Bump stocks are now available again at gun stores after the Supreme Court overturned a previous ban on them.
Now personally we don’t think bump stocks are a hill to die on for Second Amendment supporters. They are novelty items that generally make an AR-15 woefully inaccurate and they’re no replacement for a full auto machine gun. We’d much rather wield a decent semi auto AR-15 rifle than one of these monstrosities that kind of replicates full auto fire with a series of springs that bump the stock, rather than the trigger.
In short, we can do without them, but we doi understand the argument that capitulating to any ban is the thin end of the wedge and if we let the gun control crowd take an inch, we should prepare to lose a mile. So ideologically we are glad to see the Supreme Court strike down the ban, and we’d be happy to see the anti gunners get tied up in red tape and spend valuable time and resources fighting this.
One was allegedly used by the Las Vegas shooter Stephen Paddock in 2017. That highlights the true danger of the bump stock and it’s only real purpose, indiscriminately firing into a crowded area.
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) highlighted the enhanced lethality provided by bump stocks, stating, “That gunman was able to fire around 90 shots every 10 seconds. This should never be repeated.”
The Counter Argument to Bump Stocks
“This is firearm technology that essentially converts semiautomatic weapons into nearly fully automatic weapons and machine guns,” said Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), who co-sponsored legislation to ban bump stocks.
Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), who introduced the bill, calls it a common-sense approach. “As someone who has owned and used firearms for most of my life – for hunting, sport, and self-defense -I know for a fact that bump stocks serve no legitimate purpose,” Heinrich said.
The Trump administration implemented the ban following the mass shooting in Las Vegas, where 60 people were killed and hundreds were injured.
Earlier this week, the Senate attempted to pass a bump stock ban through unanimous consent, but Republicans blocked it. Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.) argued against the bill, suggesting it is not about bump stocks alone. “Does anyone seriously believe this lawless Biden administration would interpret this law in a way that respects law-abiding gun owners? This bill is about banning as many firearm accessories as possible, giving the ATF broad authority to ban most semi-automatic firearms.”
Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) expressed her defense of the Second Amendment, saying, “I am probably not going to get on any bill as this moves forward so I can weigh the pros and cons.”
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms overreached its authority completely with a range of backdoor legislation that included a failed attempt to move braced AR pistols under the NFA legislation, which would entail further background checks, tax stamps and banning the weapons entirely in certain states. This is the inevitable pushback and is more about pulling the teeth of the ATF, which looked set to bring in more and more gun control measures without going through the proper procedures.
So that looks to be at an end, which is good. We’re totally ambivalent about bump stocks being back on sale and we’re sure they’re not a good thing overall. But we do applaud those that fought the ATF and are determined to protect the Second Amenment rights of Americans like you and me.
