That “decorated” veteran with an “assault rifle” in Dallas
We read yesterday about the gunman in the tragic killing of police officers in Dallas. The New York Daily News describes him as a “highly decorated” and “well-trained” Army veteran;
Trained by the best to use weapons of war, a bloodthirsty killer who once served in Afghanistan brought guns, ammo and body armor to ambush cops in downtown Dallas.
[…]
Some who served with the former Army reservist said he was odd and a bit of a pervert — but none could fathom that the highly decorated military man was a domestic killing machine.
[…]
In the killer’s home, investigators found a massive cache of weapons — bomb-making materials, ballistic vests, rifles, ammunition and a personal journal of combat tactics, authorities said.
XXXXX was well trained. He served as an Army reservist for six years until 2015 and was deployed to Afghanistan between November 2013 and July 2014.
He was a carpentry and masonry specialist, with a rank of private first class, and was awarded the Army Achievement Medal.
They talk about his “assault rifle”;
XXX XXXXX, 25, was toting an SKS semi-automatic assault rifle and a handgun Thursday night when he shot a dozen cops, killing five of them.
A carpenter/mason wouldn’t be all that highly trained in what the gunman did the other day. While he had marksmanship training as a soldier with an AR-style rifle, he wouldn’t have the same amount of training that someone in another profession might have – millions of whom didn’t shoot anyone this week. You would be hard pressed to find any soldier without an Army Achievement Medal – it’s pretty common. I have three.
An SKS is not an “assault rifle” – not by the definition of the people who call those weapons “assault rifles”;
First off, it doesn’t have a detachable box magazine, there is no pistol grip, most don’t have a bayonet lug, there is no flash suppressor, no barrel shroud. The magazine only holds ten rounds. There’s no “thing in the back that goes up”. It’s not even scary black. It’s legal in most states, including those that have “assault rifle bans” like California. In fact, it’s a World War II-era rifle – designed in 1943 and first issued to Soviet troops in 1945. It was out of service in the Soviet Union by the 1950s, replaced by the AK-47.
The gunman may have been well-trained, but not by the Army. It’s doubtful that a carpenter ever would have even seen an SKS during his service, and he certainly wasn’t trained to fire or operate it while he was in uniform.
Category: Media
“Sniper”…
Smh. The press should stick to what they’re good at, fluffing the ruling class.
They are referring to that tactic he used not his training or skill set.
Shooting victims from a concealed location at a distance is regarded as acting as a “sniper”. In fact it is literally how the word is used.
No they aren’t. They are calling him a sniper, inferring he is a military trained sniper…I see no contextual reality inferring he was merely engaged in the generic act of sniping.
Too many people WANT him to be a Military sniper and probably cried when they found out he wasn’t white.lol
No they are not.
They are talking about the tactic.
The word “sniper” was used, and is on audio being used, by the cops within the first 60 seconds of the first shots being fired.
The radio chatter is not what I was referring to. That’s like being on patrol and being shot at from a concealed location, of course you’re going to say “sniper” because at the moment you are reporting a tactical condition and sending info for immediate action which is likely the same thing a LEO would do.
da fukk else ya gonna do at the time?
The media picked up the term “sniper” due to both the police statements to the media, and the announcement the police made to the citizens in the area instructing them to leave which was subsequently told to the media when citizens were interviewed.
That is how the “sniper” narrative became the media narrative.
“In fact, right…literally.” I didn’t know you are an SME on Sniper tactics. Please go on.
I know how the word is used in the English language.
The specialty in the military is a more modern invention that evolved from early 18th century sharpshooter units.
The use of the word with respect to ACT of shooting people at a distance from a concealed location is different than the use of the word to describe the profession.
Stop conflating the two.
I respectfully decline your offer to stop conflating the two.
If civilians want to do so we, trained military personnel, owe it to them to find the right terms. This was a far ambush, nothing more.
The DC beltway douches had more in common with Sniper employment but diverted from the tactic. There is a distinction and it should be respected.
My .02, YMMV
This is a silly debate.
The police called it a sniper in their initial statements.
The police announced it was a sniper to the general public in the moments the initial event began.
The police and the public both called it a sniper to responding reporters when the story hit.
They were all referring to the TACTIC being used in the most generic understanding of the term.
Not the specialized technical methods of conventional military and law enforcement tactics.
Stop trying to claim that only military trained snipers can be called “snipers” that is bullshit. That is not how words work.
Anyone that uses the tactic regardless of how well trained and how effectively it is used, is acting as a sniper in the general use of the term.
