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GUN FIGHTS

Piers Morgan: Only People Who Want to Commit Mass Murder Need AR-15s

What other reasons are there for owning assault rifles?

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by Mary Noble

Senior Editor t

Image: AP

You may feel you've heard enough from British controversy-monger Piers Morgan. But several White House petitions later he is still on the air and still riling up firearms owners everywhere.

His latest outrage is a statement that "the only civilians who 'need' an AR-15 assault rifle are those who want to commit mass murder," tweeted on Sunday and picked up by conservative sites Twitchy and the Blaze.

But since some of you Politix users have revealed that you own AR-15s - and assuming for the moment that you aren't plotting mass murder - it seems clear that there are many other reasons for owning assault rifles. We'd like to hear from you: what motivates law-abiding Americans to buy AR-15s?

Via the Blaze.

Posted Jan 22, 2013, 12:45pm PST.
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What other reasons are there for owning AR-15s?

Comments (view in Forum)

  • u
    fistv
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    I compete and recreational shoot with mine, keeps me busy at the reloading bench. Carried one for over 20 years so I feel comfortable with it.
  • John_Matrix
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    @woodtick57

    Yeah, cause I'm sure you know every hunter in your area. Even if nobody in your area hunts with them some people do, so did you have a point or just trolling?
  • o
    talkenhed
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    @John_Matrix If you need an AR15 to hit your prey while hunting, I'd suggest you may want to spend a little time at the range.
  • View all 49 replies >
  • Knightkore
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    Pretty much all progressive liberal problems here....lets see progressive liberals are inherently paranoid {marijauna usage?}, delusional {progressive liberal presidents acting as some sort of god}, ignorant {progressive liberals not knowing what an assault rifle really is}, racist {progressive liberals always divide us on the basis of color, race, gender, etc.}, suffer from "insufficient manhood" {the who gay, lesbian, transgender agenda....and when you start umm....chopping off guns....we're not the ones in need of compensation....}
  • Tralee
    !
    @Knightmare Love it, actually, the biggest problem with liberals is that they actually have no rational argument for their "Feelings", thus they must call names, rather like a small child faced with an irrefutable fact who will in turn either stick out their tongue in derision or call the fact teller a name. That's all they have, insults. And, just FYI, the only thing they needed to elect Obama was that he have the required darkness of tan, nothing else, no experience needed, no leadership qualities needed, just an attractive, not too African looking, almost Black Man. That's it, that's also why they throw out the race card all the time, deep down they know they only wanted (used him if you will) him for his skin color, hence they are the real racists. Voting for a man with a deep tan made them feel righteous and superior. Personally, I would vote for anyone of any color, if they were the best for the job. Libs. not so much.
  • View all 23 replies >
  • jessejaymes
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    I own an AR-15. I don't consider them a self defense gun. I do like to target shoot and I know one guy who deer hunts with his. Neither of us are criminals, both own our guns legally and Piers Morgan is an idiot.
  • DARSB
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    Morgan is simply being a provocateur, you know, like Limbaugh, Beck and Hannity. And is equally easy to ignore.
  • SavageMazx
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    @DARSB good call DARSB, by the way did you know my phone keeps trying to auto correct your name to Satan, so if I miss it once in a while I apologized in advance....
  • View all 21 replies >
  • u
    CaryNickel
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    The rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution are not about what we "need", they are about what we want as free men and women. A semi-automatic AR-15 is suitable for a varmint rifle. Useful to hunt coyotes, prairie dogs, wild dogs, and the like. Piers Morgan is an idiot when it comes to firearms and our rights as Americans, but he's no idiot when it comes to keeping his name in the news.
  • hwyangel
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    And this is not even a Democrats vs Republicans thing either, it's an American thing. And I can't help but wonder why Mr Morgan should even care whether we are armed?
  • Tralee
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    What reasons to own an assault rifle? Well, I'm no gun owner but I did a bit of research and the AR-15 is NOT an assault rifle, it is a semi-automatic rifle that looks similar to the military style gun that is fully automatic, meaning a fully automatic rifle can shoot continuously with one pull on the trigger. That is UNLIKE a semi-automatic rifle that can fire many rounds, but each bullet fired requires a trigger pull. Perhaps Piers Morgan and all the other liberals in the gun hysteria should do a bit of checking too, he's supposed to be the journalist. His facts are wrong. Typical lib. why deal with facts when an irrational lie will suit the agenda?
  • Knightkore
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    I'm trying to stay patient with the tone of America lately but when we've got an illegal commenting on our constitutional freedoms and denigrating half of America....I'm starting to wonder what this country has become? Seriously? Mass murder? What if I said reporters {this stretching the term severly in his case} who need to commit mass murder agree with progressive liberalism and abortion....
  • Knightkore
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    @talkenhed "approved ATF conversion"
    What part of your own statement didn't you get? Conversion....

