the term assault rifle has become too misused

[carterbeauford]

It seems referring to any black semi-automatic only rifle as an assault rifle has become as commonplace and accepted as adding an apostrophe when pluralizing an acronym

Eg. carterbeauford likes EBR's, particularly SKS's (three things wrong with this statement)

Politicians have not helped, classifying anything they please as an assault rifle. I think we need to clarify and understand the true definition. I see fellow gun enthusiasts using the incorrect characterization that the anti-gun politicians have fed us, not the correct characterization. If you have come to accept that a semi-auto MAC-10 clone is an assault rifle and refer to it as such, how can you fight an AWB?

from Wiki:

An assault rifle is an automatic rifle or carbine firing ammunition with muzzle energies intermediate between those typical of pistol and battle rifle ammunition. Assault rifles are categorized between light machine guns that are intended more for sustained automatic fire in a support role, and smaller submachine guns that fire a handgun cartridge rather than a rifle cartridge.Examples of assault rifles include the M16 rifle and the AK-47. Semi-automatic rifles, including commercial versions of the AR-15, are not assault rifles as they lack the capability for automatic fire.

The term assault rifle is a translation of the German word Sturmgewehr meaning "Storm Rifle", (Storm used as a verb being synonymous with assault, as in "to storm the compound"). Sturmgewehr was coined by Adolf Hitler to describe the MP44, the firearm generally considered the first practical widely-used assault rifle. The newly renamed Sturmgewehr 44 or StG44 is the effective progenitor of the concept.

M16A1 = assault rifle
AR-15 = not an assault rifle

The only way we can fight future bans is first becoming educated about what we are fighting for.

 

[Smokey Joe]

Words, words, words.

Carterbeauford--The antis toss the term "assault rifle" around because it sounds dangerous. They don't know what it really means and they don't care, either--Anything to further demonize firearms is fine with most antis.

The media--particularly radio and TV, IMX, don't help any by having developed the habit of using verbal shorthand wherever possible, e.g. "Nineleven" and "Roveewade" even when the shorthand term in question isn't quite accurate. Some "media persons" are also antis, so the above comment applies. Some "media persons" are NOT antis--one I know (a high school bud, now a professor of communications) is a fence sitter on the firearms issue, but woefully uninformed. So my HS bud will use the term "assault rifle" without having any clear idea at all what it means. And since he's not a shooter, to him the term is just a handy shorthand categorization.

To him it's like lumping stock car racecars, formula 1 cars, dragsters, and Indy racers, all under the term "racecars." He doesn't understand the distinctions, they don't matter to him, and "racecar" is quick and easy to say.

I try to point out to him that there are differences, and the differences are important (between various firearms) but it doesn't make much impression on him. Sigh.

 

[El Tejon]

Yes, and it was a deliberate strategy in the late '80s.

 

[Ditchtiger]

carterbeauford, you're close.--- The only way way we can fight future bans is by educating others what we are fighting for!

 

[aspade]

Shops catering to the mall ninja crowd with their 'sniper' this and 'tactical assault' that are doing the antis' work for them.