High Caliber Guns

Low Caliber gun owners

© 2005 Bryan Zepp Jamieson

1/16/05

http://www.zeppscommentaries.com/Sociology/50cal.htm

Fifty caliber semiautomatics are back in the news, but fortunately not because they separated some politician’s brains from his immediate neighborhood, or were used to cause a 767 to go cartwheeling down 315 in a fiery final approach.

Fortunately, the reason for the gust of publicity came from Governor Arnie’s decision to sign legislation banning the sale of such weapons in California, making California the only state in America with such a law. ‘60 Minutes’ subsequently did a piece on the weapons. Needless to say, the type of people who need such weapons in order to feel comfortable dealing with their friends, family, neighbors and boss are flabbergasted. How DARE Arnie, a man best known for carelessly slinging around weapons that no other mortal can even lift, that can shoot skyscrapers in half, do something like this? Hunters NEED a gun with enough firepower to stop a gopher without leaving enough for DNA analysis to tell what species it was!

I decided that the best way to approach this topic would be to take a look at what people who support fifty caliber weapons had to say. My first site was the Daily News Journal, and an article written by one Mark Lewis, who mostly pouted that 60 Minutes, by discussing problems people see with high powered weapons, was setting America on a slippery slope to something pretty awful.

Lewis wrote, "Barrett is the designer and manufacturer of 50-caliber sniper rifles, an extremely powerful weapon he sells under contract to various militaries, law enforcement agencies, civilian collectors and gun enthusiasts. [...] the specialty rifles, which combine high power with an effective range well of more than a mile, could be a serious threat to national security in the hands of a terrorist. [...] Barrett agreed that his rifles can be potentially dangerous but added that any weapon is dangerous in the hands of a terrorist. Under federal law, Barrett's rifles are treated no differently than a common hunting rifle. ‘I fear Diaz played '60 Minutes' right down where he wanted them,’ said Barrett. ‘The effect the segment had is it left people thinking there is a dangerous gun out there that legislation needs to be done against.’"

If you’re wondering about the confused thinking seen there, remember that the Daily News Journal, and Mark Lewis, hail from Murfreesboro, Tennessee, which just happens to be where Bartlett’s gunnery is located. Good local newspapers report local news. Bad ones have front page editorials disguised as news stories that huff indignantly if someone criticizes the town’s cash cow.

I decided to look for a better example of pro fifty caliber thinking, and found the Fifty Caliber Institute. http://www.fiftycal.org The name may be incredibly silly and pretentious, much like the corrugated tin shacks in rural Oregon that pass themselves off as the "Oregon Institute of Science and Medicine," but the website did make a serious effort to list their arguments in favor of fifty caliber weapons, and reasons why others who oppose them are wrong, in a list called "Top Ten Lies about 50cals." Each one line "lie" clicks to about 200 to 600 words of parenthetic text. Anyone who wishes to can view their arguments at fiftycal.org.

Here are their "lies" and my response.

* 50cal rifles can shoot with deadly accuracy up to four miles away.

The Institute argues that the effective range of a 50 caliber is 1,800 yards. Effective range is defined as the distance at which a skilled marksman can hit a specific target. However, maximum range – the distance at which a slug can do damage – is up to 7,000 yards, or four miles. The armor piercing incendiary slugs (M8s) are rated at 6,470 yards. At that distance, they may not be accurate – but they remain quite deadly. At two miles, such a bullet can strike – and penetrate – a Humvee, an APC, or a presidential limo. It may not hit the specific part of the limo you are aiming for, but if you have a semi-automatic, that’s not a problem. Just spray and pray.

* 50cal rifles can shoot down commercial airliners.

The institute uses two approaches, a strawman and a non sequitur, to argue this one. They argued that nobody could shoot a jet out of the sky, from the ground, that was cruising at 35,000 feet. That’s absolutely true. However, jets don’t always travel at 35,000 feet. They take off, they land. A plane on final at less than 2,000 feet, is moving at about 230 miles an hour. A semi-automatic 50 caliber gun could cause an approaching plane to lose control and crash. The second part of their argument was about how a study reported that explosive decompression would not be a serious factor in the event of a gun fight aboard an airline at cruising altitude. The study was done by Boeing, a company that doubtlessly wanted to share news of aircraft vulnerabilities with prospective buyers. In this instance, we are assuming that aircraft at cruising altitude are safe from 50 caliber weapons. The trouble is that they aren’t going to stay at cruising altitude forever. Incidently, there are now several dozen cases of laser beams striking commercial planes, all at relatively low altitude, since Christmas. Is somebody practicing? Sighting?

* 50cal rifles can shoot through seven buildings.

The institute decided to give this the benefit of the doubt and use flimsy buildings such as one might find in the downtown area – banks and what not – to disparage the claim. They found it unlikely that any bullet could go through seven buildings of stone and brick. The version of this claim I’ve heard specifies wood frame homes like you find in the suburbs. I’m skeptical of the claim that a slug could penetrate seven buildings in a row. Even an armor piercing bullet will begin tumbling after going through a couple of walls, which will greatly reduce its penetration power. I wouldn’t want to be in the house next to one where the weapon was being fired. Or the one over from that. But at the far end of the block, I would feel a bit more comfortable. So this claim probably is bullshit.

