Posted on 10/10/2002 7:06:32 AM PDT by dirtboy
FORGET HANNIBAL LECTER, the embodiment of evil in its purest form is roaming the Washington, D.C., area right now, killing and wounding adults and children with cold dispatch.
We don't know his name, but we do know this: The mystery sniper who has all of Washington hiding under its covers has an identifiable partner in crime who should be held nearly as responsible for these reprehensible acts as the shooter - the National Rifle Association.
Because of the NRA, police are having a harder time catching this crazy than they should.
Other than a chilling tarot card depicting death and bearing this handwritten message "Dear Policeman: I am God," investigators have found only one other kind of clue to track this monster down: bullet fragments.
Ballistics have long allowed police to link a bullet to a particular gun. So if they ever find this killer and his weapon, they can clearly connect rifle and crime.
But what if you could reverse the process and link a gun to a particular bullet? The technology now exists for every gun's ballistic "fingerprint" to be kept on file. In this way, police could instantly know which specific gun was used in the commission of a crime and track down the owner.
But who has opposed this sensible idea? The NRA. The organization has bullied Congress into refusing to set up a national registry of guns.
A federal program is needed because a piecemeal effort won't be enough. Maryland, where many of these shootings have been committed, requires gun manufacturers to submit ballistic fingerprints of guns sold in the state. But that information is useless if the weapon was purchased in another state, or before the requirement went into effect.
Experts believe the weapon being used is either an assault rifle or a hunting rifle. A hunting rifle, in particular, will be difficult to trace because the NRA has been very effective in keeping any information about hunting rifles away from law enforcement officials.
We're all for privacy, but it's reckless to put privacy of gun ownership above human lives. If the government has a compelling reason to know what car you drive, what home you live in and how much you earn, shouldn't it also know what kind of gun you own?
Nothing will bring back the six lives - or possibly a seventh victim gunned down last night - that have been lost, or spare the pain and terror a 13-year-old felt when he was cut down by a .223 caliber bullet. But maybe this horror in the nation's capital will finally force Congress to ignore the dangerous rhetoric of the NRA.
.
.
.
.
still waiting...
.
.
.
My question is, How many is X numbers of rounds fired to alter the fingerprint enough to be marginally different from the first round fired?
Of course, this fingerprint idea does not take into account replacement parts (barrel, hammer, firing pin) nor intentional methods of alterning the fingerprint, marking bullets, using homemade ammo/reloads, etc.
FYI - I am no expert on firearms. Just using a little common sense. There, I said it, stop recoiling in horror. :)
Except, of course, for those stolen rifles!
Except, of course, for the immediate deployment of deliberately self fragmenting bullets!
Even in fantasy land, trying to prevent someone who wants to do what this sniper is doing is impossible. In reality, with our borders so porous that 1 million or more illegals cross every year, and thousands of tons of cocaine, heroin, and other drugs cross the borders every year, such that even if every rifle in the USA magically was confiscated by aliens tomorrow - does anyone think that the sniper couldn't get a replacement in a few weeks?
Why is it that hydrocephalics in the US all seem able to hold down media jobs, political positions and the like instead of receiving proper care???
Probably not. Your carrying a handgun will not protect you from someone shooting you in the back from concealment from 2 or 3 hundred yards away. Military snipers work on the battlefield in an environment where all the combatants are heavily armed with much more than handguns, and they are effective.
Pretty soon, all single/divorced white males will have to give DNA samples... and attend sensitivity classes.
Unsigned editorial... smart move. I'd track this bastid down like the scum that he is.
Are these people so totally obtuse that they believe that a killer like this guy would obey the law and own only legally registered sniper rifles??? OMG, that's right. Mister Sniper would make sure to get his gun's ballistic fingerprint on file before he went on his killing spree.
I need help to understand this utter lack of logic or comprehension of the real world.
That want that too.
Yeah, it takes a lot of guts to write an editorial that associates the NRA with the criminal(s) responsible for these crimes. The NRA are regular folks just like you and me. The author of this piece is projection his cowardice indicated by his unwillingness to sign his name. I think he is the one who has more in common with the garbage taking potshots at innocent citizens.
You're right. The bodies of the victims are important to them because they give them a platform on which to stand to preach their true agenda: the disarming of lawful citizens. Publicly they shed crocodile tears over the deaths. Privately they squeal with delight because the killings are rekindling the anti-2d Smendment propaganda fire which of late had lapsed into warm embers.
These are the very same cynical tactics that were employed by pro-dopers when the Christian missionaries and their plane were shot down by a Peruvian air force pilot who mistakenly thought their plane was involved in drug smuggling.
Yes
They want that too.
If we had another Clinton administration (heaven forbid) Congress would have already passed a bill authorizing this - and we would have civil war on our hands. Let's keep the scum out of office, period!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.