    Look....if a person was so inclined....they could make an automatic "gun" that shot rocks....would you then ban rocks? What size? Jagged....smooth?
  • WilliamWallace
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    @talkenhed Do you have problems with reading comprehension?

    "semi-automatic rifle that can fire many rounds, but each bullet fired requires a trigger pull" Even with a "slidefire" or "bumpfire" stock it is still one round fired per trigger pull.

    I love how you liberals wet your pants when you see that stock.
  • View all 30 replies >
  • o
    AndrewEvans
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    This is utter garbage. This man is assaulting the 2nd Amendment. The 2nd Amendment is there as a deterrent to tyranny. We are the militia. I'm not saying the average American should have an F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, but our weapons are supposed to be on par with any militia.

    I signed the petition to deport Piers Morgan. He's a great liberal representative though, he's great at ignoring facts and standing on the graves of children to justify it.

    Here's a mainstream news source that did a fact check on Piers Morgan:

    www.youtube.com/watch...
  • o
    AndrewEvans
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    @woodtick57

    "The beauty of the Second Amendment is that it will not be needed until they try to take it."--Thomas Jefferson

    This is the whole point. We don't know what it has stopped thus far. It's We The People's system of checks and balances, if the government itself hasn't maintained its own checks and balances, it's our last defense. Ignoring history and all warnings from our founding fathers is an arrogance our generation may learn to regret. Lets hope GOA and NRA don't fail in protecting our rights.
  • View all 40 replies >
  • Vance1
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    What other reasons are there for owning assault rifles?

    Gee maybe protecting yourself and your family against armed people wanting to do you harm?
    Gee Maybe to be able to fight back against a Tyranical Government
    Gee maybe wild boar hunting.
    Gee maybe just because you have the right to own one.
    Piers Morgan should have been deported, He is an anti American radical secular progressive, These peoples views are dangerous!
    We must fight back against these dangerous leftists.
    They seek to dis arm we the people!
  • Denizen_Kate
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    I hear they're fun to shoot. You left that one out.

    Morgan is just trying to stir things up and generate publicity which equals viewers which equals ratings which equals money. Ignore him. Works for me.
  • Post Removed by Moderators
  •
    Canoochee
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    What the hell would Piers Morgan know about what someone needs? It was oppressive ideas like disarming law abiding citizens that led to our becoming a country in the first place.

    I would bet he has never left a city environment unsupervised in his miserable life.
  • jessejaymes
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    @PolitixMary Since you ask, I came by my AR when a guy I knew needed money. He gave the rifle as collateral and I took it to the range and shot it just out of curiosity. Long story short he never repaid the money because I said I'd rather have the rifle and he was good with that. It's not what I would use for home defense but it is fun to shoot and it's the only rifle I own. I could hunt with it, I do know one who does and has gotten a deer with it. I don't hunt but I do see a time where I could need a rifle since we are moving to an urban area shortly. But Mary here is the issue for me. I'm not a criminal. I registered all my guns with the Local PD because I have gotten back a stolen gun by doing so. And it was taken out of the hands of the thief before he could do damage with it. I'm a gun owner who does not oppose registration. But I do oppose govt telling me what gun I can have and can't have when I am willing to follow the law and had that gun before any hysteria swept the nation. You don't solve gun problems by enacting more law. You solve gun problems by enforcing existing law. Jared Loughner used a handgun. Aurora and Newtown used an AR type. Under existing law none of those three should have been able to get a gun but they did. And they always will. Without guns they will do what the terrorists do. Get on the internet and build an IED. It is what it is. You can't protect all people at all times. Ask the people of Paris who suffered at the hands of the "Jackal". Oh and by the way Mary? Not a single gun was used in 9-11 or OKC.
  • u
    RobertJHarsh
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    @DARSB They were poor choices for the job. A much better alternative would have been a M4, Mini 14, or anything the fires NATO 5.62.
  • DARSB
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    @RobertJHarsh So the Newtown first graders were killed with the wrong weapon? Dude, you're just a little scary right now.
  • u
    RobertJHarsh
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    @DARSB Ok...sorry to all for the bad context but the weapon and round chosen are NOT designed for mass killing of people. Morgan does not understand how weapon work and if he had done his homework as a respectable journalist would have done, he'd know that the AR-15, also called the M-16 fires a round called 5.62. This round is a FLESH round, designed to basically disable the enemy, but not necessary kill him. Now this weapon can fire another round called a 2.23. This round is designed to kill and are used for hunting, which is why this weapon is so versatile for that purpose. Both it and the M-16 can employ a variety of accessories, such as scopes, longer barrel, throat exchangers, hair triggers, etc for the environment and game being hunted. Lanza took a hunting rifle and murdered kids with it.

