Posted on 09/20/2005 10:59:19 AM PDT by freepatriot32
If I gave you $7,000 to spend on whatever you wanted, what would you buy? Seven thousand dollars may not be a huge sum of money, but it is still a significant chunk of change. I mean, you could buy a car, pay your room and board at EMU for the year, or have 70% of the buy-in for the World Series of Poker main event. The list is almost endless, but there is one item in particular that really struck me as surprising when I learned that my gift money could purchase it. It is the Barrett M82A1 sniper rifle, and for the fairly modest amount of seven grand, you could take one home today.
To those of you unfamiliar with the M82A1, as I was, my saying that it could be purchased for that price may not strike you as startling or worrisome. Upon researching this firearm further, my opinion rapidly changed. Just looking at the weapon, totally ignorant of its capabilities, I could tell that this was no peashooter. It looks like a modern-day cannon, but with a comfortable pistol grip slapped on the bottom. Thanks to war movies and an uncle who's a card carrying NRA member, I have seen and fired my fair share of weaponry, but never had I even seen a firearm as intimidating as this one.
Reading the gun's specs proved to be more than intimidating; it was downright scary. According to the product's website, the M82A1 "easily fires the largest commercially available cartridge in the world, the .50 caliber." The weapon doesn't just fire .50 caliber cartridges like a few other weapons, but does so with ease. What sets it apart from other .50 caliber rifles is the fact that it is not bolt action, but semiautomatic with a ten round clip. Instead of having to manually discharge the empty cartridge then load the next, you can snap off ten shots as fast as you can pull the trigger. Ten rounds at a buck from any .50 caliber rifle will leave hunters with very little to mount. I also learned that the gun has an effective range of over 2,000 yards. Hunters generally shoot at targets 150-200 yards away, so accuracy over ten times that distance is understandable, right? No, it really isn't, especially with a weapon so powerful. Unless the gun was designed for hunters planning on shooting game from over a mile away and then walking 15 minutes to go retrieve it, this weapon could not have been made for hunting.
Sure enough, the M82A1 was not created for civilian gamesmen. It was designed for use in the military and in law enforcement, both of which herald the M107 as the premier big bore rifle (the M82A1 is the civilian version). Used by the United States armed forces as well as over 40 others worldwide, the weapon has won several awards and Barrett has yet to have a contract not renewed due to the military being unsatisfied. What makes the gun so loved by armies across the globe? Not only does it boast incredible range and extremely destructive ammunition (standard rounds can go through brick walls); it has minimal recoil and is extremely easy to fire. With the recoil of a 12-gauge shotgun if fired from the shoulder and considerably less when fired from the stock bipod, it is very easy for a soldier with little practice or training to become very proficient with the weapon. This reason for praise quickly becomes cause for alarm if the gun falls into the wrong hands.
Now that I knew how effective the weapon was, I looked up what its applications are. Due to their gratuitous power, these guns are used to attack stationary or landing aircraft, tanks, armored personnel carriers and concrete bunkers. They are very rarely used on single enemy combatants, just as I rarely swat flies with a baseball bat. Like a rocket launcher with a tighter shot pattern, these rifles destroy enemy aircraft and tanks cleaner, faster and from farther away.
I think I have established the fact that the Barrett M82A1 is any target's worst nightmare, but now I think we all need to look at why I can get one of these easier than I could get a handgun. There is absolutely no reason why a civilian would need to own this weapon, yet background checks are looser on this gun than on a handgun because the M82A1 falls under the category of "hunting rifle" (Honestly, who are they kidding?). The amount of havoc that can be caused by this weapon if it found its way into the wrong hands is off the charts. Pedestrians would have to worry the least; the rounds can go through motor vehicles, walls or aircraft shells from over a mile away. Whether it be terrorism or just criminal use, no one would be safe. Another feature of the weapon that should get the thing banned is its ease of use. With minimal training, anyone could become extremely accurate with this weapon, endangering everyone within a mile radius.
Despite my firm agreement with the Second Amendment, there are specific cases where the right to bear certain arms is significantly more dangerous than what may happen if one could not. This is one of those cases. The Barrett M82A1 .50 caliber rifle, as well as all other semiautomatic .50 caliber rifles, has no place in society. They are not effective hunting weapons, and anyone could defend themselves more than effectively with a less powerful gun. This weapon is extremely dangerous and not worth the risk.
Sweet!
I believe in peace through superior firepower, thus peace will never fail.
I'd bet $7,000 that this doofus has never fired a weapon. BTW, what's a "clip"? LOL
So when, exactly, did "Adam" have his balls totally removed?
I didn't stand for it the first time. I was shouted down by the media whores and their Democratic massas.
