It would seem I’m going to need to clarify a few things when it comes to the use and legality of guns in this country. Or perhaps, define would be a better word. In the wake of Newtown, which I believe DID occur, contrary to many in the “blogosphere”, there has been a constant conversation on what gun laws should be, what should be banned, and what to do about gun violence in this country.
None of these are simple conclusions to reach- and to be perfectly honest, I was willing to let the “powers that be” make up their own minds. That being said, I keep noticing that both sides of the supposed argument insist on using disinformation and outright flawed facts to present their cases. THAT is what does NOT sit well with me. Allow me, once again to set the record straight. Groooooan!
Clearly you have the “left” and “right” representations and the truth, behind all of the debate, is lost in the malaise somewhere in the middle. Let’s look for that truth shall we?
Let me start by recognizing the father of a Newtown victim, Neil Heslin. Robbie Parker, if you’re reading- THAT is how you show adequate grief in the loss of your child! There is not one piece of his testimony on Capitol Hill or his interview with Chris Mathews that appeared disingenuous. He truly suffered a great loss and you would do well to take note. I’m sure you’ve got some dark secrets that you’re never gonna’ have to face, thanks to that fateful day.
Moving on- Mr. Mathews had a doctor from Newtown as a guest on his show yesterday who treated many of the victims in the shooting. He too showed true despair from what he witnessed and made a very convincing case against assault weapons. The only problem is that he based his views on things he doesn’t even understand. In turn, my research leads me to believe, that I don’t even understand the crazy ass math behind bullets and their behaviors from certain weapons!
Here’s a quote by Andrew from Yahoo answers- “Well the 5.5 mm round will be going about 3 times the speed of the 9mm round so in killing power the 5.5 mm would actually produce about 3 times as much “shock” when it hits. A 9mm bullet weighs on average 115 grains and goes 1200 to 1400 fps. A 5.5 mm or .223 bullet weighs about 55 to 75 grains depending on the bullet and it goes about 3000 to 3800 feet per second. Plus the 9 mm accuracy distance is only about 50 yards if you are a good shooter. A .223 or 5.5mm as you call it can accurately hit at distances of about 400 yards or farther. A 115 grain 9mm bullet going 1400 feet per second will produce 500ft-lbs of energy. A 55 grain .223 bullet going 3500 fps will produce about 1500ft-lbs of energy. If you look at a 9mm bullet you will see it has a straight, short cartridge. If you look at a .223 bullet you will see that it has a longer necked down cartridge. So the .223 actually has more power than the 9mm.”
Dude, what the fuck? I miss the old west revolvers already. At any rate, what I am gathering here is that it’s not the size of the bullet, rather the “shock” it creates when it hits the target. No wonder guns often become metaphors for male genitalia!
All that aside, it points to the main problem I have with this whole gun debate. People- especially politicians or random victims don’t understand what they’re talking about. For instance, did you know that the big, bad AR-15 that has become the icon for all this talk of assault weapon bans is not actually an assault weapon? By definition, an assault weapon must have fully automatic and or burst fire capabilities. The AR-15 doesn’t have this in its current form. In reality, it only looks like an assault weapon. The true assault weapons based on that design are the M4 Carbine and M-16 which are available to military and police only. So, technically speaking- reinstating an assault weapons ban wouldn’t even apply to the AR-15!
Now, at this point I’m afraid I may be seemingly on the side of the NRA in this. Nigga’ please! While I believe having a “Proud Member of the NRA” sticker on your front window might send a message to some asshole who wants to break into your house- why do we have an NRA? I mean, the Second Amendment is really all ANY of us need. All the NRA is good for is to confuse and corrupt our government in order to serve a select few manufacturers of firearms. They buy and sell politicians and ultimately create the types of gridlock that paralyzes our political process!
I utterly despise lobbyist and the “gun lobby” is no exception. Perhaps, in that Orwellian, 19th century utopia, the Tea Party would have us revert to- lobbyists would be a good thing. Seeing as no one would have cell phones or paved roads but Goddamn! I’d like to think the human species as progressed in, oh let’s say, the last 200 years! The people of America have the option of having their voice heard without all this nonsense! You mean I can determine who my next pop idol is going to be via text but I still need some crusty old guy to tell my government what I’m thinking? Give me a fucking break!
While I’m at it, Mr. President- this one is for you. I believe in, and trust you to do the right thing. However, if you don’t understand that most of the issues surrounding gun rights in this country are based on a fear of what our government might be capable of- than nothing will ever change! These gun toting maniacs have a real and verifiable fear of government corruption that could very well take away their rights as American citizens!
Your “transparent” administration seems to have lied to us for years over things like drones, wars and economic matters. The Gitmo trials are clearly being run by the CIA- to the point that the so called “judge” in charge doesn’t even know who’s pushing the censor button! How can you expect this nation to trust a goddamn word that comes out of its leaders- Republican or Democrat? Stupid as he is- it’s no fucking wonder Ted Nugent is holed up like a bunkered NAZI!
