Misfire: Federal officials block import of old Army rifles ...

[spin]

FAIRBANKS - Perhaps it was the easiest letter ever presented to two Alaska senators, but it was still worth signing. Sens. Mark Begich and Lisa Murkowski joined 14 of their colleagues Wednesday in a protest of the Obama administration’s decision to block the importation of some old Army rifles from South Korea.

Actually, the importation was approved last year, but the State Department reversed course.

The rifles, M1 Garands and carbines, are semi-automatic military rifles built in the United States. The South Korean government has had them warehoused for decades. But now South Korea wants to sell them back into this country. The rifles not only are collectables but also are fully functional for hunting and recreational shooting.

The State Department said the rifles could be used for illicit purposes. No kidding. So could every firearm in America. But that doesn’t automatically mean they should be banned.

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The administration’s stalling on this program only serves to confirm suspicions about the veracity of the president’s avowed support for Second Amendment rights. When questions of this nature arise, the administration’s actions say more than its leader’s words.
http://newsminer.com/view/full_story/9829844/article-Misfire--Federal-officials-block-import-of-old-Army-rifles?instance=home_opinion_editorial

Obama Administration Reverses Course, Forbids Sale of 850,000 Antique Rifles
By Maxim Lot Published September 01, 2010FoxNews.com

The South Korean government, in an effort to raise money for its military, wants to sell nearly a million antique M1 rifles that were used by U.S. soldiers in the Korean War to gun collectors in America.

The Obama administration approved the sale of the American-made rifles last year. But it reversed course and banned the sale in March – a decision that went largely unnoticed at the time but that is now sparking opposition from gun rights advocates.

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"Guns that can take high-capacity magazines are a threat to public safety," said Dennis Henigan of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. "Even though they are old, these guns could deliver a great amount of firepower. So I think the Obama administration's concerns are well-taken."

But gun rights advocates point out that possessing M1 rifles is legal in the United States -- M1s are semi-automatics, not machine guns, meaning the trigger has to be pulled every time a shot is fired -- and anyone who would buy a gun from South Korea would have to go through the standard background check.

Any guns that retail in the United States, of course, including these, can only be sold to someone who passes the National Instant Check System," said David Kopel, research director at the conservative Independence Institute. "There is no greater risk from these particular guns than there is from any other guns sold in the United States."
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/09/01/obama-administration-reverses-course-forbids-sale-antique-m-rifles/

M1 Garands and Carbines Return from South Korea
September 25th, 2009

Here’s good news for collectors of classic American military rifles. Over 100,000 M1 Garands and M1 Carbines are “returning home” from South Korea. The South Korean Defense Ministry recently announced plans to ship 86,000 Garands and 22,000 Carbines back to the United States for sale to American collectors. Originally made in the USA, these weapons were supplied by the US during the Korean and Vietnam war years.





Most of the arms have been in storage at military warehouses, only occasionally used for drills by reserve forces. While South Korea plans to send back most of its M1 Garands, it intends to retain another 640,000 carbines for reserve units. The 108,000 rifles set for return to America are collectively valued at over $108,000,000 (based on $1000.00 retail price per gun). Realistically, given the fact that CMP rack grade and service grade Garands sell for much less, we would hope many of these Korean returns would sell for quite a bit less than $1000.00. But, ultimately, supply and demand in the United States will dictate selling prices.

UPDATE: On August 12, 2010, the Korea Times reported that the U.S. Government is now opposing the return to the USA of the 108,000 Garands and Carbines. A Korean Defense Ministry source revealed that American officials were now claiming the weapons could cause accidents or “be smuggled to terrorists, gangs or other people with bad intentions”.
http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com/2009/09/m1-garands-and-carbines-return-from-south-korea/

M1 Garand



The M1 Garand (officially the United States Rifle, Caliber .30, M1) was the first semi-automatic rifle to be generally issued to the infantry of any nation. Called "The Greatest Battle Implement Ever Devised" by General George S. Patton, the Garand officially replaced the bolt-action M1903 Springfield as the standard service rifle of the United States Armed Forces in 1936 and was subsequently replaced by the selective fire M14 in 1957. However, the M1 continued to be used in large numbers until 1963 and to a lesser degree until 1966.

The M1 was used heavily by U.S. forces in World War II, the Korean War, and, to a limited extent, the Vietnam War. Most M1 rifles were issued to Army and Marine troops, though many thousands were also lent or provided as foreign aid to America's allies. The Garand is still used by drill teams and military honor guards. It is also widely sought by the civilian population as a hunting rifle, target rifle, and military collectible. The name "Garand" is pronounced variously as /ɡəˈrænd/ or /ˈɡærənd/. According to experts and people who knew John Garand, the weapon's designer, the latter version is preferred.<4><5> It is now available to civilians in the original .30-06 chambering, as well as in .308 Winchester.

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The M1 rifle is a gas-operated, semi-automatic, clip-fed rifle.<24> By modern standards, the M1's feeding system is archaic, relying on clips to feed ammunition, and is the principal source of criticism of the rifle. Officials in Army Ordnance circles demanded a fixed, non-protruding magazine for the new service rifle. At the time, it was believed that a detachable magazine on a general-issue service rifle would be easily lost by US soldiers (a criticism made of British soldiers and the Lee-Enfield 50 years previously), would render the weapon too susceptible to clogging from dirt and debris (a belief that proved unfounded with the adoption of the M1 Carbine), and that a protruding magazine would complicate existing manual-of-arms drills. As a result, inventor John Garand developed an "en bloc" clip system that allowed ammunition to be inserted from above, clip included, into the fixed magazine. While this design provided the requisite flush-mount magazine, the clip system increased the rifle's weight and complexity, and prevented it from being fired without a clip, such as while reloading.


An M1 Garand en bloc clip loaded with eight .30-06 Springfield rounds
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M1_Garand

M1 carbine



The M1 carbine (formally the United States Carbine, Caliber .30, M1) is a lightweight semi-automatic carbine that became a standard firearm in the U.S. military during World War II and the Korean War, and was produced in several variants. It was widely used by U.S. and foreign military and paramilitary forces, and has also been a popular civilian firearm.

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The M1 carbine with its reduced-power .30 cartridge was not originally intended to serve as a primary weapon for combat infantrymen, nor was it comparable to more powerful assault rifles developed late in the war. Nevertheless, the carbine was soon widely issued to infantry officers, and the American paratroopers,<8> NCOs, ammunition bearers, forward artillery observers, and other frontline troops.<9> Its reputation in front-line combat was mixed. Some soldiers and Marines, especially those who were unable to use a full-size rifle as their primary weapon, preferred the carbine because of the weapon's small size and light weight.<10>

The carbine gained generally high praise from airborne troops in the early stages of the war who were issued the folding-stock M1A1, though negative reports began to surface with airborne operations in Sicily in 1943,<11> and increased during the fall and winter of 1944.<12>
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M1_carbine

Why does our party open itself up to criticism from the right as supporting gun bans on the eve of a election which most experts feel will take away our control of the House of Representatives and a few experts say possibly even the Senate?
:banghead::banghead::banghead::banghead::banghead: