I already had a decent sized collection, and already had several legal conceal carry permits.
(I moved around a lot in my job)
I decided against it, due to the onerous terms involved with acquiring the required Federal permit.
The deal killer for me, besides the annual costs involved, was to willingly “submit to 24/7, weapons inspections on demand, without a sworn search warrant” by any and every level of LEOs.
Yes, I have fired off a few bursts of full auto just for fun, when I had the chance.
It wasn’t worth it to me, surrendering my 4Th Ammendment rights, to own an exotic and expensive item.
Just about everything you said just isn’t so, and never has been so.
There’s no license to own a machine gun or any other NFA-restricted firearm, and you don’t surrender your Fourth Amendment rights. It’s a one-time tax of between $5 and $200.
Its no big deal. Worst part is the wait for the ATF tech branch to finally get to your paperwork, but I’ve had stamped forms come back in as little as 28 days.
In the context of this article, my local sheriff will sign any ATF form you push in front of his secretary.