Iraqis can keep their assault rifles

Orange County Register ^ | June 1, 2003 | Edmund L. Andrews

[fightinJAG]

U.S. retreats from previous policy. Military officials have said it's hard to disarm people who fear for their safety.

BAGHDAD, IRAQ

[demosthenes the elder]

GOOD.
Now, let's see if we can arrange to renew our own rights to keep such weapons.

[MonroeDNA]

Powel lost again.

[Fiddlstix]

Great Graphic
The New Minuteman

[RusIvan]

And they are full automatic. Interesting they probably would need new one like ak74?

[Shooter 2.5]

This is a major victory for the Iraqi people and for us.

I don't know if you read the articles about the Assault Weapons ban but the libs were saying, why were we disarming the Iraqis if we were not going to continue the AWB. They said we were being hypocrites.

[TLI]

< tard >

Asked Saturday whether Iraqis would be allowed to keep assault rifles in their homes, a spokesman for Bremer said, "Yes, they will be allowed to keep their AK-47s."  "It is not a program for the disarmament of the Iraqi people," added the spokesman, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "It is a weapons-control program."

? HUH ?

At the time, the list of automatic weapons to be banned specifically included AK-47 Kalashnikovs, the Russian assault rifles that are nearly ubiquitous in Iraq. But that approach came under heavy criticism from many Iraqis, who argued that families and business owners badly needed the weapons to defend themselves from looters and organized criminal gangs.

OH, now I understand!  I compleatly forgot . . .   there are no criminals or gangs here in the u.S.!

The new weapons policy appears to be the outcome of a debate among top military officials in Iraq. Lt. Gen. David D. McKiernan, commander of U.S. and British land forces in Iraq, told reporters two weeks ago that he was skeptical about simply trying to disarm Iraqi civilians.  "For one thing, I don't think it would be enforceable," McKiernan said at the time.

Well now,, DAVE,  take a W A G what is not enforcable here in America either.

< / tard >

 

[2nd_Amendment_Defender]

If I had the choice between a semi-automatic AK-47 or a fully automatic, I would take the semi-automatic. Full auto just sprays bullets and wastes ammunition.

I am not against private ownership of automatic firearms. I personally would not own any because I do not like firearms that waste ammunition.

[Ford Fairlane]

Just yesterday, we had a coyote invasion, & I went next door to my dad's pasture with my select fire (supressed) FN FAL, & I gave my sister my select fire AK 47, & my niece my M2 carbine, & we got 5 of those bastards!!

OK, it's just barely legal because I have a manufacturer's license, (we are in Illinois) but noone came to take our guns. (& If they tried they wouldn't have left)

I cannot even begin to understand how we can refuse rights to the newly liberated Iraqui people that our constitution allows us!!

[JSteff]

It would be our patriotic duty to assist in helping the Iraqi's economy. They should allow us to buy some of the AK's.

[JSteff]

Yeah but 7.62 X 39 is SO cheap. I do agree though that full auto is a waste, but three burst limiters are just about right.

[xm177e2]

This is a very good (and not unexpected) change. It was a very stupid idea to try to take rifles from the people.

[Chewbacca]

" It's interesting that the people of Iraq have more second amendment rights than Americans. The AK-47's that they get to keep are FULL AUTOMATIC while we poor Americans can only own SEMI-AUTO rifles."

I really don't want a Full-Auto firearm. Semi-auto teaches you to be better at shot placement and ammo conservation.

Notice how most of the middle east and african nations where the poor man has a full-auto they usually tend to spray bullets all over without aiming.

[Epasonic]

"What part of "the right of the people to keep and bear ARMS shall not be infringed" do they not understand? "

Sadly the line is not that distinct. The wording is "A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed."

The wording was intentionally left open to interpretation. Some view this as a statement that only military personel should have this right. Also under the other interpretation, the ammendment states nothing about ammunition. The government could legally ban ammunition, without infringing upon constitutional rights.

[RogueIsland]

Iraqis can keep their assault rifles

What about the children!!! Won't somebody please think of the children!!! < /Sarah Brady bleating >

[RogueIsland]

The wording was intentionally left open to interpretation.

A little background reading about the Founders and their attitude about an armed populace makes it very clear what they intended. Very little interpretation on our part is required. In their writings and statements, they have already gone trhough the trouble of interpreting it for us.

Some view this as a statement that only military personel should have this right.

Those people are wrong. The only way for someone to hold that opinion is out of political bias or historical ignorance. Unfortunately, our court system often adopts the former and our populace is often mired in the latter.

[Redbob]

"I got as far as: "...what had been a much tougher plan to rid postwar Iraq of heavy weapons..." when refering to allowing Iraqi's to keep their AK's.

Gotta hate the left-wing radical extremists ... who haven't the slightest idea of reality - nor of what constitutes "Heavy Weapons"

An AK-47 is NOT."

It is if the only thing YOU have in your hands is a pencil or a word-processor!

But seriously, this is good news: when personal freedoms are under assault anywhere, they are under assault everywhere.
And especially, when the U.S. government is the perpetrator of such an assault, then all Americans have cause for concern.

It does look like that uncommon commodity, common-sense, is winning out.

[Redbob]

"It's interesting that the people of Iraq have more second amendment rights than Americans. The AK-47's that they get to keep are FULL AUTOMATIC while we poor Americans can only own SEMI-AUTO rifles."

We're working on, we're working on it...

These laws we have weren't passed in a single day, and it'll certainly take more than a single Administration to dismantle them.

"Assault weapons" and high-cap magazine ban is first.

[drlevy88]

Wal how do ya say "yee-haw" in Arabic?

[Austin Willard Wright]

Working on? You mean by renewing the ban on the import of semi-autos?

I suspect that this move was dictated more by prudent realism rather love of the right ot keep and bear arms. Even so, by takling this action, the occupation authorities showed some rare good sense.

[archy]

GOOD.
Now, let's see if we can arrange to renew our own rights to keep such weapons.

We'll just have to see that what happened to befall their dictator also comes to pass for some of ours. Some photographs of a few of the most notorious on a deck of cards seems like a good start.

-archy-/-