    My point is Morgan is incorrect because the nature of the gun is not designed to kill mass numbers of people. AR-15 is a workhorse hunting rifle....as are 12 gauge and 308. And those two have many accessories, such as extended magazines, that can be used with each weapon.
  • DARSB
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    @RobertJHarsh As my reply to the topic indicates, I agree with you about Mr Morgan's credibility. I don't have the technical background to tell one rifle from another, but I can sure spot a broadcaster trolling for ratings points.
  • View all 10 replies >
  • DrFunkenstein
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    some people fall in love with their guns and they want a more flashy one to make sweet sweet love to. Do you support banning pretty women? Bigot!
  • Ashstop
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    Yea if a gang of thugs break into my home to rape my family a single shot .25 just ain't the gun for me!! Neither is a Ar-15 for that matter, I want two of them!
    No wonder the British lost the war! They probably came over here thinking we were going to throw rocks at them!
  • DODex-military
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    I own a AR-15 and would gladly destroy it with a hammer to ensure no more lives are lost. I served in the military and work for the DOD with everything from tanks to hand guns. AR-15's are military weapons and I am a subject matter expert. NRA and hunters can keep pushing the garbage about it being used for sport and hunting, but it is not true. Unless you plan to shot a herd of animals charging you or need more than one round to drop your target, there is no need for the rate of fire and magazine capacity that AR's and various other assualt rifles offer. Bring on the responses and comments, I'm certainly interested in those who want to test my knowledge. FYI, I also own one handgun and one shotgun. All my guns are specifically for home/personal defense.
  • DODex-military
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    @Ashstop Awesome, first reply. I would not be engaging a robber or burglar with a .223, due to it's ability to pass through the person, then walls and hit my family or anything else I do not intend to target. I would use my handgun with hollowpoints
  • jessejaymes
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    I have owned an AR-15 for more than 20 years. I registered it in California as we were required to do , had my fingerprints taken and background check. I have never had more than a traffic ticket in the past 50 years. My guns, other than the one I have by my bed at night, are locked up unless they are going to the range. And your average criminal cannot get into my gun safe. What "expertise" do you have that says that a law abiding citizen like myself should be forced to give up my gun because of what crazies do? The Arizona shooter used a stinking 9mm pop pistol. You want those too? This is not a matter of need. It is a matter of confiscation. Which I oppose. I do not fear registration since someone like myself will always have the right to bear arms in a civilized society. But I do fear people like you who think you should have the right to take my guns.
  • Zazziness
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    @AndrewEvans To prevent invasion by a foreign country? We spend trillions of dollars on a massive professional army, don't we?
  • View all 18 replies >
  • u
    Buckfan4life2
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    Don't have an AR-15 but do have a few AK-47s and some other assault weapons. At first I bought them just for an investment because I knew one day the liberals would start their whinning and have them banned and this was over 30 years ago. Oh how right I was. But now with the moral rotting of society and the economy about to fall I do think they will come in handy for survival and I can bet most people that owns them has them for the same reason. Take us law abiddig citizens guns away isn't who you all need to worry about and can't believe you people can't see this. If you people have that much faith in our goverment to protect you in case some kind of society breakdown,thats your choice,but leave us who want to protect our families out of it.
  • Quantummist
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    They are just plain Fun to shoot... They are used in several forms of sports competition... They are rugged and make for a great Ranch Rifle for general use for varmint and predator control... And did I mention they are just plain Fun to shoot....
  • Zazziness
    !
    @Quantummist Hmmmm... you having fun shooting gophers vs classrooms of children being killed.... which to consider important, which to consider important...

    Tell me, is there no other gun you can use to shoot gophers? Because I believe a .22 is adequate, isn't it?
  • WilliamWallace
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    @Zazziness Tell me, is there no other gun you can use to shoot children? because I believe a .22 is adequate, isn't it?

    Is there even a point to your post?
  • Zazziness
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    @WilliamWallace Yes. Trying to claim that gun regulations are inappropriate because "it's fun to shoot things" is not an argument I find persuasive.
  • WilliamWallace
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    @Zazziness stop and think about what this is. It is a forum where people discuss different topics. This particular topic is about reasons to own AR-15s. What the above poster did was post a reason to own them. Yes he could have stated the main reason that has been posted many times. Instead he decided to add another reason.

    Your post has nothing to do with the topic. In fact your argument has no ground under it. I would wager on the fact that a .22 has ended more lives than any other round here in America.
  • View all 18 replies >
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