In a Boulder, Colorado grocery store a gunman equipped with an AR-15 type assault rifle systematically gunned down 10 innocent people including a policeman who attempted to stop him.  As horrible as it was, it could have been worse.  The slaughter was limited only by the number of people in the store and their ability to get out of the line of fire because the killer was virtually unlimited by the number of shots he could fire with quick reloads.

There is a reason why so many of those who try to kill as many people as possible chose assault rifles such as the AR-15 and its many copies for their horrendous acts. These rifles were designed for the military with one purpose and one purpose only – to kill people as efficiently as possible.  The only important difference between the AR-15 and its military equivalents, the M-16 and M4, is the ability for the military weapons to be switched to three-round bursts or continuous fire.  However, that is not a real limitation for a mass shooter who can fire an AR-15 as quickly as he can pull the trigger – 45 to 60 times a minute.

The allure of the weapon is the accuracy of the weapon, the ability to fire many shots without having to reload, and its devastating killing power.  The most common magazines for the AR-15 and its equivalents allow a shooter to fire 30 rounds without reloading, but larger magazines including  100 round models are also available.  Reloading with another magazine takes only seconds.

However, the real difference between the AR-15 type weapon and a semi-automatic pistol is the damage its bullets can do to the human body.  While a projectile shot from a pistol will generally travel straight through a human, when the typical 5.56 mm (.223 caliber) bullet enters the body at speeds much higher than a pistol bullet, it is designed to tumble and disintegrate, obliterating muscle tissue and blood vessels before leaving a huge exit hole. Even if the damage to the body is not initially fatal, the chances that the victim will bleed out before receiving help is significantly increased.  Even if the victim survives, the damage is often life-changing.

Practically the only legitimate use for a weapon that can cause that kind of destruction is killing varmints and perhaps feral pigs.  However, there are many other rifles that are equally good for that kind of hunting.  A legitimate hunter does not need an AR-15 or other assault rifle for that purpose unless he simply wants to pump up his low self-esteem.  

Up until now, Republicans in Congress have been able to shut down any attempts to institute sensible gun control measures including attempts to reinstate the ban against civilian possession of assault weapons.  Even today with 50-50 Senate it would be extremely difficult, but damn, isn’t it worth another try?

Cajun (Rick Guilbeau)     3/23/2021