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I live in a country with tight weapon control, so I'm genuinely curious. What do you need an assault rifle for?

by klez 14y ago

cygx 14y ago
> What do you need an assault rifle for? Nothing particularly useful. It's just that most people like feeling powerful (evolution at work), and guns are a means to that end. Personally, I prefer fiction.
robomartin 14y ago
I don't personally own any guns. I have shot many at the gun range. They are fun to shoot. If I was into guns I'd probably buy one. Target shooting is interesting and fun. Also, as and engineer, I can see guns having an appeal for the mechanically inclined. Learning about how they work, how to make them more accurate, maintaining them, etc. is as interesting a hobby as, perhaps, working on cars, if one is so inclined. That's my only answer really. They are great fun at the range and neat to own. I can't seen any other scenario unless someone is crazy and has other motives. Those corner cases will find ways to cause death and destruction by whatever means necessary. The 9/11 hijackers used common knives to kill thousands of people. Tim McVeigh used fertilizer and a rented truck to kill hundreds and destroy a building. This, and the underlying data is why I don't subscribe to the idea of "assault rifles" being the root cause of our problems. I think the data shows that the problems are far more related to drugs, education, social and economic root causes than anything else.
bdunbar 14y ago
The term assault rifle is laden with emotional and legal baggage in the US. Better to say 'rifle'. Which is what the shooter in Aurora had. What do I need a rifle for? Just because. They're fun to shoot. Because I like owning a few of them. But the list of things one doesn't 'need' are long. Don't need a computer. Don't need a cell phone. Don't need a nice set of dishes for special occasions. Don't need a bread machine. Don't need a microwave. Don't need a car. Etc. I have those things not for any particular economic justification but because I _like_ having nice things. A rifle (or two, or three) is one of those things.
learc83 14y ago
>What do you need an assault rifle for? Very few people actually own assault rifles (you need a tax stamp and it has to have been registered before 1986). The weapon the shooter in Colorado used wasn't an assault rifle because it was semi-automatic. Whether you agree with it our not our constitution gives us the right to bear arms as a check against government oppression. The second amendment clearly wasn't written to protect hunter's rights. That being said an AR-15 can be used for hunting, target shooting, or home defense. Its not fundamentally different from any semi-automatic hunting rifle. Previous "Assault Weapons" restrictions in the US targeted guns based on how "scary" they looked (guns with barrel shrouds, collapsible stocks etc...). Since statically these kinds of guns are almost never used in crimes, regulating them would have almost no impact on overall death rate.
michaelt 14y ago
I can understand wanting one for sports and leisure. I too live in a country with tight weapon control; if I went on holiday to America and had a chance to go to a gun range and fire an AK-47 you bet I'd do it. Of course, I'd also like to fire one of those stinger missiles, and the deck guns on a battleship. I can understand there being other considerations that conflict with my desires.
cbmcgee 14y ago
I grew up in a rural area AR-15s are very popular for varmint hunting. Predators like coyotes are a real problem for farmers. Some states go as far as to offer bounties for the purpose of population control. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varmint_hunting http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varmint_hunting To your original question, do you "need" a semi-automatic rifle for varmint hunting? No, but they are very well suited for that purpose.

I live in a country with tight weapon control, so I'm genuinely curious. What do you need an assault rifle for?

by klez 14y ago

I live in a country with tight weapon control, so I'm genuinely curious. What do you need an assault rifle for?

cygx 14y ago

> What do you need an assault rifle for? Nothing particularly useful. It's just that most people like feeling powerful (evolution at work), and guns are a means to that end. Personally, I prefer fiction.

robomartin 14y ago

I don't personally own any guns. I have shot many at the gun range. They are fun to shoot. If I was into guns I'd probably buy one. Target shooting is interesting and fun. Also, as and engineer, I can see guns having an appeal for the mechanically inclined. Learning about how they work, how to make them more accurate, maintaining them, etc. is as interesting a hobby as, perhaps, working on cars, if one is so inclined. That's my only answer really. They are great fun at the range and neat to own. I can't seen any other scenario unless someone is crazy and has other motives. Those corner cases will find ways to cause death and destruction by whatever means necessary. The 9/11 hijackers used common knives to kill thousands of people. Tim McVeigh used fertilizer and a rented truck to kill hundreds and destroy a building. This, and the underlying data is why I don't subscribe to the idea of "assault rifles" being the root cause of our problems. I think the data shows that the problems are far more related to drugs, education, social and economic root causes than anything else.

bdunbar 14y ago

The term assault rifle is laden with emotional and legal baggage in the US. Better to say 'rifle'. Which is what the shooter in Aurora had. What do I need a rifle for? Just because. They're fun to shoot. Because I like owning a few of them. But the list of things one doesn't 'need' are long. Don't need a computer. Don't need a cell phone. Don't need a nice set of dishes for special occasions. Don't need a bread machine. Don't need a microwave. Don't need a car. Etc. I have those things not for any particular economic justification but because I _like_ having nice things. A rifle (or two, or three) is one of those things.

learc83 14y ago

>What do you need an assault rifle for? Very few people actually own assault rifles (you need a tax stamp and it has to have been registered before 1986). The weapon the shooter in Colorado used wasn't an assault rifle because it was semi-automatic. Whether you agree with it our not our constitution gives us the right to bear arms as a check against government oppression. The second amendment clearly wasn't written to protect hunter's rights. That being said an AR-15 can be used for hunting, target shooting, or home defense. Its not fundamentally different from any semi-automatic hunting rifle. Previous "Assault Weapons" restrictions in the US targeted guns based on how "scary" they looked (guns with barrel shrouds, collapsible stocks etc...). Since statically these kinds of guns are almost never used in crimes, regulating them would have almost no impact on overall death rate.

michaelt 14y ago

I can understand wanting one for sports and leisure. I too live in a country with tight weapon control; if I went on holiday to America and had a chance to go to a gun range and fire an AK-47 you bet I'd do it. Of course, I'd also like to fire one of those stinger missiles, and the deck guns on a battleship. I can understand there being other considerations that conflict with my desires.

cbmcgee 14y ago

I grew up in a rural area AR-15s are very popular for varmint hunting. Predators like coyotes are a real problem for farmers. Some states go as far as to offer bounties for the purpose of population control. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varmint_hunting http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varmint_hunting To your original question, do you "need" a semi-automatic rifle for varmint hunting? No, but they are very well suited for that purpose.