Posted on 07/21/2012 11:40:47 PM PDT by matt04
James Holmes is responsible for one of the largest mass shootings of its kind in US history – but it did not result in the largest number of deaths.
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The police said he appeared to have legally purchased all of the weapons, including a second pistol found in Holmes's car.
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Shotguns and handguns have always been readily available in Colorado, but until eight years ago Holmes would not have been able to buy the AR-15 semi-automatic assault rifle he was carrying quite so easily.
The manufacture and import of AR-15s and similar weapons, such as AK-47s, were banned in the US in 1994. There were also limits on the size of magazines that could be fitted, limiting them to holding no more than 10 bullets.
Those prohibitions fell away 10 years later, and attempts to revive them have failed in the face of objections from the powerful National Rifle Association allowing Holmes not only to purchase the powerful weapon but also to fit it with the magazine drum holding a large number of bullets.
The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence gives Colorado a score of just 15 points out of 100 in assessing adequate gun control laws. It criticises the state for not restricting bulk purchases of weapons, for failing to record identification of weapons so they can be traced, for failing to require any permits to buy a weapon and for permitting large magazines of the kind used by Holmes.
Colorado permits people to carry loaded and concealed weapons with a licence. The NRA is fighting a legal case against the requirement for a permit.
(Excerpt) Read more at guardian.co.uk ...
I’m not a gun enthusiast, never fired a firearm and do not support gun control. That being said, why would the average citizen need more fire power than a hand gun, for personal protection or a rifle for hunting? Please enlighten.
Brit newspapers looking for “insight.”
Need is not the issue. Remember, the phrase "too many guns" should never be uttered. It is a falsehood, an outright travesty.
“Remember, the phrase “too many guns” should never be uttered”
Didn’t mean to imply one of each, I was referring to the type of firearm.
I have one of those NJ models. I have fixed stock instead of folding, big deal. I have no flash suppresor, it is louder. No bayonet lug, so what. Ten round magazine, just bring more magazines(allowed 15 round ones, but nobody makes them). Also cannot say Colt AR-15 on the gun, any other combination of letters is OK. Same with AK-47, WASR-10 is OK.
I’m just grateful the libs no nothing about guns. If they did, I would be really screwed here in NJ.
Society cannot stop crazy people from causing murder & mayhem.
This loon could have just as easily used a can of gasoline & matches to do just as much carnage, maybe more. Too, he could have driven a car into a crowd of people with similar results. There are infinite ways to commit mass murder without a gun.
It is not possible to remove all potential weapons from society without creating prison like conditions in public, & even in prison, murders occur all the time.
But, if every adult in the theater had been armed with a gun, the joke may have been on the Joker. It is likely far fewer people would have been killed & injured.
It is high time this country returns to the common sense that every law abiding adult has a responsibility to defend themselves & those around them. Police will never be able to stop this type of attack, but ONE person with a gun could have.
Your answer is in your statement. Your average hunting rifle is way more firepower than the so called assault rifle. If you can, take a 5.56 round(AR-15) place it next to a popular deer hunting round, say 30-06, and compare the size.
Ask yourself, Hobson’s choice, which one you would rather get hit with. Since hunting rifles are more powerful, what would would be the point in banning rifles less powerful. No matter how they look, they all work the same. Firing pin hits primer on cartridge, gun goes bang. Today’s military rifles are designed to be less powerful than yesterday’s bolt action rifles(equivalent to hunting rifles, their the same). Less hurt on shoulder, more ammo with smaller rounds, etc.
AR-15s are not high-powered rifles, but they are magazine fed, which can give them high-capacity. Most hunting rifles are chambered for cartridges that are much more powerful than the .223 Rem (5.56mm NATO).
The error committed by gun control advocates is they don’t understand where the focus should be.
It doesn’t matter if law abiding citizens have AR 15s with 30 round capacity or 30-06 with a five round capacity. They’re not going to use it for murdering people
The focus should be on behavior. Murderous behavior is the problem.
There are plenty of 15 rounders to be had. Most are 20 rounders cut down to 15. PK90 at njgunforums makes batches of them all the time. He's an FFL in south Jersey. There are others.
There is little which is correct in this article wrt the Clinton Gun Ban.
Postban ARs were readily available and IDENTICAL functionally, supporting the same rate of fire. Standard sized magazines were in ABUNDANT supply. One could still use 10 round magazines but perform 2 second mag exchange more often. Holmes could have committed this vile act in spite of the AWB provisions.
I have a Bushmaster .223 which I bought while living and working in The people’s Republic of New Jersey” bout 9 years ago. I have since “ evolved ‘ with retirement and changed my residency to Pennsy where I can have all the “toys” and a CCW permit to boot for me and the wife. I’m going to sell the Bushmaster to a poor NJ resident because I can get a more evil looking weapon in Pennsylvania.
Clearly BECAUSE HE/SHE CAN! Much blood was spilled defending our rights and the Second Amendment IMHO is # 1 on the list!
Also to protect us from the new storm trooper police forces evolving around the country.
I picked up a Kel-Tec PMR 30. Two mags loaded with 30 .22 magnum. Is that enough firepower?
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