Coming to terms with firearms

Drizzt · November 13, 2002, 03:33 PM

Copyright 2002 Nationwide News Pty Limited
Weekly Times

November 13, 2002, Wednesday

SECTION: SPORT; Pg. 73

LENGTH: 778 words

HEADLINE: Coming to terms with firearms

BYLINE: ROSS WILLIAMS

BODY:
MOST sporting firearms are illegal in Australia. The reason is simple: bans on "semi-automatic" firearms are widespread but the bans, being couched in incorrect and ill-defined terms, apply to virtually all firearms now in existence.

Yes, nearly all firearms are semi-automatic. Here the prefix semi- means "partly" or "to some extent", so semi-automatic firearms are those that perform some operations automatically. For example, modern single-barrelled and double-barrelled shotguns cock automatically when we close them. At the same time, their safety catches automatically shift to "on". Therefore, these shotguns are semi-automatic.

Bolt-action rifles also cock automatically on closure. When we open the bolt, we do not have to remove the spent or live cartridge with our fingers. The bolt extracts and ejects the cartridge automatically. Therefore, bolt-action rifles are semi-automatic.

The list of examples goes on and on.

Originally the bans were aimed at firearms that reload themselves after each shot until their magazines are empty, using recoil energy or bled-gas pressure for the motive force. The correct (and unambiguous) term for such firearms, however, is self-loading -- yet most state laws and regulations fail to employ it.

Thus, our firearms laws are now a legal minefield.

Regrettably, our legislators and those who draft the legislation have a knack of spawning problems, thanks to their ignorance of real firearms and the world of shooting.

A classic instance was in the first draft of the Cain Government's changes to the Victorian Firearms Act. As reported in this column at the time, the definition of firearm was so loose that aerosol cans would have become firearms. Had this definition survived, Victorians would have needed a shooter's licence in order to possess and use cans of deodorant, hairspray, flyspray and paint.

Though one in every four Australian households has at least one firearm, ignorance about firearms is widespread. So it's not surprising that people in the media are captives of the same ignorance.

We've all heard news readers pronounce the words "point two-two calibre rifle". But an experienced rifle shooter would never say that, for several reasons.

In firearms parlance, the decimal point is written but not said aloud. Thus .22 is pronounced as twenty-two, .38 is simply thirty-eight, and so on.

Actually, a .22 calibre rifle does not exist. The description means a rifle with a barrel whose length is only .22 or 22 per cent of its bore diameter. In other words, the barrel would look like a washer rather than a tube, and most of the cartridge would be hanging out front in the open air.

To describe the nominal bore size, we should place the word "calibre" first, and speak of a calibre .22 rifle.

Yet even this change would not get the newsreader or journalist out of trouble. The description still does not say whether the rifle is a rimfire or a centrefire because different firearms come under these headings. Furthermore, many chalk-and-cheese options exist in each category.

Even though firearm is the correct generic term, many non-shooters ignore it. They talk of guns. But what does gun really mean?

In the military context, a gun is a class of heavy field artillery. As far as sporting firearms are concerned, a gun is a smooth-bored firearm, designed to fire a charge of pellets while held at the shoulder. Thus gun and shotgun mean the same thing.

A rifle is vastly different from a gun. Though it, too, is fired from the shoulder, it has spiral grooves inside the barrel and fires a single projectile. Rifles and guns cannot do the same work.

Pistols and revolvers are handguns, although they usually have rifled barrels, or side arms when used by police, security guards or the armed forces.

Pistol covers all handguns when used as an adjective, as in pistol licence or pistol club. On its own, however, the word refers only to self-loading and single-shot types. Revolvers fire their cartridges from separate chambers in a revolving cylinder.

In summary, gun has a long-established, limited and specific meaning when used as a noun. Less than half of our sporting firearms are guns.

In fishing, fly casting, trolling, spinning and jigging are different techniques. No angler will use these words as though they meant the same. In golf, the wood, iron and putter are different tools for different situations, and to say a golfer is driving when he or she is putting or chipping would be ludicrous. The sportswriter who made such blues would quickly lose others' respect.

