Why do so many people think machine guns are illegal?

[big inch]

I have noticed that when I have been talking to friends, and even fellow gun enthusiasts, that many of them think it is illegal for a civilian to own a machine gun.

Where does this line of thinking come from? Is it just because they are rarely seen or spoken of?

 

[molonlabe]

Because the media has convinced them of that fact due to their shoddy reporting.

 

[SilentScream]

have to agree with molon labe on this one, the media is almost entirely to blame.
they also have most of the sheep here in California convinced that ALL guns are illegal, you'd be surprised how many comments i get from non-shooters on that.

 

[Standing Wolf]

Actually, fully automatic firearms are completely prohibited to commoners in many states.

At the federal level, they're legal after you pay the extortion.

 

[TheOtherOne]

Two years ago when I went to buy my first handgun, I was surprised when they gave it to me right then. I thought I was going to have to wait 7 days to get it.

The media and The Simpsons (Homer: "But I'm angry right now!" ) were responsible for that.

Guns weren't something I was all that interested in then so I didn't seek out any real information on them.

 

[M2 Carbine]

Anytime someone tells me something like, "No body can own machine guns", I tell them,
"Well you obviously don't know what you're talking about because I've legally owned a machine gun for over 20 years. You really need to stop getting your (gun) information from the talking head idiots on the TV news."

Then if the person is worth education I'll explain the laws to them and sometimes make a new gun owner.

 

[saltydog]

Quote:
Because the media has convinced them of that fact due to their shoddy (Shi##y) reporting.


Exactly! Enough said.

 

[cgv69]

I don't know, I'm more peeved that the opposite seems to be true around here. Thanks to the media, most people seem to think that AR-15's really are assault weapons and can fire in full auto mode.

I'm getting tired of explaining to people, after either hearing about or seeing my AR, that it is not a "machine gun". Then I have to explain the difference between Semi-Auto and Full-Auto, what an "Assault Weapon" really is and how the media and gun grabbers have distorted it's meaning. I usually do also mention that a person can buy a full-auto weapon but how cost prohibitive it generally is.

 

[another okie]

I've met people who believed both things; that is, that machine guns were illegal and that all rifles other than bolt actions or lever actions were machine guns.

 

[jefnvk]

I'm going with Standing Wolf.

 

[Kramer Krazy]

I get more of what cgv69 says. I, also, am getting tired of having to explain to people the differences between "full auto" and "semi auto" firearms....especially to gun owners! After the AWB died last year, I had all sorts of people saying that we can now buy full-auto weapons since the ban ended.....and I'm ALWAYS having to explain that my AR-15s, MAK-90s, and my SAR-8 are all SEMI auto and only fire one round per pull of the trigger......it just gets exhausting, sometimes.

 

[kfranz]

Actually, fully automatic firearms are completely prohibited to commoners in many states.

At the federal level, they're legal after you pay the extortion.

From http://www.paladinarmory.com/LegalTips.htm


"At last count thirteen states placed some sort of restrictions on the types of NFA firearms you could own (anything from requiring a state permit to outright denial). These include California, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, and Rhode Island. "

 

[big inch]

"At last count thirteen states placed some sort of restrictions on the types of NFA firearms you could own (anything from requiring a state permit to outright denial). These include California, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, and Rhode Island. "

I am a little surprised to see Mississippi included in that list. The other states aren't so surprising.

 

[Tory]

That list incorrectly excludes Massachusetts,

where even pepper spray/mace is considered a "firearm" for licensing purposes and requires a permit.

As do machine guns.....

 

[kfranz]

Yeah, the more I look at it, the less complete that list looks.

 

[45auto]

At the prices that you have to pay for one, they might as well be illegal.

 

[WT]

FWIW.

After serving as Secretary of the Treasury under Presidents Nixon and Ford, William E. Simon moved to New Jersey with a Thompson submachinegun. Sec. Simon had been a US Army infantryman at sometime during his life.

Anyway, when he went to get a permit from Somerset County Judge Michael Imbriani, Simon was told that no reason existed for a civilian to own a SMG. He was denied the permit and was required to get rid of the weapon.

