Mad Mardigan

Here is some stats for you.... Firearms ownership United States population...273' date='000,000 [u.S. Census Bureau'] Firearms (handguns, rifles, and shotguns) owned by civilians...235,000,000 [industry and other estimates] How much has this increased in the past 40 years?...tripled [Combination of sources cited by Kleck in Targeting Guns (1997)] What fraction of U.S. households owns firearms?...42% What fraction of U.S. residents owns firearms?...28% [Davis and Smith, General Social Surveys, 1972-1993, all figures] Accidental, suicide, and homicide deaths by firearm Total accidental deaths per year (all causes), U.S....96,000 Motor vehicle accidental deaths per year...43,000 Fatal firearms accidents per year...1,100 (The firearms accidents figure is an all-time low, even though the U.S. population is at an all-time high, and gun ownership is at an all-time high.) Fatal firearms accidents age 0-5...17 Fatal firearms accidents age 5-14...121 Fatal firearms accidents age 15-24...401 Fraction of all Emergency Room visits that involve firearms accidents...0.2% [Centers for Disease Control, all figures] Accidents of all kinds (not just firearms) constitute the fifth leading cause of death in the United States, but the other four leading causes combined account for 16 times as many deaths as accidents. Accidents constitute a relatively small but easily prevented cause of death. Suicides by firearm, per year...18.000 Murders by firearm, per year...14,000 [Centers for Disease Control, both figures] Researchers have studied the figures on firearms ownership, firearms accidents, suicides, and murders, during the period from 1959 to the present. Purpose: To find out whether accidents, suicides, or murders by firearm increase or decrease as the supply of firearms increases or decreases. Result: The rates of accidents and murders by firearms do not show any relationship to the number of guns owned by civilians. The gun supply has increased and decreased without affecting the accident or murder rates. Suicides by firearms have increased when more guns have been available, but the total suicide rate hasn’t changed; when guns are less available, people find other ways to commit suicide. Positive side of civilian firearms ownership Defensive gun uses (DGUs) by civilians, per year...2,500,000 to 3,500,000 Fraction of DGUs in which no shot is fired...92% In most DGUs, a firearm is merely displayed by the intended victim, and the criminal flees. No one is injured. Civilian gun ownership clearly gives the edge to the law-abiding defender, because in 82 percent of DGU situations, the criminal has no gun. [Combination of sources cited by Kleck in Targeting Guns (1997), all figures] Crimes committed with guns, per year...1,000,000 About three times as many DGUs occur per year. [Combination of sources cited by Kleck in Targeting Guns (1997)] What can be done about guns and violent crime? Taking all guns away from the entire U.S. population would be: Unconstitutional under the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and under many state constitutions Unfeasible (too many guns owned by too many people; guns are easily hidden or smuggled; guns last a very long time) Politically impossible (almost half the households own guns) Futile (crime rates don’t show correlation to the gun supply) The practical answer is to try to keep guns away from criminals and children. Instant background check at gun dealer for all gun sales Permit to carry handgun (background check and safety course required) outside home or place of business Instant background check for private sales of guns (between friends, neighbors, etc.) Laws requiring guns be stored inaccessible to children What doesn’t work? - Ban certain types of guns (e.g., "assault weapons") Doesn't work, because: "Assault weapons" are about 1 percent of the guns used in crime Criminals want the same guns as law-abiding people—handguns that are small, concealable, reliable, and affordable Criminals use whatever guns are available; if one type is banned, criminals will switch to whatever they can get - Ban inexpensive handguns Doesn't work, because: Criminals prefer reliable, middle-priced guns; 80 percent of the handguns used in crime do NOT fall under the government definition of "Saturday night special" [bATF definition of "Saturday Night Special"; statistic from Kleck's Targeting Guns] Criminals use whatever guns are available; if one type is banned, criminals switch to whatever they can get This type of ban merely keeps poor people from buying guns for self protection This type of ban dates to the post-Civil War "Black Codes," laws intended to keep blacks down after they were freed from slavery - "Smart" guns Doesn't work, because: If computer inside gun mechanism "crashes," gun may not work when needed; for this reason police don’t want "smart" guns "Smart" gun is likely to tempt owner to leave gun accessible to children on the assumption that the internal computer is foolproof and will prevent children from firing gun; "smart" gun is not a substitute for standard safety practices (like safe storage) - Suing gun manufacturers Doesn't work, because: Increases in gun supply don’t cause increases in crime Lawsuits ask courts to ban products that are made legally under laws passed by Congress and state legislatures Lawsuits ask courts to blame manufacturers for behavior of criminals who misuse the products If gun lawsuits succeed, the next targets may be producers of cars, prescription drugs, alcoholic beverages, and red meat; all these products may be misused by a few but are actually used correctly and safely by millions of people every day Source = http://gunsafe.org/position%20statements/Guns%20and%20crime.htm

If you are an avid hunter, then yes, it is a need. Its pointless to hunt rabbits with a 30-06, you need a small shotgun or .22lr rifle if you are good. Then you cant use a 4-10 shotgun to hunt elk, you need a 300wsm. So yes, for hunters, there is a need for different size and types of firearms. I hunt for deer, rabbit, squirrel, and one for turkey, plus one day to hunt elk. My AR15 is not a hunting rifle, it is my plinker for fun. I have a Model 94 30-30 for deer hunting, 20 guage / 12 guage / .22lr for small game hunting. Now for someone who hunts, yes there is a need.

