I was not anticipating the cacophony of criticism that greeted last week's column calling for the restriction of .50-caliber BMG rifle sales to the public. It took me about an hour to wade through the responses that inundated my inbox. The detractions ranged in tone and content. I received everything from thoughtful objections to a few nut-jobs who had the wherewithal to look up my personal address and issue a few none-too-discreet complaints like, \I'll show you what a .50 BMG can do."" My journalistic integrity has been impugned, and therefore I feel compelled to return fire.
Before I return to the lion's den, I would like to reference my knowledge of firearms. I am not, by any understanding, a full-fledged gun-control advocate. Although I've never been in the service, I used to work at a clay-shooting course, and have gone down range with everything from an AR-15 to the legendary M1 Garand. With my gun credentials confirmed, I would like to set the record straight on two of the charges most consistently made by my critics.
1. Banning or restricting the use of the .50-caliber BMG will set a precedent that will be used to extend gun-control legislation.
To be sure, the question of the .50-caliber BMG's legality, when finally resolved, will set a precedent that will shape all future gun legislation, but not in the way you might think. If the parameters of ownership remain unchanged, the weapon will set a precedent that will broaden the definition of arms to include all future weapons irrespective of purpose or power. This is because the .50-caliber BMG is an anti-material, not an anti-personnel, weapon. It was designed to be deployed against armored targets, not to protect people or property.
The disparity between the .50 caliber rifle and even relatively robust weapons is enormous. A U.S. Senate report said a bullet from a .50-caliber rifle, even at one-and-a-half miles, crashes into a target with more energy than a bullet fired at point-blank range from Dirty Harry's famous .44 Magnum. This rifle has more in common with an anti-armor rocket launcher than it is does with anything found on a shooting range. The .50-caliber BMG blurs the line between arms and artillery.
If this gun remains legal, every other weapon system under the sun will be made legal. How do I know? Because it's already happening. In a 2001 edition of Forbes magazine, Ron Barrett said he is working on interchangeable parts that can turn his .50-caliber semiautomatic rifle into a grenade launcher. Well folks, if this happens, I am only going to have one question for Mr. Barrett: Can you start working on a gun rack big enough for my 155mm Howitzer?
There are, of course, limits to all of our constitutional freedoms. Shouts of 'fire' in a crowded theater are not protected under the First Amendment for public safety reasons. The President of the United States can suspend the Sixth Amendment if he deems it necessary for public safety.
The Second Amendment is no exception. In 1939, in United States v. Miller, the Supreme Court ruled that certain firearms could be barred from public use in the interest of public safety. For the same reason we should, in the very least, track the owners of a weapon that can destroy a 14-ton armored vehicle.
2. The .50-caliber rifle has never been used in a crime.
It is certainly true that the average low-life is not going to rob a liquor store using this five-foot rifle. Indeed, no one has ever been robbed by a person wielding this weapon. But, of course, the .50-caliber is not imbued with an intrinsic force that prevents nefarious characters from using the rifle, so into the hands of criminals it has fallen. And not just any criminals, because the bigger the gun, the bigger the bad guy.
The .50-caliber is the perfect weapon for the homicidal elite. Simply put, there isn't a better gun out there for the psychopaths who wish to fulfill their fantasy of killing ranks upon ranks of federal agents. Take, for instance, David Koresh and his Branch Davidian cult. In their final showdown at their compound near Waco, Texas, in 1993, cult members fired the .50-caliber BMG at federal agents. This prompted the FBI to request ""military armored vehicles to give FBI personnel adequate protection from the .50-caliber rifle.""
For all those who still cling to their cannon, put yourself in the shoes of the police officer whose job it would be to protect the public from a psycho firing this weapon. Put yourselves in the shoes of the first responder when considering the fact that the rifle you're facing can destroy your squad car with a single round before you could even pinpoint his location. Consider the helplessness that would engulf your mind as you reach for your 9mm and know you might as well be reaching for a spear.
Because I think that if you were ever in the position to defend yourself from a .50-caliber rifle, you wouldn't be quite so quick to defend the .50-caliber rifle.
opinion@dailycardinal.com.
