any being stolen out of our U.S. military arsenals.

In June 2006 an incarcerated US Army soldier and active gang member identified 60 to 70 gang-affiliated military personnel in his unit allegedly involved in the theft and sale of military equipment and weapons. The solider reported that many of the military personnel in charge of ammunition and grenade distribution are sergeants who are active gang members.

A May 2006 interview with a former Marine and Gangster Disciple member incarcerated in Colorado detailed how easily soldiers-many of whom were gang members-stole military weapons and equipment and used them on the streets of US cities or sold them to civilian gang members.

For several years now, the military has been scrambling for recruits, as the U.S. tries to expand the ranks. Inevitably, this has led to a loosening of standards, with criminal history and gang affiliation not necessarily considered disqualifying factors.

I am certainly not trying to impugn the character of U.S. troops, the vast majority of whom are the pride of our nation, but it cannot be ignored that with lower recruitung standards there is a concomitant increase in the incidence of criminal activity--weapons theft and smuggling included.

How important is this source to the Mexican cartels? Perhaps not very, but I'll wager that they acquire more grenades, belt-fed machine guns, anti-tank rockets, etc. that way than they do from the legal civilian market--you know--the market we're told is inadequately regulated.

http://www.examiner.com/x-2581-St-Louis-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2009m4d8-Gang-members-stealing-weapons-from-military-arming-Mexican-drug-cartels

DOJ Report
Gang Members in the Military
Members of nearly every major street gang as well as some prison gangs and OMGs have been identified on both domestic and international military installations. Deployments have resulted in gang members among service members and/or dependents on or near overseas bases. Additionally, military transfers have resulted in gang members, both service members and dependents/relatives, moving to new areas and establishing a gang presence.

Gang members with military training pose a unique threat to law enforcement personnel because of the distinctive military skills that they possess and their willingness to teach these skills to fellow gang members. While the number of gang members trained by the military is unknown, the threat that they pose to law enforcement is potentially significant, particularly if gang members trained in weapons, tactics, and planning pass this instruction on to other gang members. (See Table 1.) In addition, gang members currently serving in the military sometimes take advantage of their positions to engage in criminal activities such as trafficking weapons and drugs.

http://www.justice.gov/ndic/pubs32/32146/military.htm