One leftist says the the white man and homophobes are violently repressing you. The second leftist says the oppressed need to get a gun and go kill the oppressors. The third leftist says that there is too much gun violence and we need to restrict access to guns. If I didn't know better, I'd almost think they were working together.
Now here is something that I would agree should *not* be legal for the public to own. Americans Are "Fired Up" About First Commercially Available Flamethrowers Here’s more from arstechnica: In the wake of two companies now selling the first commercially available flamethrowers in the United States, at least one mayor has called for increased restrictions on their use. And to no one's surprise, the prospect of prohibition has now driven more sales. "Business is skyrocketing higher than ever due to the discussion on prohibition," Chris Byars, the CEO of the Ion Productions Team based in Troy, Michigan, told Ars by e-mail. "I’m a huge supporter of personal freedom and personal responsibility. Own whatever you like, unless you use it in a manner that is harmful to another or other’s property. We’ve received a large amount of support from police, fire, our customers, and interested parties regarding keeping them legal." Yes, support from "police" and "fire," which is both disturbing and odd all at once given that, respectively i) no one wants to confront a trigger happy police officer wielding a flamethrower and, ii) traditionally, firemen are in the business of extinguising fires, not starting them. In any event, back to arstechnica: Byars added that the company has sold 350 units at $900 each, including shipping, in recent weeks. That's in addition to the $150,000 the company raised on IndieGoGo. The Ion product, known as the XM42, can shoot fire over 25 feet and has more than 35 seconds of burn time per tank of fuel. With a full tank of fuel, it weighs just 10 pounds. Another company—XMatter, based in Cleveland, Ohio—sells a similar device for $1,600 each, but it weighs 50 pounds. However, this device has approximately double the range of the XM42. Quinn Whitehead, the company’s co-founder, did not immediately respond to Ars’ request for comment. Why does one need a handheld flamethrower, you ask? Here are some "ideas" from the Ion Productions' official XM42 website: start your bonfire from across the yard kill the weeds between your cracks in style clearing snow/ice controlled burns/ground-clearing of foliage/agricultural insect control As Ion goes on to point out (correctly, we might add), there are "endless possibilities for entertainment and utility." And don't worry all you lefties out there, in the FAQ section the answer to the question "Is there a left handed model?" is emphatically "yes." Amusingly, flamethrowers - which, on a literal interpretation, would seem to be the very definition of the term "fire-arm" - are not actually counted as such by the ATF: "These devices are not regulated as they do not qualify as firearms under the National Firearms Act," Corey Ray, a spokesman with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, told Ars by e-mail. Asked what the point of building and selling flamethrowers is, Byars said simply: "It’s awesome." Meanwhile, Warren, Michigan Mayor Jim Fouts isn’t so sure and because we like to encourage people to decide for themselves on the merits of contentious issues, we’ll close with the following rather amusingly deadpan bit from Fouts, explaining his position, and leave it to readers to discuss: "My concern is that flamethrowers in the wrong hands could cause catastrophic damage either to the person who is using it or more likely to the person who is being targeted. This is a pretty dangerous mix because it's a combination of butane and gasoline which is highly flammable. Anybody who aims this at someone else or something happens and it happens close to them is going to be close to be incinerated."
Ok, why? This weapon adds a strong tactic to the citizenry's ability to resist future tyranny, yet does not have the frightening indiscriminate power of "mass destruction".
Who said anything about getting rid of all guns? My grand gun control plan allows the ownership of all kinds of guns including fully autos.
This thread has been cleaned up from the last few days of mano a mano. Or as AAA said it's time to move on.
It doesn't add any tactic. It's not convenient for defense, and has immense collateral damage capability.
Ah, I see. I just figured that since you were whining all the time about gun violence, you were advocating getting rid of guns. But since you're not (or more likely, you can't) carry on posting stupidity.