Reprinted last time I was asked in Roe v Wade thread.
I've been asked this quite a bit through my years, as have most war fighters. I think we are fairly of the same mind +/-, although I do not presume to speak for my fellow veterans here on CIS (I do love them so and not ashamed to say it).
Here is my take, and yes, fair to say it smacks of hypocrisy from a purist point of view.
The most powerful weapon of FF era was the cannon and they were absolutely positively not banned or outlawed from the local populace. Naval privateers and pirates are perfect example. With that said, cannons required significant resources and technical know-how to manufacture and equip, let alone the near impossibility for an individual to move or maintain logistically.
In the modern era, my take:
- Anything an infantry war fighter can employ should be available to the people, by exception...
-- No projectiles with their own propellant (eliminates missiles)
-- No explosives (eliminates mines, claymores, etc)
-- No crew served weapons (no howitzers on the front lawn Fred, back in the garage please)
Now, should the everyman have access to fully automatic rifles/handguns?
I personally do not own any full auto weapons, but several friends do and I would trust any of them to shoot an apple off my daughter's head if necessary (no not for fun, calm down muppets).
For me, my theshold is full auto kinetics. That doesn't make me right, its just wear my head is at as what I feel is appropriate for "everybody". I would be supportive of full auto for individuals who pass an extensive background check and demonstarte exceptional proficiency.
The next area I feel that will be contentious are sniper rifles (really the smallest form of artillery if you think about it). Several friends are competitve hobbyists and with todays modern targeting "unlimited class" tech, can easily engage targets 2000-3000 feet out, ots just a matter of how much do you want to spend.
I think Ive shared this before, but Ill share a again.
Ive employed weapons as swords in combat, but here at home, my weapons are purely for shield purposes only. I will make every effort to walk/run away from friction in order not to employ that shield, but woe be to the adversary if that becomes necessary to defend my friends and family first, myself second.
To prove a point, I probably would have hunted the entire genetic line of the Uvalde maniac just to make a point and rid humanity of clearly broken DNA.
