In a recent op-ed, Senator Martin Heinrich of New Mexico explains what makes semi-automatic weapons so dangerous:
AR-15s—the weapons used in a number of mass shootings—aren’t dangerous because of how they look. They are dangerous because they use expanding gas to simultaneously fire a bullet and reload the next round while staying steady on target. The weapon’s primary limitation is how quickly a shooter can pull the trigger.
I wonder if he’s ever actually shot an AR-15 or if his are just nicer than mine, because mine don’t ‘stay steady on target’ between rounds. Mine recoil, requiring me to reacquire the target before pulling the trigger again.
I think perhaps he’s confusing the use of gas to cycle a round with the use of gas to help a compensator reduce muzzle flip. In which case, perhaps what he really wants to ban are compensators.
When I teach people about gun safety, I show them how a semi-auto pistol works, and how a revolver works.
First, I point out that with the pistol, each pull of the trigger causes the gun to fire and then load another round: Fire, load. Fire, load. Fire, load.
Next, I point out that with the revolver, the order is different. Each pull of the trigger causes the gun to load a round and then fire it: Load, fire. Load, fire. Load, fire.
Finally, I ask: So you can see why a semi-automatic (which fires and then loads) is so much more dangerous than a revolver (which loads and then fires), right?
After twenty years, I am still waiting for someone to say ‘No! It’s the same thing!’
How fast can you fire a revolver? Take a look, and then decide for yourself whether Heinrich has any idea at all what he’s talking about.