Why, then, are people afraid to use shooting terms correctly?

Cuchulainn · November 13, 2002, 03:49 PM

That has to be the oddest definition of semi-automatic I have ever read.

???Bolt action rifles are semi-auto because you don't have to pluck the spent casing out with your fingers??

Is that really how the Aussies define semi-auto or does this writer not know her definitions? That would be kind of funny since she's writing about how people write about guns and don't get the definitions correct.

Blackhawk · November 13, 2002, 04:24 PM

Well, thank you, Ross.

You've told us that the authors and supporters of the firearms laws don't know their privy from their wallaby.

We knew that.

Bear Flare · November 14, 2002, 10:54 AM

Cuchulainn:

The gentleman is making a good point. When you or any other firearms-knowledgable person says "semi-automatic" firearm, it is assumed you are speaking of the self-loading operation. Think about how an assumption can go wrong. In a gun-hostile climate, this ambiguity can be exploited.

Throw a lawyer in here and see what happens. A semi-automatic firearm has some actions which are performed automatically by the mechanism. We think of firing mode, but one can twist it to include loading, cocking, extraction, and ejection. Given the political climate in Australia, I think his concerns are valid.

Bear Flare

Scott Conklin · November 14, 2002, 11:16 AM

It's definitely an odd take on the wording but I can see how an attorney on a crusade could absolutely use it in the way the author describes it. Virtually anything has certain features which are automatic and though a term may be accepted to mean one thing in the general parlance in court it becomes something quite different.

Cuchulainn · November 14, 2002, 11:34 AM

Oh, he's saying that's how the word could be misused rather than claiming that's what it really means. That makes more sense.

November 13, 2002, 03:33 PM	#1
Drizzt Senior Member Join Date: October 25, 2000 Location: Moscow on the Colorado, TX Posts: 2,560	Coming to terms with firearms Copyright 2002 Nationwide News Pty Limited Weekly Times November 13, 2002, Wednesday SECTION: SPORT; Pg. 73 LENGTH: 778 words HEADLINE: Coming to terms with firearms BYLINE: ROSS WILLIAMS BODY: MOST sporting firearms are illegal in Australia. The reason is simple: bans on "semi-automatic" firearms are widespread but the bans, being couched in incorrect and ill-defined terms, apply to virtually all firearms now in existence. Yes, nearly all firearms are semi-automatic. Here the prefix semi- means "partly" or "to some extent", so semi-automatic firearms are those that perform some operations automatically. For example, modern single-barrelled and double-barrelled shotguns cock automatically when we close them. At the same time, their safety catches automatically shift to "on". Therefore, these shotguns are semi-automatic. Bolt-action rifles also cock automatically on closure. When we open the bolt, we do not have to remove the spent or live cartridge with our fingers. The bolt extracts and ejects the cartridge automatically. Therefore, bolt-action rifles are semi-automatic. The list of examples goes on and on. Originally the bans were aimed at firearms that reload themselves after each shot until their magazines are empty, using recoil energy or bled-gas pressure for the motive force. The correct (and unambiguous) term for such firearms, however, is self-loading -- yet most state laws and regulations fail to employ it. Thus, our firearms laws are now a legal minefield. Regrettably, our legislators and those who draft the legislation have a knack of spawning problems, thanks to their ignorance of real firearms and the world of shooting. A classic instance was in the first draft of the Cain Government's changes to the Victorian Firearms Act. As reported in this column at the time, the definition of firearm was so loose that aerosol cans would have become firearms. Had this definition survived, Victorians would have needed a shooter's licence in order to possess and use cans of deodorant, hairspray, flyspray and paint. Though one in every four Australian households has at least one firearm, ignorance about firearms is widespread. So it's not surprising that people in the media are captives of the same ignorance. We've all heard news readers pronounce the words "point two-two calibre rifle". But an experienced rifle shooter would never say that, for several reasons. In firearms parlance, the decimal point is written but not said aloud. Thus .22 is pronounced as twenty-two, .38 is simply thirty-eight, and so on. Actually, a .22 calibre rifle does not exist. The description means a rifle with a barrel whose length is only .22 or 22 per cent of its bore diameter. In other words, the barrel would look like a washer rather than a tube, and most of the cartridge would be hanging out front in the open air. To describe the nominal bore size, we should place the word "calibre" first, and speak of a calibre .22 rifle. Yet even this change would not get the newsreader or journalist out of trouble. The description still does not say whether the rifle is a rimfire or a centrefire because different firearms come under these headings. Furthermore, many chalk-and-cheese options exist in each category. Even though firearm is the correct generic term, many non-shooters ignore it. They talk of guns. But what does gun really mean? In the military context, a gun is a class of heavy field artillery. As far as sporting firearms are concerned, a gun is a smooth-bored firearm, designed to fire a charge of pellets while held at the shoulder. Thus gun and shotgun mean the same thing. A rifle is vastly different from a gun. Though it, too, is fired from the shoulder, it has spiral grooves inside the barrel and fires a single projectile. Rifles and guns cannot do the same work. Pistols and revolvers are handguns, although they usually have rifled barrels, or side arms when used by police, security guards or the armed forces. Pistol covers all handguns when used as an adjective, as in pistol licence or pistol club. On its own, however, the word refers only to self-loading and single-shot types. Revolvers fire their cartridges from separate chambers in a revolving cylinder. In summary, gun has a long-established, limited and specific meaning when used as a noun. Less than half of our sporting firearms are guns. In fishing, fly casting, trolling, spinning and jigging are different techniques. No angler will use these words as though they meant the same. In golf, the wood, iron and putter are different tools for different situations, and to say a golfer is driving when he or she is putting or chipping would be ludicrous. The sportswriter who made such blues would quickly lose others' respect. Why, then, are people afraid to use shooting terms correctly? __________________ "That a free citizen should have to go before a committee, hat in hand, and pray for permission to bear arms - fantastic! Arm your daughter, sir, and pay no attention to petty bureaucrats." Robert Heinlein - Red Planet

