Your AR-15 is dangerous and unusual, and isn't protected by the Second Amendment!

So says a federal judge, anyway. This was a case where Maryland banned ownership of certain rifles in thewake of the Sandy Hook shooting. Among the long list of banned rifles were AR-15s and AK-47s.

Naturally, this law was challenged on Constitutional grounds. However, the judge held that these types of rifles were not protected by the Second Amendment, because...get this...the AR-15 is dangerous and unusual.

Upon review of all the parties’ evidence, the court seriously doubts that the banned assault long guns are commonly possessed for lawful purposes, particularly self-defense in the home, which is at the core of the Second Amendment right, and is inclined to find the weapons fall outside Second Amendment protection as dangerous and unusual.

(emphasis mine.)

Wait. How did "dangerous" become a disqualifying factor? All rifles are kind of dangerous, if you ask me. That's kind of the point though, isn't it? If a rifle isn't at least a little dangerous, it's not really worth having, is it? I don't even get this "dangerous" thing. The danger of a weapon has almost everything to do with the person holding the weapon, and very little to do with the weapon itself.

Moving on to the real part, this judge ruled that the AR-15 is "unusual". I'm not sure how you would call the most popular rifle in America "unusual". That's just stupid. This is an example of Judge that had already reached a conclusion and simply wrote an opinion that ended up where she wanted it to.

Rolling Stone Confirms That They Don't Know Jack About Guns

The magazine that is the authoritative source about firearms has a new piece out about the "The 5 Most Dangerous Guns in America".

No, it's not Guns & Ammo. It's Rolling Stone. I mean, when you think of expert analysis on firearms, you automatically (or at least semi-automatically) think of Rolling Stone. Or am I alone here?

Anyway, the firearm experts over at Rolling Stone have come up with a list of the most dangerous types of firearms. I'm sure this was published after extensive research and serious thought. You ready? They're about to drop some knowledge on you. Seriously, they're about to tell you "These firearms are causing the most harm." You ready? There is a lot of knowledge (and some music) below the jump.

Guess the Gun - Movie Edition

Happy Friday.

Ok, no more icky politics or boring graphs of economic stuff. Time for something fun. It's time to play "Guess the Gun" (Movie Edition)

This gun comes to us from Saving Private Ryan. It is seen here held by Edward Burns (Reiben) as the squad marches through France after D-Day:

Another closeup here:

Remember, no using Google! Answer below the jump.

Name That Gun!

Here's a rifle that I've been thinking about adding to my collection. My next piece is going to be a historical rifle, and this rifle is one of the finalists.

Can anyone name it? Here's your hint: In the Civil War, it was referred to by the Rebels as "that damned Yankee rifle that they load on Sunday and shoot all week". Give up? The answer is below the jump.

It's Because I'm Black, Isn't It?

I came across this the other day in my internet meanderings, and I thought it was pretty funny:

Try not to judge a rifle by it's color.

In related news, the CWP modification law has been on the books for a little while. Has there been any "wild west" shootouts around South Carolina at bars or restaurants? Maybe I've missed the news about that.

I seem to remember all of those folks saying that it would be "open season" for shooting people, and that there would be shootouts in pizza parlors.

I guess not so much, huh?

I'm prepared to accept your apologies now.

 

You Don't Need An AK-47 Unless...

You actually happen to need it.

There's just no substitute for the right tool for the job.

Rifle Maker Is Loving SC After Leaving CT

PTR Industries, a rifle manufacturer that left Connecticut for South Carolina, is getting a healthy dose of Southern hospitality.

“I have personally been able to get a very good feel from South Carolina, from the governor down to the local beat cops to your average citizen,” he said. “The welcoming has been tremendous. People on the street, cashiers at the gas station or the pizza place, or even TSA agents, they know who we are and they’re happy to have us. In Connecticut, we always felt like a dirty little secret. Down there, it’s very much the opposite.”

Looks like South Carolina is doing something right.

Trigger Discipline (Do's and Don'ts)

Brad had a post today about some Jihadists who wear knock-off clothes. I'm not really sure what his point was, but the guy in question had some poor trigger discipline. (Finger directly on the trigger; go see for yourself) Also, it was an RPG, so we're not just talking about a stray round from an AK here. Don't be this guy.

If you're a regular reader of this blog (or just have good gun safety) you know the rule. Say it again, this time with feeling: 

Keep your finger off the trigger and outside the trigger guard until you have acquired your target and made the decision to fire.

Here's an example of good trigger discipline.

NY Passes Most Restrictive Gun Laws in Country

NY now has new gun laws. It's some pretty tough stuff: no magazines with capacity over seven rounds, all gun sales must have a check, and ammo sales are now going to require a background check (and are additionally taxed).

This gun is now illegal in New York since it has a 15 round magazine: [UPDATE] Actually, I went through and read the full text of the law, and lever action rifles are exempted. So....you can still legally own this gun. Since they've basically made the modern version of this gun illegal, maybe the ol' 1873 will have experience a renaissance.

Winchester 1873 (Yes, it was designed in 1873)

Hey, this was an "assault weapon" back in 1873.

Man Orders TV; Receives a Sig Sauer Rifle Instead

Why doesn't this kind of stuff happen to me? Guy (who lives in DC, I would note) buys a TV from Amazon and ends up with THIS. Some free legal advice to Amazon: it's somewhat illegal to mail firearms to non-FFL people. Sending it to DC should have been a red flag as well, bro.

Mrs. Permanent Press and I order diapers from Amazon all the time now. It would great if we ended up with a nice Colt Gold Cup or a Beretta Silver Pigeon. I promise not to tell.

[h/t Uncle]

Rifle Shooting Tips

From a former US Army Ranger, no less. It's pretty safe to say that he knows what he's talking about.

Saturday Gun Show (THOR M408)

If you happen to have a spare $12k burning a hole in your pocket, and you want to start hitting tin cans 2,200 yards away, this is what you need to get.

Better pictures here.