The admin does not trust soldiers with guns.
b/c in 1993 bill clinton disarmed them.
Fear of Black soldiers in insubordinate revolt.
I hate to inject some reality into this gripefest but there are practical reasons for why the weapons are locked up when not actually in use.
First and foremost is accountability. I hate to burst bubbles, but the armed forces do have a small percentage of persons of less than sterling character that will not hesitate to grab up a weapon (or any other easily convertable item) however briefly it may be left unattended. Since the majority of personal weapons are automatic (okay, burst fire) rifles (M16, M4, SCAR, etc.) they are highly pilferable and eagerly looked for because they are so easily converted into cash.
As an battalion S-4 (infantry battalion, air control squadron, and CSS unit), for me twice-a-day weapons counts were a fact of life whether we were in the field or back in garrison. Nobody secured and liberty was not sounded until all weapons were accounted for, period.
A lost/missing weapon (or other accountable piece of pilferable ordnance) stopped EVERYTHING the unit was doing until it was found or we gave up and declared it missing (by formal message addressed to just about everybody in the world, I might add). You did not want to be the person who had a weapon go missing through inattentiveness. Really bad reflection on your basic leadership skills. Consequently, all the officers and Staff NCOs were keen to account for weapons when out of the armory and eager to get them securely stored back in the armory when not needed.
The only time you could relax a little bit was when, except for the duty stander weapons, they were all locked up in their company armories/squadbay rifle racks (I’m dating myself here). Even then, you had to pay attention for misbehavior on the part of the armorers and the junior watchstanders. I could tell you stories...but I won’t.
That was the background reality during my time in the Marine Corps (1967-1990) and I am absolutlely certain that it is still the dominant background reality today.
Obviously they are not...
Clinton did it
GUN CONTROL PING