Stop Blaming The Gun

Every time there is a mass shooting with an AR-15 people start screaming about gun control and banning AR-15 “assault rifles.” These demands usually begin before the dead and wounded are even removed from the scene. Even progressive politicians are quick to get in front of the cameras and denounce Republicans for their “failure to increase gun control.”

The AR-15 is not an assault rifle – at least not the ones you can purchase in stores or online. The AR-15 is a semiautomatic rifle that fires one bullet with each trigger pull. It is designed in the style of the military M-16 but unless it has the capability to fire single shot, three round burst, and fully automatic it is not an assault rifle. AR stands for Armalite Rifles, not “Assault Rifle.”

The above photo is an M1 .30 caliber carbine. It is a semiautomatic rifle just like the AR-15 but fires a different bullet. It fires one round with each trigger pull and has various size magazines.

This photo shows a Ruger Mini 14 rifle. It is also semiautomatic and fires the same exact round as the AR-15.

I haven't heard anyone call for these weapons to be banned even though the do the exact same thing as an AR-15. Why is that, do you suppose?

This is the standard AR-15. It has a collapsible stock, military sights (if so desired) a flash suppressor and a pistol grip. Guess what? None of those things make it any more dangerous than the other two rifles.

Although the way the gun functions is different than the carbine or the Mini 14, it fires essentially the same round and the same amount of rounds as the other two. It is no more dangerous than the other two yet some people say it needs to be banned.

The reason? AR-15s look different. That's essentially the difference. Oh sure, the AR-15 firing mechanism is a little different than the other two but the rounds coming out of the barrel don't know that. It's a semiautomatic rifle that fires on bullet for each trigger pull.

The AR-15 looks like a military weapon – but it isn't. The media began calling it an assault rifle after it was used in a mass shooting. Others call it a “weapon of war.” Some even believe that AR stands for assault rifle but they're wrong. It's no different in firepower than the other two. It's a rifle.

The reason most mass shooters use these rifles is because the media has succeeded in turning the weapons into assault weapons in the eyes of the general public. They're easy to use and can hold large capacity magazines. But so are the other two. The other two just look more like conventional weapons.

Like any other weapon, AR-15s don't do anything unless they are in the hands of a person who pulls the trigger. And if someone on the other end of the barrel gets shot it's certainly not the fault of the gun. Guns don't think. Guns don't hate. Guns aren't evil. They are tools and only as deadly as the person firing them.

It's time we stop blaming inanimate objects for the actions of humans. There are lots of things that contribute to the makeup of a person who commits a terrible act like this. Most of the recent mass shooters were on some type of psychotropic drug. Many had violent histories and/or histories of odd or inappropriate behavior. Others were a complete surprise to everyone. But their gun of choice had no responsibility in their decision to kill.