Like I’ve said in the past- I agree with shit like drones and whatnot- but level with us! I know we aren’t the smartest fucking nation in the world, but give us the credit and opportunity to weigh the pros and cons of what our country does! WE have that right- and quite frankly, seeing as we pay all the fucking checks, deserve it!
That goes for what weapons are to be allowed or not. The latest polls show that most Americans are in favor of tighter gun laws. That’s just fucking peachy- it’s too bad that we’ve been misinformed and misdirected to formulate our opinions. How can you suggest any poll is worth a damn when the people participating don’t have the fundamental knowledge that SHOULD determine their view? Of course, some guy kills a bunch of kids with an AR-15 and suddenly, everyone thinks we should outlaw them.
I had a friend in high school that killed his mother with a .22 caliber rifle- but I have never seen one piece of legislation that is set to outlaw those weapons! So what does that mean? It really goes back to the old saying- guns don’t kill people- PEOPLE kill people!
Guns are merely a tool, used for good or evil- perpetrated by the human beings that operate them. That, Wayne LaPierre is why we need background checks- that is why a system to root out the potential whack jobs who would use these weapons as instruments of murder needs to be established! More importantly, that is why this country needs to pull its head out of the fucking sand and look at its own short falls with some dignity! Face the fact that you, me and everyone in between has the responsibility to fix the real issues that cause gun violence.
Banning something is not the soul answer. With enough cash, I can get any fucking thing I want- and no amount of government regulation will keep me from it. You have to address the actual heart of the matter- a society that has been bullshitted, stepped on and ignored to the point of aggravated aggression, self designed ignorance and perpetual degradation from within.
People can only be poked and prodded for so long before they snap. Be it a disgruntled postal worker or a paranoid schizophrenic who gets lost in the system. Let’s not forget the “urban” community, as many Republicans phrase it, who deals with daily oppression by those who are supposed to be protecting and serving. Let’s ask Trayvon Martin what he thinks about guns- oh that’s right, you fucking can’t!
When you wag the finger at a gun for all of our woes- you’re missing the point. Likewise, if you think we should be allowed to run around like it’s goddamn Tombstone up in this bitch- you’ve got another think coming!
One measure of a bullet is the amount of kinetic energy at the muzzle. These are typical values for 9mm and 5.56x45mm (.223 Remington):
9x19mm 115gr bullet at 1300 ft/sec = 431 ft/lbs
5.56x45mm 55 gr bullet at 3200 ft/sec = 1250 ft/lbs
5.56x45mm 62 gr bullet at3200 ft/sec 1322 ft/lbs
You can get accurate calculations here, for example:
http://www.firearmexpertwitness.com/customguns/calcnrg.html
You wrote:
“A .223 or 5.5mm as you call it can accurately hit at distances of about 400 yards or farther.”
A marksman can hit a target out to 600 yards with this cartridge. However competition shooters cheat a little by handloading special heavier than normal bullets for that range.
But at those ranges the bullet doesn’t have a lot of kinetic energy left. The Taliban try to stay beyond 600 yards with the Marines – they can shoot. But the Marines also have snipers using much more powerful rifles. The 7.62x45mm (.308) has more energy at 500 yards than the 5.56x45mm at the muzzle. Think about that for a minute.
Handguns are not that powerful for the most part, at least the semi-autos. People often survive multiple shots from a handgun. Some woman the other day shot an intruder 5 times at close range with a snubnose revolver and not only did he survive, he was still standing and asking her to call an ambulance afterwards.
Now the 5.56x45mm or .223 is one of the _least_ powerful of rifle cartridges in existence. For example, a plain ole 30.06 which tons of hunters use will have 2,600 ft/lbs of energy at the muzzle, over twice that of the 5.56. Depending on how hot I load it, my 7mm Remington Magnum can fire a 160 gr bullet at over 3,000 ft/sec with almost 3200 ft/lbs of evergy. And there are some guns used against large bears that routinely go over 4000 ft/lbs.
The 5.56 got its reputation in Vietnam. We used a 55gr (M193) bullet and apparently it wasn’t well designed. It was an FMJ, required by the Geneva Convention, but often due to being a boatail design it would rotate at about 8 inches in and the base was not very tough so it might disintegrate there causing some pretty horrific wounds. If you every pull the bullet and look at it, the base is where the inner lead core is exposed.
But we fixed that with the current 62gr M855. It functions like an FMJ was intended and will just punch a nice .22 caliber hole in you and probably keep going, at least at close range.
The 7.62 FMJ punches .30 caliber holes and goes on through (and it will go through a hell of lot more than a 5.56). Now a well designed hunting bullet will mushroom up to 2-3 times its initial diameter and possibly not keep going, meaning it expends all of its energy in the body.
Hunting bullets, especially in calibers most often used in the U.S., are _far_ more dangerous and have enormously more killing power than any of the 5.56 bullets you will run into. My 7mm could completely destroy the heart and lungs of a deer. No need to shoot anyone twice with that!
Correction – typo:
7.62x45mm (.308) is wrong – it is 7.62.x51mm. Just another typo. I reload and shoot that cartridge by the way in an M1A (think M14).
Well put Wade.