MoveOn.org and the assault weapons ban

Check out this FactCheck.org report on a recent MoveOn.org ad on the assault weapons ban expiration.

This latest ad from Moveon PAC is about as misleading as it can be. Through words, graphics and sound effects, it invites viewers to think that the expiration of the ban on 19 semiautomatic assault weapons will allow people legally to buy fully automatic machine guns that can fire "up to 300 rounds per minute." That's false.

(via Random Gemini Weirdness) It is surprising to me how many people misunderstand what this legislation did. For the most part, it just banned guns that look 'scary'. Very little in the legislation had anything to do with the actual deadliness of the weapons. The only part of it that had any real relevance was the limitations on magazine size. Bayonet clips, pistol grips, and flash suppressors don't make a gun any more deadly than one without those features. I am not a gun nut. I don't personally own any guns. But I have a strong belief that the 2nd amendment is a personal right. It goes hand in hand with our nation being focused on the individual and acknowledges that the individual, not the government, has the primary duty to defend against wrongs. That doesn't mean I think people should be allowed to own their own nuclear weapons, but I do think that a heavy burden of proof is required that a given weapon is too dangerous for private citizens to own. In a perfect world, I would support mandatory gun registration, but since such lists have been used to confiscate weapons in the past even that is problematic. Update: more MoveOn.org news here. Since I strive to keep this blog family friendly I won't make any further comments on this filth.