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AR stands for armalite rifle not assault rifle. This letter is written in response to one submitted by James W. Ramsey (Daily Bee, June 19, 2016) titled, “assault weapons ban needs to be reinstated.”

You define common sense gun control without violating the second amendment as banning all AR-15 sporting rifles. You state they can shoot a dozen rounds a second and empty a 30-round magazine in 3 seconds. If you got your facts from Americans for Responsible Solutions, which has been proven to exaggerate facts horrendously in the past, perhaps you might want to reconsider the rate of fire you stated. Most people who are experienced with the weapon know the rate of fire is approximately one round every 1.33 seconds to 2 seconds. If you do the math that is about 80 to 120 rounds per minute not the 700 figure you claim.

Furthermore, you did not mention that these horrible events all happened in gun free zones. It takes a good guy with a gun to stop a bad guy with a gun every time. Banning the AR-15 is foolish and illegal. It is the most popular sporting rifle in the U.S. You do not have the right to impose your will upon people who own firearms. It would be a direct violation of the Constitution. The United States is not Europe or Australia and Idaho is not New York or California.

Instead of banning anything, it should be incumbent upon all citizens to learn how to shoot and understand firearms versus the European mindset of banning anything that can defend.

ROBERT DESCARO

Sagle