[Letter by Craig Good in reponse to San Jose Mercury News editorial calling for greater restrictions on .50 caliber rifles in California at: http://www.bayarea.com/mld/mercurynews/news/opinion/6400612.htm ] To: letters@mercurynews.com-nospam Cc: ca-firearms From: Craig Good Date: Mon, 28 Jul 2003 17:07:31 -0700 Subject: [ca-firearms] .50 Cal "Sniper" weapons A recent article supporting the restriction of .50 cal BMG rifles is so full of errors and irrelevancies that it's hard to know where to start. First off, anyone claiming that the "bullet" is 5 1/2 inches long obviously knows so little about firearms that his opinion should be tossed out. (The bullet is the little part that flies out of the barrel.) The claim that it is "too powerful for hunting" but "ideal for assassins" is ludicrous on several points. For one, hunting is an irrelevant criterion. When deciding whether or not to ban a weapon, its usefulness for hunting simply doesn't matter. Hunting is not mentioned anywhere in the Constitution. And if it's so "ideal" for assassins, why aren't they using it? This is hardly a new weapon. It's been around longer than most folks have been alive. And in all that time how many crimes have been committed using one? Zero. Zip. Nada. And absolutely everything that makes it "unsuitable" for hunting makes it hard to use for assassination. Think about it. If I see one more hand-wringing claim about how it can take down aircraft I think I'll be sick. This is a laugh-out-loud silly claim, since hitting a flying aircraft with a rifle -- especially a 28-pound one -- is impossible. Again, if it's so easy to do so, why doesn't our own military use it for anti-aircraft? As for killing people a mile away. Well, perhaps a really skilled shooter could make a go of it. But I invite you to perform an experiment. Go to the roof of your building, find another building a mile away, and see how well you could even see a target there. At least this letter toned down Senator Feinstein's laughable claim that it was deadly at over four miles meaning that I, standing on Pier 39, would be in danger from a sniper with a .50 standing in Sausalito. This is a rifle with a squeaky clean record. There is no rational reason in the world to restrict its purchase. Regards, Craig Good Emeryville, CA