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Ban on imports
Have heard a report (no link yet) that BATFE has announced a ban on importation of "nonsporting" receivers and barrels, whatever those might be.
A key problem with the statute (and one which ought to be addressed by amendment) is that it permits importation bans of firearms not generally recognized as suitable for sporting purposes. As far as "sporting purposes" goes, the Second Amendment isn't about duck hunting, as they say. An equally great problem is the "generally recognized" portion. It allows a ban based on the argument that "maybe it is suitable for sporting purposes, but it's isn't "generally recognized" as so suited." That's how the initial import ban was justified -- review a bunch of gun magazines, and argue that there aren't enough references to a gun, or a type of gun, being useful for sport: whether it is or isn't suitable is no longer the question, and the agency can decide just how many mentions it takes to make something "generally recognized."
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I have a post here with some links to the atf and commentary from industry folks.
Someone should video tape a USPSA 3-gun match and send it to the ATF. At that match you'll see all sorts of evil military firearms used in a SPORTING EVENT. The evil military firearms are best because they are reliable.
A little off-topic, but still related to importation bans.
Might it be possible that the import ban of firearms violates some sort of free trade agreement? After all, many of the guns banned could be sold in the U.S. if they were manufactured here. So, the ban could be viewed as a trade barrier against foreign competition.
I wonder if someone could complain to the WTO.
Here is the confirmation:
http://www.atf.treas.gov/firearms/071305openletter.htm
Found here:
http://www.falfiles.com/forums/showthread.php?s=fba262e878c2044e848dadc532f09ea9&threadid=144441
Does this mean all those machine gun parts sets are going to be stopped at the border? They were never assembled into anything that could be considered a ordinary firearm or NFA firearm under the law, as far as I could see.
Not allowing the import of non-sporting weapons does have one very positive benefit in that it helps keep needed firearms manufacturing capacity within the United States.
The value of this cannot be overstated in an era of outsourcing the manufacture of just about everything else to low cost countries.
I am confused, how does the BATF get this power to just ban what they find is non-sporting?
Maybe you can elighten us.
http://www.atf.treas.gov/firearms/071305openletter.htm