I read this article that explains the difficulty in it. Modern Iraq was created after the defeat of the German-allied Ottoman Empire in World War I, when the victorious British and French carved up the territory of their defeated rival. One of their decisions was the establishment of the new nation of Iraq under the rule of King Faisal I. The monarch had led the great war's Arab revolt—popularized by Lawrence of Arabia—and had captured Damascus from the Ottomans in 1918. Within the country's borders, three major groups—each with an identity and an agenda—occupy fairly distinct geographic regions (see map): Sunni Muslims, Shiite Muslims, and Kurds. Each calls Iraq home, but each is unsure of what its role will be in the new Iraq. If the country's territorial integrity is to be respected, they must somehow work together. source = http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/04/0423_030423_iraqcultures.html

I was agreeing with you statement on how guns have saved lives, just in a different way.

Several depending on types of hunting and target practice. Shotguns for rabbit, squirrel, birds.... Rifles for deer, moose, elk..... .22lr for 50 to 100 yard plinking, .223 for 100 to 200 yard plinking, 50 cal for 1.5 mile plinking.... Yes, there is national clubs that use 50 cal for long distance shooting. My guns have never shot anyone, nor has anyone I have known that owns a gun. Why should we be penalized for something a criminal has done. That would be like saying there should be a huge tax on alcohol for all of drunk drivers that have killed someone. The sound of a 12 guage pump being chambered is a sound that any criminal would recongize and cause to run. "Assult weapons" have been banned for a long time, an assult weapon is a firearm that is fully automatic or can fire more then 1 round per 1 pull of the trigger. Simply owning a gun that looks like a military rifle does not make it an assult gun. In order to legally own or sale automatic weapons you must have a class 3 license. With that class 3 license.

Yeah, It cost me an extra 400 USD for my AR15.

He should be punished for the laws he pushed to have put in place. He made his bed, now he needs to lay in it.

Sorry if the truth hurts.

That some stupid lack of reason is part of what Kerry votes for and supports.

No offense taken.

Do your part in fighting crime. Report Illegal Firearms Activity: 1-800-ATF-GUNS (1-800-283-4867)

Link to story http://7am.com/cgi-bin/catwire.cgi?POLITICS_1000_2004090801.htm Talks about him accepting the gun, the above article is what he could face as discussed in various places.

Well then arrest Kerry for that for protesting the war.

He cosponserd a bill banning the guns shown here. So yes, arrest him for violating laws he pushes.

How am I being anti-american, I was just posting the truth about your hero.

Don't Arrest Kerry in Shotgun Incident, Gun-Law Expert Says. http://www.gunlaws.com | 10 September 2004 | Alan Korwin Don't Arrest Kerry In Shotgun Incident, Gun-Law Expert Says Gun-law expert Alan Korwin is calling for calm, in the national uproar over John Kerry’s possible serious gun violations during a recent photo op in Racine, West Virginia. The national clamor over the Democratic presidential candidate, who took possession of a Browning semiautomatic shotgun outside his home state, reflects a problem with the laws and should not be used to arrest and prosecute the man, Korwin says. A gun crossing state lines is heavily regulated. "There are so many charges Kerry might face," according to Korwin, who has written seven books on gun laws, including the unabridged, plain-English federal guide, "Gun Laws of America." 1. Taking ownership of the shotgun gift, if he doesn't already have a valid Massachusetts Firearm Identification Card, could subject him to a 2-1/2 year prison term in his home state. Since he has claimed publicly he owns firearms, chances are he has this critical piece of paper, Korwin says. 2. Bringing the firearm back to Massachusetts, if he received it from a private party, would be a federal felony under the 1968 Gun Control Act. (5 years in prison, $5,000 fine, 18 USC §922) 3. The only exemption that would allow him to bring it into his home state requires that he obtained it in a face-to-face transaction with a federal firearms licensed dealer (FFL). A private gift would not qualify. 4. If Kerry did get it from an FFL, he would have had to personally fill out and sign a "4473 form" required by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, before the gift was given, under penalty of federal felony. 5. If Kerry did not personally undergo a "NICS" instant background check before the transfer from an FFL, he would have put the person conducting the transfer in some legal jeopardy, though the law contains a loophole that would probably save Kerry from additional harm (the dealer, not the recipient, suffers from failure to do the NICS check). While gun lobbyists are inflamed that Kerry introduced a law that would outlaw this particular type of sporting shotgun, and gun gifts in general, it is a good thing the law has not passed yet, because then it might be too serious a problem to simply ignore. Korwin says that calls to indict Kerry are premature and "most certainly overkill. John Kerry should receive the same lenient treatment any other citizen deserves when innocently violating these complex and non-intuitive rules." At least give him a chance to explain, Korwin pleads. Unfortunately, federal authorities from BATFE have been known in the past to be inflexible in their enforcement of even minor technical violations (note that none of these felony violations involve a victim or any sort of harm). With widely circulated evidence, in the form of photographs of Kerry in obvious possession of the firearm, he may find himself subject to the long arms of the law. And more importantly, Korwin says, "Some of these laws are just foolish, putting honest citizens at enormous and unjustified risk, and are so complicated that even a presidential candidate and his staff cannot figure them out." I say put him behind bars for a few years. How do you like them apples?

I did read the medical records shown on there, and it says NOT MEDICALLY WARRENTED. Those files are linked to his site, although not a site itself, a dl from a bias site.

Monday, Expires 12:01 AM on the 13th.

Why wont Kerry let his medical records be released? Easy, his injuries was BS.

The flash supressor will be changed with the M4 upper.

Its just looks like a folding stock, but after tomorrow, the will be some goodies added. M4 preban upper, folding stock, bayonnette lug, oh geez the stuff I need. Now I have to get me a HK MP5, Kalashnikovs, AR10, Barretts M82A1(though it wasnt banned), UZI, Galil, SWD M12, sheesh the list goes on. Just think all of these scary weapons are going to get up and run around shooting people, (if you believe that, you are a dumbass and will vote for Kerry). Is the 6.8 like a M96? After I put my AR15 to more like a M4A1 I will be happy with it.