Bring American firearms back from Korea!

Earlier this year, the Obama administration chose to block the government of South Korea from selling antique US-made M1 Garands and M1 carbines to American collectors.

The Clinton State Department is considering "alternative options" to deal with these classic rifles. Historically, such code words have meant cutting them up and melting them down. Hillary Clinton's State Department claims the destruction of collectible war relics is for the protection of Americans.

I cannot understand how these rifles and carbines could be considered risky when they already are offered for sale by the US government through the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP). In fact, the congressionally-mandated CMP puts on summer camps that teach boys and girls as well as adults how to handle the Garand properly and safely. As expected, the CMP sales and training programs are not only accident and crime free, they are an important part of fostering firearm safety throughout the nation.

Fear of these military arms is unfounded and irrational, since these firearms have no more firepower than firearms that have been used by hunters, target shooters, and other gun owners for over 100 years. These guns, and the people who seek to own them, are far less dangerous than our current out-of-control federal government.

I find it unlikely that this new ban on the return of US-made firearms to the US is about safety or crime prevention. The bottom line is that the President and the Secretary of Defense are simply pursuing their lifelong goal to ban and confiscate all firearms in the hands of anyone other than government agents. This is simple a backdoor assault on Constitutionally-guaranteed gun ownership -- an assault which is cleverly conducted outside the legislative process with the hope that nobody notices. As long as the destruction of these rifles stays under the public radar screen, the gun-grabbers will have achieved their goal.

Present and future generations must have a chance to experience this piece of history at an affordable price. Congress must immediately take action to reverse the State Department and allow these priceless war relics to return home.



We must never permit arrogant US politicians do here what their ilk did in Australia: