Posted on 06/15/2005 9:41:06 AM PDT by kiriath_jearim
June 15, 2005
Columbus
Police May Buy M16-Style Rifles
Columbus Police may get a high-caliber addition to their arsenal.
The Columbus Police Department has a proposal pending to acquire semi-automatic rifles similar to the M16 through a federal government program. The division’s ordnance unit is suggesting the weapons purchase.
The initial cost would be around $7,000, plus training and ammunition.
The reason police are considering the purchase is simple: to counter the firepower they sometimes face on the street - rifles with ranges of 600 to 800 meters.
“Handguns were originally designed for close range personal defense,” Officer John Holloway explained.
Right now shotguns are the best weapons patrol officers have to combat rifles, Officer Holloway says with concern.
“We would have to get very close to an individual armed with a rifle and put ourselves in extreme jeopardy.”
Holloway says giving officers access to semi-automatic rifles could be crucial in some cases.
“If we get a terrorist-type situation, we as first line responders… as patrol officers would be able to deal with that effectively by having M16-style weapons,” Holloway contends.
M-16 meet FN FAL or FN 49. Who will win? Of course no one should deprive the cops of their toys while they deny us ours.
But they are only good for killing people indiscriminately!!! Good thing our police officers can now spray us from the hip and kill us all with more thrust per squeeze /sarcasm
.223 is a "high caliber"?
Yeah - struck me too.
They always give the gun stories to the most firearm-ignorant people on the staff, it seems.
I'm sure they meant "High Power"...
Take away the threat by stopping them at the border first instead of fighting them on our streets.
>The reason police are considering the purchase is simple: to counter the firepower they sometimes face on the street - rifles with ranges of 600 to 800 meters. <
Gangbangers are now using long range snipers? Who knew?
That's what I thought when Uncle Sam handed me one of those things. I wondered if the Army was serious about killing men with a squirrel gun. Unfortunately, they were.
Curious. That is the same reasoning some of the Founders used when referring to the citizen militia and protecting our Right to do so with the Second Amendment.
NO shit. They would be better off with some "ancient" M-14's for real killing power. Trouble is, they would have to learn to shoot rather than spray and pray.
Yep, too damn small to deer hunt with, but way too dangerous for us reg'lur folks.
hahahaha
Can they name one actual instance where they would need to shoot at someone 800 meters away from them?
Yeah... I want one of those too.
I hope the first innocent victim of a stray bullet from one sues their pants off.
If they need extra range occasionally, I could see a bolt-action but this will just encourage carelessness.
Hmm... Civilian Marksmanship Program, perhaps? I believe they have AR-15s for "club" purchase.
Many Police Departments get used M-16s from their National Guard armories. Since they will spend most of their time riding around in the trunk of a squad car it doesn't matter that they're used.
I'd also trust a 3 round burst mode to spray and pray cops than a full auto weapon.
Definitely. But the M-16, since it's adoption by the army, has been a "little (physically) persons" weapon. The South Vietnamese soldiers hated the M-14 because of its recoil. Since US police Depts and the Military are now unisex, women and their small bodies and hands need to be accommodated. What is even more disappointing to me, is that so many men (and women) now enter the military and police forces with absolutely no firearms training from Dad or grandad. A 5.65mm rifle or a 9mm pistol is about all that they can handle.
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