Posted by CPhilip:
First of all, machine guns are not illegal, just very expensive because there are a limited number of them registered. I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong, but as far as I know there has never been a crime committed with a legally owned and registered machine gun. Secondly, if a criminal wants a machine gun they'll just buy it off the black market, there is no need for them to steal one from a legal owner. If criminals know someone has anything valuable (money, jewelry, guns, etc.) they might try to steal it, the trick is to not tell anyone you have valuables. If they don't know it exists, they won't try to steal it.
Well, part of the reason they came out with the tax was after the Prohibition era where numerous crimes were committed using machine guns. I am talking about the glory days of 20th Century America of Al Capone, Dutch Schultz, the Irish Mob, Bumpy Johnson, etc. etc. etc.
And for those who speak of govt. being the govt. before 1933...there were no such thing as the "good ol days". You think govt. is corrupt today, back in the aforementioned times, govt. on all levels were corrupt and openly in bed with the underworld. You think cops, mayors, and politicians didn't violate the Volstead Act, they didn't drink? You think cops, police chiefs, mayors, and other public officials didn't turn a blind eye to illegal distilling, and smuggling as long as they got a cut? You think they didn't turn a blind eye when the Irish and the Italians were shooting each other up in the streets with Tommy Guns? And before that, there were newspaper wars, and the same.
Today, just like then, there are only a few do gooders.
There are direct parallels with the 1934 registration and the 1986 registration. Both came after total retriction or wars on certain consumables, alcohol and drugs. No one was unable to buy, sell, or consume alcohol during Prohibition, and the gangsters and the underworld were using these weapons to fight out their turf wars.
Fast forward to the declaration of the "war on drugs" as coined by Nixon. No one is unable to buy, sell, and consume any kind of drug to this very day, after decades and billions of dollars later, there are more drugs coming into this country than ever before. Drugs can't even be kept of out PRISONS. And concurrently, during the 80s and I'm guessing earlier, you had your modern street gangs fighting out their turf battles with the weapons in question.
So, naturally, all this "insanity" going on, almost entirely within the criminal element against another criminal element, the powers that be sought the need for registration for machine guns.
So yes, I voted machine guns should be legal again because I don't think having select fire weapons poses that much more of a danger to our society. Because if you believe that it is, then it wouldn't be a far cry to assume that you will just believe EVERY gun is that dangerous. Of the 280 million guns owned by Americans, it's still a tiny occurrence you see on TV about mass shootings etc. And, now, just like then, most of the actual "gun violence" is between the criminal elements.