Wednesday, November 18, 2009

The Guns Flowing into Mexico

The site called Mexico's Drug War posted an interesting article about the suggestion recently published in the Washington Post that reinstating the Assault Weapons Ban would help the problem of Mexican war violence. It was Jerry Seper, former Bush aide, who stated that the AWB should be reinstated. I suppose gun control folks like this, but besides the never-ending problem of defining an assault weapon in such a way as to include the ones we want and not include others, semi-automatic weapons used for hunting and home protection, there's another problem.

As most anyone can tell, most of the weapons on the original 1994 ban list are not the ones going to Mexico.
This is based on the same ATF trace data that has often been described as "90% of the weapons traced." While we've been so busy arguing over the 90%, no one thought to consider what those weapons actually were and how they compared to the AWB list.

The article goes on to discuss the practice of reconstructing AK-47s and other weapons out of parts which are legally and cheaply sold. Sometimes these parts are the result of weapons seized and destroyed by being cut in half. The two halves yield many reusable parts. But I think this is another discussion for another day.

The main point of the article is that the weapons flowing into Mexico from the U.S. are for the most part not the ones formerly referred to on the Assault Weapons Ban. Where does that leave us?

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

7 comments:

  1. "While we've been so busy arguing over the 90%, no one thought to consider what those weapons actually were and how they compared to the AWB list."

    Quite incorrect.

    We've been saying for a long time that the cartels prefer full-auto weaponry. The AWB was concerned with semi-autos only.

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  2. I looked at the .pdf, and most of the guns listed are the most common types from the US. The only relatively unusual guns are the 5.7mm and the .50 caliber.

    Where this leaves us depends on your goals. I think it pretty clearly shows that the answer to Mexico's problems isn't in reducing the rights of US citizens.

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  3. From Mikeb's link:

    "So, bottom line, between non-assault weapons, legal parts kits, and the straw purchase method, renewing the assault weapons ban - or enacting other types of gun control laws - would serve more as window dressing than an actual deterrent to the southbound flow of guns."

    "Another thing that is VERY important to remember is that DTOs are relying more heavily on military-grade weapons, like grenade launchers, hand grenades, and sniper rifles. These types of weapons not only wouldn't fall within an assault weapons ban, but they're not even purchased by DTO reps in the US. Long story short, a weapons ban would likely be yet another ineffective attempt by the Obama Administration to look like it's doing something - anything - to help the Mexico situation."

    Wow -- that appears to be an accurate assessment. So where does that leave us? If there are any effective measures that the US can take to combat drug violence in Mexico, an assault weapons ban is not one of them.

    And if that is true, then anyone who proposes an assault weapons ban as an answer is either woefully ignorant of the facts OR using the situation to promote another agenda. Tsk.

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  4. Also isn't the 5.7 FN one of the few cartridges legal in Mexico?

    I know you can't have guns in 9x19, .40 S&W or .45 ACP, .38 Special, and .357 Magnum because those are "Police and Military" calibers (Simply because that's what the police and military happen to pack)

    So oddball calibers like .32 H&R Magnum, and .380 Auto, .38 Super Automatic, as well as the very odd 5.7x28mm.

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  5. Something to consider Mikeb...

    Mexican police and military officers are notoriously corrupt. The have a world wide reputation for being crooked, and rightly so. The police and military are defecting to the cartels and bringing their military weaponry with them.

    Obama is proposing sending 1.4 BILLION dollars worth military weaponry and training to the very mexican police and troops that are causing the problem.

    And guess what?

    When those weapons start being recovered at mexican crime scenes, they will be traced back to the United States because our own government gave those guns to them using our tax dollars.

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  6. kaveman, Obama is sounding more like Bush all the time.

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  7. Also isn't the 5.7 FN one of the few cartridges legal in Mexico?

    I believe it's used by either the Mexican police or military (police I think) and since those two groups are the biggest suppliers of the cartels & gangs.....

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