Just had to do it

It’s all wrong. “Assault weapons” by the definition in the ban have existed and been in civilian hands for about 100 years. The Tommy gun and BAR where invented in the early 1900’s. They were popular mainstays of gangsters (many whom had experience with these weapons in war,) but while there was bloody and violent crime in this era- “mass shootings” were more confined to gang related activity and robbery.

Semi automatic battle riffles like the M1 were widely available as surplus after WW2, and the US government made millions selling them and through civilian marksmanship programs. For almost 70 years civilians had access to semiautomatic center fire battle riffles at low prices. Ammo was even cheaper and more deadly- and well into the 1970’s and even 80’s 30.06 was a popular cartridge with civilian shooters because it was still available in surplus and reloads from the war.

Pistols, carbines, smgs, and fully automatic smaller caliber weapons tend to dominate mass shootings- with the pistol being most responsible for gun deaths by far among civilians as most pistols exist by nature for being carryable, concealable, and killing humans at close ranges.

Very few mass shootings have taken place at engagement distances where a rifle, and for most mass shootings so far the most common modern riffles offer no advantage over a pistol. So it IS more complex than either party is making out- but the points made about guns aren’t quite true here.

Tommy guns are fucking hilarious when you really consider it all. I mean, that's a weapon that's making a point, a very assaulting point; built specifically for spraying like Riley Reid...