November 14, 2002, 11:16 AM	#5
Scott Conklin Senior Member Join Date: November 18, 2000 Location: B.F.E. Posts: 1,721	It's definitely an odd take on the wording but I can see how an attorney on a crusade could absolutely use it in the way the author describes it. Virtually anything has certain features which are automatic and though a term may be accepted to mean one thing in the general parlance in court it becomes something quite different. __________________ "Once the monkeys learn they can vote themselves bananas, they'll never climb another tree." - Heinlein www.libertydwells.com

November 13, 2002, 03:49 PM	#2
Cuchulainn Senior Member Join Date: November 13, 2002 Location: King Conner's castle Posts: 315	That has to be the oddest definition of semi-automatic I have ever read. ???Bolt action rifles are semi-auto because you don't have to pluck the spent casing out with your fingers?? Is that really how the Aussies define semi-auto or does this writer not know her definitions? That would be kind of funny since she's writing about how people write about guns and don't get the definitions correct.

November 13, 2002, 04:24 PM	#3
Blackhawk Senior Member Join Date: November 4, 2001 Posts: 5,040	Well, thank you, Ross. You've told us that the authors and supporters of the firearms laws don't know their privy from their wallaby. We knew that.

November 14, 2002, 10:54 AM	#4
Bear Flare Senior Member Join Date: November 28, 2000 Posts: 189	Cuchulainn: The gentleman is making a good point. When you or any other firearms-knowledgable person says "semi-automatic" firearm, it is assumed you are speaking of the self-loading operation. Think about how an assumption can go wrong. In a gun-hostile climate, this ambiguity can be exploited. Throw a lawyer in here and see what happens. A semi-automatic firearm has some actions which are performed automatically by the mechanism. We think of firing mode, but one can twist it to include loading, cocking, extraction, and ejection. Given the political climate in Australia, I think his concerns are valid. Bear Flare

November 14, 2002, 11:34 AM	#6
Cuchulainn Senior Member Join Date: November 13, 2002 Location: King Conner's castle Posts: 315	Oh, he's saying that's how the word could be misused rather than claiming that's what it really means. That makes more sense.