I’ve never heard this particular claim made. Light armored vehicles at closer range, certainly. Odd that the Institute didn’t address the claim that HAS been made, that it can penetrate a Humvee at 500 yards quite easily.

* 50cal rifles can blow up armored limousines and helicopters.

The magic is in the details. Bullets don’t, as a rule, blow things up. As the Institute notes, they put holes in things. Along with the occupants of limousines and helicopters, they can put holes in engines, in fuel tanks (and there is an incendiary slug that can cause, if not a Hollywood-type explosion, at least a satisfyingly vigorous fire) and through cooling systems and hydraulics. I think that if I was in a situation where someone was shooting at me with such a weapon, I wouldn’t be real thrilled if my engine seized while I was trying to escape. Of course, if I happened to be perforated too, the problem might be moot.

I’ve never heard of ANY guns being used at Oklahoma City. And at Waco, the most powerful device in play was whatever the Feds had handy. Even the claim that a tank fired on the building was discredited. Koresh may have had sawed off shotguns, but he certainly had no 50 caliber weapons. So the Institute is correct about this, but so what? They knocked down a claim that wasn’t being made!

* 50cal rifles are the ultimate terrorist and criminal weapon.

The Institute talks about how inconvenient a 50 caliber weapon would be in the commission of a crime. They note that at 37 pounds and at full size, it’s not something you want if you are running from the cops after doing a Willie Sutter. However, the Institute doesn’t say one word about terrorist uses, which have another set of parameters. Once they have shot down the plane or assassinated the political leader or whatever, they are likely to just abandon the weapon if they think it might impede escape – if, in fact, they consider escape a viable option. Do people who conduct suicide bombings worry about trying to run away with all that dynamite under their clothes?

Fortunately for all would-be assassins and terrorists, the gun industry has your back. For folks who want to use military grade weapons to knock over the local 7-11, they have a lightweight (26 pound) version that . . . well, let the ad tell the story:

Neat, huh? If you want to shoot Tony Blair on the Scottish highlands at midnight in winter, you’re all set.

Oh, and if you happen to be in the US on a visitor’s visa, learning to fly aircraft into buildings or whatever, you’ll be happy to know that Form 4437 has you covered. Aliens may be required to show utility bills or lease agreements as additional forms of proof of ID and residency in order to own a 50 caliber per line 18b. Non-immigrant aliens would have to show that they convinced a minor local functionary that they weren’t raving dangerous loons and produce a hunting licence or permit. If you’re fit to shoot squirrels, you’re fit to have a gun that can take out a helicopter at 1,000 yards. And since the government destroys all records of gun sales after 24 hours, after a day, nobody will have any idea that you have that gun, or what you’ve done with it.

Like "partial birth abortion" the term "assault weapon" is meaningless. In this case, there is concern about a fantastically powerful weapon that has no legitimate use. Nobody goes squirrel hunting with one of those. Although Barrett, the outfit that invented the 50 caliber and is the biggest seller of these weapons, likes to pretend that they are a toy:

I wonder if we’ll see ads for them on the Cartoon Network soon. "Plinking." Ohmigawd. "Plinking." This is like using a D9 to weed your tulip patch, or the pipe organ at Winchester Cathedral to play "My Dog Has Fleas."

The Institute apparently thinks that teenagers with drivers’ licences are suicidal or have other psychological problems, because they note that background checks screen such people out. Of course, such screening doesn’t get the "But he seemed like such a nice, quiet boy" types, but it does get the loons who have acted suicidally and presented a danger to themselves or others. The Institute is mildly miffed about that, claiming – falsely – that automobile drivers aren’t subject to such inconveniences. What this has to do with teenagers isn’t clear. Certainly an 18 year old with a clean record can buy such a gun. They also mention cost, and it’s true that a brand new Barrett with all the bells and whistles can set you back $13,000, but a used 50 caliber can be had for as low as $600, or the going rate for an ‘82 K frame car. Any teenager who has never publicly threatened to assassinate the mayor and who has a paycheck from Mickee Dee’s can get one.

The Institute claims that any such sales are fraudulent. But the ads are there, and are not limited to American dealers. One ad that I saw, from a Swedish outfit calling itself nammo.com, wrote, "A core technology is the filling of explosive charges. The facilities serve both internal and external customers for various warhead requirements for artillery ammunition, antitank weapons and missiles. The technologies include traditional casting and pressing of standard explosives as well as pressing of modern plastic bonded explosives (PBX)." Caveat Emptor. If you plan on shooting down Air Force One on final approach, made sure you get your bullets from a reliable source in the militia underground, and not from some shady internet dealer.

Remember, safety, knowledge and responsibility are the watchword of the fifty caliber gun owner!