Sec. Simon later moved to California. A self made multi-millionaire, he donated all his weath to charity just before he died.

Years later, Judge Imbriani was convicted of embezzlement.

 

[Lonestar.45]

For the same reason so many think that AK's and AR's were banned during the assault weapons ban, and are now legal again. Ignorance. The mainstream media perpetuates it.

 

[Spreadfire Arms]

in Texas the law is written in such a way that L.E. can in fact take you into custody and seize your NFA weapon, even if lawfully NFA registered and possessed.

it states in the Texas Penal Code that an L.E. officer can arrest you whether or not it is registered, but when you are arraigned if you show the judge your NFA registration form they must drop the charge.

it is written in such a way that an L.E. officer who is not well versed on NFA law can arrest you and then go back to the station to read up on the law, and it is not considered a false arrest.

also keep this in mind if you are stopped, legally with an NFA weapon and registration papers to prove it, not to tell the officer to go pound salt. he may know the law very well and can take you into custody regardless of the form in your hand and seize your weapon, at least temporarily. best policy is always to be "officer-friendly" when stopped and in possession of your NFA weapon.

be advised that alot of officers do not know whether it is legal or illegal, and sometimes their department policy further confuses them. for example, in certain counties the CLEO normally doesn't sign off on NFA items so people either incorporate or sometimes they find the right guy to sign. the bottom line is that if the officer knows their department won't sign off on it then it must be illegal in that part of the state and hence they believe it is against the law and arrest you.

i've spoken to many L.E. officers regarding NFA law and about 95+% of them have indicated they don't know what a NFA form looks like, what to look for, who to call to verify it, etc. this is due to lack of proper training. they wouldn't know the difference between a Form 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 10 for that matter, but then neither would most NFA owners either unless they are really versed in the in's and out's of NFA. i don't expect anyone to memorize something they can look up either.

given the fact that most have never had training on it (those who are versed on it are most likely gun enthusiasts or NFA owners) they simply wouldn't have any reliable information to go on. i have volunteered to do free presentations and training to agencies so if they encounter them at least they know what to look for, but haven't had any takers yet.

yes there are alot of misconceptions and myths about Class III weapons, not just machine guns.

 

[deej]

Actually, a fair amount of people think that fully automatic weapons ARE legal, now that the AW ban has sunsetted.

After all, it put "rapid-fire military weapons" back on the street, did it not?

 

[Hkmp5sd]

deej makes a good point. Being widely known as a gun nut locally, it is amazing the number of people that ask me how they can convert their ARs and AKs to full auto now that the "assault weapon ban" has expired. Between the news media, politicians and Brady Bunch type groups, the average Joe Blow has no idea what is legal.

 

[Too Many Choices!?]

The same reason all "Silencers".........

Which eliminate 99.9% of the sound are completely illegal
Anything in the nfa is illegal if you ask the media/sheepl about it.....

A little off topic but how does a noise suppressor, incapable of firing anything but a spit ball without a firearm, become classified as a firearm/weapon ?! !!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[artherd]

Interesting asside, there is a seperate state DOJ permit required, but machineguns ARE LEGAL to own in CALIFORNIA!

Yes, I could in theroey get a permit for a select-fire M4, but if my DIAS falls out, I have an ILLEGAL semi-auto 'assault weapon'

 

[S Roper]

"Actually, a fair amount of people think that fully automatic weapons ARE legal, now that the AW ban has sunsetted."

Many people you'd think would know better believe this.

I think part of it is our fault. I've often heard gun supporters say that machine guns have been illegal since 1934 when they try to explain the AWB.

 

[Monkeyleg]

Actually, I think it's better that the general public believes that machine guns are illegal, and for a couple of reasons.

One is that, if the public knew they were legal in most states, we might see a push to ban them outright. As it stands right now, the Brady Bunch and VPC have done so much to confuse the public as to full-auto versus semi-auto that they'd have a lot of explaining to do if they went for a ban.

The second reason is that it's much easier to make the case for Evil Black Rifles if you can convince someone that the ownership of full-auto's has been virtually banned since 1934.