Is there a place for the AR-15?

Dear Fellow Survivalist;

I run across many discussions about what firearms are the best and people who are showing off their favorite guns. The merits of various calibers of ammunition and whether revolvers or semi-automatics are better have been debated over and over again. These debates extend beyond the community of gun owners, as many politicians and pundits feel they need to weigh in on the subject, trying to find a way to get guns out of citizens’ hands.

The recent case of Kyle Rittenhouse once again brought up the question of whether the AR-15 belongs in civilian hands. A lot of this questioning is coming from those who aren’t looking for an answer to the question, but rather asking it as a rhetorical question. They frame that rhetorical question in a way that is supposed to answer itself, screaming out that there is no place for such a dangerous weapon in the hands of civilians.

If they actually asked that question to seek information, I would be happy to supply it to them. But as we all know, they are content in their ignorance, as they foolishly make declarations about how dangerous the AR-15 is and how it is a weapon of mass destruction.

But what if someone we know asks that question. You know, the family gets together for Christmas and someone who doesn’t agree with us politically decides that it’s time to say “I don’t see any reason why someone needs an AR-15. They’re nothing but a weapon of war.” Now, we could just keep quiet, and in all honesty that would probably be the best thing to do; or we could give them an answer. But if we’re going to do that, we need to have a good answer to give them; not a snarky answer; one that is well thought out and blows their talking points away.

1 – It’s a Right, not a Privilege

The Bill of Rights grants us rights, not privileges. There are politicians who seem to have forgotten this and in fact are calling them privileges, in what appears to be an attempt to change the public perception of what our rights are.

2 – “AR” Doesn’t Stand for “Assault Rifle”

This is probably one of the more ignorant talking points used against the AR-15, calling it an assault rifle. By definition, to be an assault rifle it would need to have selective fire. In other words, full-automatic fire; something that the AR-15 can’t do and which it’s not as easy to modify it to do as some would like us to think. The AR part of the name means “Armalite Rifle” for the company who invented it.

3 – Semi-automatic and Full-automatic aren’t the Same

Another word game that’s used with the AR-15, as well as Glocks and other semi-automatic firearms is to call them “automatics” instead of semi-automatic. That’s an important distinction and we need to educate people on the difference.

4 – It’s a “Sporting Rifle,” not a Military-Grade Firearm

The main purpose why so many companies build and sell AR-15 style rifles is that it is the most popular sporting rifle there is. What that means is that it is sold because it is fun to shoot. Most people who buy them aren’t out to kill anyone; they’re just enjoying the fun of shooting. Whether that’s going to an indoor range and punching holes in targets or an outdoor range. Where we can hear the satisfying “clang” of the bullet hitting steel, it’s about enjoying it.

5 – It’s the Best Self-Defense Weapon there is

As Kyle Rittenhouse showed, the AR-15 is the best self-defense firearm there is; bar none. The normal capacity magazine ensures that someone who is trying to defend themselves doesn’t run out of ammunition and the ease of using the firearm means that even a novice has a fairly good chance of successfully defending themselves.

6 – The AR-15 is NOT More Dangerous than other Rifles

I don’t know where the idea came from, unless it is pure propaganda, but the AR-15 is nowhere near as dangerous as the average hunting rifle. In fact, it was hard getting the troops to accept the M-16, which the AR-15 was patterned after, as it didn’t have the power or range of the M-4 which was the standard rifle before the M-16 went into production. When people show pictures of the AR-15 blowing a 12” hole in a target, they are just plain lying.

7 – It’s out Best Hope for Continued Freedom

The Second Amendment isn’t about sporting rifles or even hunting, it’s about being able to overthrow tyranny. The Founding Fathers had just won the War of Independence, a war that was brought about by British tyranny. They wanted to give their decendants the right and ability to overthrow our own government, should it become tyrannical. While the AR-15 is no match for tanks and military aircraft, it would be a whole lot better than facing off against a corrupted military with nothing better than a .22LR rifle.

While the political battle over our Second Amendment rights will happen in the halls of State Legislatures and Congress, a secondary battle, one of understanding, is going on around us all the time. If we don’t participate in that one, in a polite respectable way, then it will be lost and that will lead to the political one being lost as well.

Think of educating that family member as just one more way of defending yourself, just another part of keeping your powder dry and your survival gear close at hand.

Dr. Rich