These same stupid arguments were made when S&W introduced their .500 cartridge and pistol. Someone did a GREAT comic discussion regarding criminal use of the gun, much of which applies to the 50BMG rifles. He pointed out that few gang-bangers would buy an $800 pistol, nor could they hold it accurately in their sideways "gangsta grip." Also, due to its 72-ounce weight, it would slide down their baggy pants when they try to hide it in their waistband!
I WISH I could afford a 50BMG! On my budget, I'm lucky to have the 2 rifles I own (which I took with me when I lost my home to Katrina.) They're a Russian Mosin-Nagant 91/30, and a Yugoslavian SKS. That one is a great one to show off to an anti, what with its "evil" bayonet and grenade launcher. And it's an "assault" rifle too - sure to make these folks shiver in their little pink bunny slippers!
LMAO
I mean what kind of operation is that, I can buy a t-shirt there.
It costs $7000, weighs over 30 lbs., and is over 4 ft. long. It costs $5-$10 bucks a shot to shoot. Oh, and the $700 doesn't cover the optics... so throw in another $500-$2000 dollars (you'd like to see your target at 2000 yards right?) for a good scope.
This thing might be a menace to your back and your wallet, but not to society. Maybe its a menace to limousine liberals who are afraid of a weapon that can shoot through their armored limos?
Sure sounds fun to shoot, though. But what I really want is a 20mm AT rifle!
Fire off ten rounds as fast as you can squeeze the trigger. HAHAHAHA from a 50 caliber rifle? Does he even know how ridiculous that sounds? hell even the Incredible Hulk probably couldn't rapid fire a .50 BMG.
After reading the specs from the article, I definitely want one. There is a gun store near me that has one. I picked it up. There is no way to just shoulder the gun and fire free standing. It is too heavy. It must rest on something to get any kind of accuracy.
Dear Adam......criminals don't follow the laws. Make all the laws ya want and the prisons will still be as full of BS as yer article ya idgit !
so let me get this straight...
he supports owning weapons but he doesnt support owning ones he doesnt like the look of...
wow...lets add another ammendment..only pretty guns are allowed..or ones we all like
That is why they have a scope mount on the top.
Nope he spent 99 percent of the article talking about how scary looking and sounding the gun was before crying hisd eyes out and wetting himself.I have a gut feeling that this "man" wears pink thong pantys instead of fruit of the loom tighty whiteys
But, thanks to Bush41's and X42's import restrictions... that ain't gonna happen any time soon.
"...BTW did you know you can't go to SA store in Illinois and buy the weapons direct from them."
What is that about? Living in Va. means "never having to wait!"
The Vaquero is nice too. Think if I ever get another revolver it will be the guide version of the S&W 500. It just looks "thorough!"
Cheers!
I want one.
"It costs $7000, weighs over 30 lbs., and is over 4 ft. long. It costs $5-$10 bucks a shot to shoot. Oh, and the $700 doesn't cover the optics... so throw in another $500-$2000 dollars (you'd like to see your target at 2000 yards right?) for a good scope. "
They came first for the Barret and I said nothing because I could not afford it.
They then came for all the AR lowers and I said nothing, because I did not like .223
,
They then came for all of the AKM, AKS AND AKR parts and I again said nothing because I had no use for 7.62 combloc.
Then they came for the .45 carbines and 1911's and I said nothing because I didn't have any rifles left...and then they came for me..and all I had left to defend myself with was my 9MM..and of course...well..The F troop won.
That's good, a 50 cal peashooter should be banned. Just curious, was anyone advertising it as a peashooter?
It looks like a modern-day cannon... This is really the basis of your problem, isn't it? You don't like the way it looks. How about if they glue some yellow and pink flowers to the barrel, would it look more acceptable to you?
...never had I even seen a firearm as intimidating as this one.
So we should ban anything that we find intimidating? I found the idiocy of Kerry intimidating...are you in favor of banning Kerry?
...it was downright scary.
Personally, I find the fact that liberals are allowed to vote scary. Irrationality and stupidity scares me.
The weapon doesn't just fire .50 caliber cartridges like a few other weapons, but does so with ease.
What's that supposed to mean. Is the only 50 cal weapon you'd support one that functions poorly?
Unless the gun was designed for hunters planning on shooting game from over a mile away and then walking 15 minutes to go retrieve it, this weapon could not have been made for hunting.
I expect that most who shoot this weapon do so at targets, not animals. It is sweet that you're concerned about the hunters having to walk so far to collect their kills, however. Very considerate, but I doubt that any would really mind the walk.
Sure enough, the M82A1 was not created for civilian gamesmen.
It was designed and built in Barret's garage, actually. Bet that potential scares you as well. Just admit it, you would rather just take away the constitutional right to bear arms. What other constitutional rights are you interested in taking away?
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