What is an Assault Weapon
With the recent rash of school shootings, there has been a renewed call for an assault weapons ban. But, what exactly is an assault weapon? The AR-15 is the quintessential assault weapon that people wish to ban. It is the most popular rifle in America with over 3.3 million of them sold in the U.S.
Before we describe what an assault weapon is, we need to start with some basic definitions. I believe two people can not have a conversation unless they both have an understanding of the basic terms. To that end allow me to define some firearms-related terms that you may or may not know.
Single Shot – A single-shoot weapon requires a person to load a new round after every shot. These weapons are time-consuming to shoot and are often used as competition rifles.
Level Action – A lever action rifle is one in which the operator has to pull down a level to expel the spent shell and load the new round.
Semi-Automatic – A Semi-automatic firearm is one in which a single round is fired with each pull of the trigger. These weapons contain a magazine that holds multiple rounds.
Full-Automatic – A fully-automatic firearm is one in which the operator can hold the trigger and the weapon will continue to fire as long as it has rounds or the trigger is released.
With the basics defined, let’s move on to defining what an assault weapon is and what it is not.
The Assault Rifle
Pictured here is the M4A1. It is an assault rifle. It is NOT an assault weapon. It fires the 5.56 NATO round. It is capable of fully automatic fire at a rate close to 950 rounds per minute. In 1986 this type of weapon was banned from being sold to civilians.
The Machine Gun
Pictured here is a Browning M2 Machine gun, often called the MA Deuce. It fires a .50 caliber round. It is a machine gun and not an assault weapon. A machine gun is usually a more substantial weapon than an assault rifle and can handle belt-fed ammunition. Most machine guns use a bipod or tripod to support their weight. A machine gun can typically handle well over 600 rounds a minute. In 1986 this type of weapon was banned from being sold to civilians.
The Ranch Rifle
This is a Ruger AR-14 ranch rifle. It fires the .223 Rem/5.56 round. It is a semi-automatic rifle and is not capable of fully automatic fire. If you pull the trigger, it fires one round. One must release the trigger and pull it again to fire another round. It can not shoot any faster than one can pull the trigger. The Ruger AR-14 is not an assault weapon. it is called a range rifle or just a simple rifle.
The Assault Weapon!
The final picture listed below is an AR-15. It fires the .223 Rem/5.56 round. It is a semi-automatic rifle and is not capable of fully automatic fire. If you pull the trigger, it fires one round. One must release the trigger and pull it again to fire another round. It can not shoot any faster than one can pull the trigger. The AR-15 is an assault weapon.
What’s the Difference?
You will notice the specs for the Ruger and the AR-15 are the same. The magazines between the 2 are interchangeable. So what makes the Ruger a range rifle and the AR-15 an assault weapon?
It Looks Scary!
In 1994 Congress passed the “Assault Weapons Ban”. However, at the time there was no real definition of an assault weapon. Congress had to give them a definition because before 1989 the very term assault weapon did not exist. So Congress decided that military-looking weapons that had collapsible buttstocks, pistol grips, or flash suppressors were “Assault Weapons” because they looked menacing.
The ban had nothing to do with muzzle velocity, the rate of fire, lethality, or anything else that will affect one’s life. An assault weapon is defined merely by the way a rifle looks. If it is big, black, and scary, it is an assault weapon and needs to be banned.
What the media calls assault weapons, function like every other normal semi-automatic firearm. They fire only one bullet each time one pulls the trigger. Unlike assault rifles, which are only in the hands of the military, they do not fire continuously as long as one holds the trigger. Today in America, most handguns are semi-automatic, as are many rifles, including the best-selling rifle today, the AR-15, the model used in the Newtown shooting.
Some of these guns look like assault rifles, but they do not function like them.
So why the renewed call to ban assault weapons if there is no difference between a regular semi-automatic rifle and an assault weapon? Organizations like the “Violence Policy Center”, an anti-gun lobby use the lack of public understanding of the difference between an assault rifle and an AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle to promote an agenda of gun control. This agenda narrative has also been picked up by the media with publications like USA TODAY referring to the weapons used at Virginia Tech and Santa Fe as “Less Lethal.” I am sure the victims don’t feel “less dead.”
It is not my purpose to change your mind about gun control. But before you support a cause one way or another I want you to be able to make an informed decision based on factual information and not emotion or purposely distorted facts.
In future posts, we will discuss guns, gun violence, and other subjects concerning guns. We have a problem in this country with violence. I can’t say that I am for or against gun control. What I am for is solid laws that can make a difference rather than fluff laws that make politicians look like they did something.