This is not a stolen valor issue. Micah is not claiming to be a “sniper” for free drinks at a local bar. He was shooting people at a distance from a concealed location. He was acting as a “sniper”. Regardless of whether he was school trained and whether he had the technical expertise.
“Stop trying to claim that only military trained snipers can be called “snipers” that is bullshit.”
never said that, but prattle on, by all means
Bingo. He used sniper tactics. Doesn’t matter if he was trained to or not. Anyone who has ever seen a movie can pick up the basics; high ground, concealment.
What is of importance, and shouldn’t be brushed aside, is that it’s reasonable to assume that his marksmanship skills were grown and or improved in his military service.
oh please…what was your MOS anyway?
This fuck fired straight line of sight shots from cover/concealment. Basic rifleman and nothing more.
A skill he gained or developed further in the military. To say otherwise is to knock the training we all received.
His being a vet is a bitter thing to accept but it’s not irrelevant to what happened.
*It’s not irrelevant to the success he had during what happened.
“To say otherwise is to knock the training we all received.” Are you trying to be stupid or does it come naturally? Your feeble attempt to foreclose challenges to your statements is foolhardy. You offer an either/or. That’s it. Case Clos-ed. Hardly. There are other possibilities, not the least of which is that his shooting skills did not improve in BCT, that they remained the same or, for whatever reason, actually lessened. The latter can occur for any number of reasons. In your case, it was likely, “I can’t shoot well when someone is watching me.” Well, that, and “I have to go pee-pee.”
“To say otherwise is to knock the training we all received.”
No, it’s a way of saying he was a competent basic rifleman and not anything special..it’s a testament to the basic competence of all rifleman.
My response to that silly statement by CLong is that I did NOT receive any weapons training of ANY kind in basic/boot camp, but if, after leaving the military, I become a competent and accurate user of a long rifle, that has NOTHING WHATSOEVER TO DO WITH MY BEING A VET.
And you, CLong, are either being intentionally obtuse or trying to pick a quarrel by quibbling over a word.
The published info clearly indicates his MOS was not 11B, or anything even remotely close to it.
It was also rather conclusively demonstrated that he sought out civilian training. The video clip looks like any “3 gun” match participant.
He certainly failed utterly to demonstrate the much more thoroughly taught training to maintain self-control at all times, and not to go ape-shit on ones own side.
If one has anger issues, or hatred for various members of local society, take up a combative sport like boxing or MMA. You then get to go pound on people to your heart’s content.
They do, however, get to pound back. Probably why losers do not go that route.
DC sniper was a Vet and black too- they said he was “highly trained” – He had a Marksman qualification bagde. then there was a “highly trained Navy officer” was that black cop that went off the reservation. The cops were running scared on that one. They had him surrounded in that house near Tahoe or Big Bear and they burned it to the ground with him in it. They media loves to lay the groundwork for crazy veterans all the time.
Clong just throws shit out there, hoping no one asks to back his mindless statements up with some authority other than his feelings.
“[I]t’s reasonable to assume that his marksmanship skills were grown and or improved in his military service.” I keep watering mine daily. Even tried Miracle Gro, Still, I see no growth. Seriously, I know what you mean. When Timothy McVeigh blew up the Federal Building, I and millions of others said, “He probably wasn’t too skilled at making fertilizer bombs before his military service. He must have improved that skill there. Yep. For sure.”
Or maybe it had something to do with farming?
In a USAR unit while not on active duty? Yeah, USAR units go to the range really often.
At most, he’d have been to a military range 5 to 7 times – basic plus once a year thereafter plus once pre-deployment. I would not be surprised if he’d been to the range a grand total of 3 times in his career: basic training, pre-deployment, and once in between.
They go to the range twice a year. And they also get a few days of range time prior to going down range.
Reserve units are far more proficient than they were in the 90s and prior.
1. there is a decent number of combat deployed vets.
2. the Army is much more attentive and demanding in the expectations of reediness the put on reserve units.
3. soldiers get better combat and marksmanship training in basic than they did in the 90s and prior.
4. There is a great deal of other effective tools and access to training aids that reserve units have due to technology that did not exist 20 years ago.
In fact, reserve non-combat arms spend exactly as much time at the range than active duty non-combat arms.
For RC Engineer soldiers, DA Pam 350-38, Chap 6, indicates that individual weapons qualification is an annual requirement.
The unit may well run the range 2x annually – or they may not. But even if they do, it’s IMO highly doubtful he went 2x annually each year to meet an annual requirement. His unit would have given priority to those needing the qual.
And unless his unit was able to coordinate to use indoor range facilities at JRB Fort Worth, I’m guessing they only went once a year. Don’t believe there are a helluva lot of US Army or ARNG installations near Dallas. So getting to a range would be a pain. I’m guessing they went once annually.
“In fact, reserve non-combat arms spend exactly as much time at the range than active duty non-combat arms.”
Active duty combat arms qualify twice a year while active duty non-combat arms are required to qualify once a year.
In six years including basic? I would be extremely surprised if he spent less than 14 days at the range.
That being said, I doubt he fired more than 1000 rounds on the military’s dime in 6 years and basic total. Not including crew served weapons training.
Lc…you’ve written enough papers to know better than to hide behind the narrow continuum of a dictionary when citing the specialized and situational use of words.
I am not hiding, in this care we are talking about the general public and this the general public’s understanding of the term is how it should be understood.
Not the specialized understanding military and military aficionados develop.
The dictionary definition is literally derived by the public understanding of the term.
Not when the pub-lick is portraying a vet gone mass murdering racist as someone that was part of a community in which he was not
Bing Bing Bing! We have a winner!
Now can we get to the real argument, Ranger Batt guy versus Ranger Qualified versus park rangers versus the New York Rangers. Those last few have been steeling (sic) all the valors!
I have been reading the same articles and listening to the same newscasts, and spend the evening watching the same breaking stories, and listened to the dallas scanner.
I heard the word “sniper” dozens of times. Not once did the context indicate he was a military trained sniper.
Only that he was shooting people from a distance.
Damn you got me, they called him a sniper. Hey folks, this guy is right! Lostcause noticed you can call anything you want by what ever you want and it’s right.
Or perhaps they, only knowing what they *think* a Sniper is, used an excited utterance.
Words, whether you like it or not, have specific meanings and used indiscriminately begin to take on different meanings. Nothing about this guys tactics was close, aspects of his technique *may* have been, to which I will concede. It was wrong for the media to parrot this bullshit, which was my original point, I said that yesterday, I’m saying tomorrow and I’ll continue to say it.
Now, because I’m a Noncommissioned Officer and I’m not allowed to point out problems and walk away, if they used a hyphen and the word ‘like’ or ‘ish’ they’d be just on the other side of right in my book.
I don’t speak for everybody tho.
The Viet Cong had snipers. They hid in the tree canopies.some of them were teenaged boys conscripted by the VC. Since the Soviets were supplying them with stuff of all kinds, I rather imagine they were using this kind of rifle for sniping at American troops.
I would imagine the Dragunov and M91/30 were probably much more prevalent in that respect. But I’m not a Vietnam Vet so I’m just guessing.
The NVA used anything they could get their hands on, including the SKS. We captured some in 1968.
A lot of those came back to the US in seabags. Pawn shops in Georgia and the Carolinas were full of SKSs in the 70s.
And you actually pick them up for around 75-100 a piece… If I remember correctly.
Here in Texas we call it a plain old Bushwhacking. Cuts right to the heart of the matter and does not argue symantics
I was wondering about the 6 years and only a PFC.
This may have something to do with that:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/07/09/world/crime-legal-world/dallas-sniper-called-a-loner-was-sent-home-from-afghanistan-by-army-following-sexual-harassment-charge/#.V4ECUGcm7X4
“MESQUITE, TEXAS – Micah Xavier Johnson, the Dallas sniper, was sent home from Afghanistan after being accused of sexually harassing a female, and was described as a loner who followed black militant groups on social media.”
Gee, I wonder why we haven’t heard that from the US media?
Addendum: should have double-checked Fox first. At least they’re prominently featuring the truth about this . . . individual.
Only Fox is? I’m just plain shocked!
It is being reported in liberal news as well.
I read this on liberal sources first thing in the morning after the even.
For instance….http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/07/08/micah-johnson-dallas-cop-killer-was-black-nationalist.html
I wouldn’t exactly call that being prominently featured. That article has a single mention in passing of his sexual harassment history. It glosses over the fact and doesn’t give pertinent details – like the fact that he was recommended for an OTH discharge due to the misconduct.
As the other article cited above makes clear: this guy clearly had issues well before he deployed – and I’d guess probably before he ever joined.
If it doesn’t fit in with CNN’s dipshit meme, they leave it out.
Hondo, I pray to god you come to Alaska some day, I’ll put you and your old lady on a glacier cruise and I will buy you all the beer on hand. You speak the truth.
He was probably a fan of Bill Clinton. If Hillary had visited Afghanistan she could have grabbed the female victims hand and scared her into not saying anything.
just read he was sent home early from his Trashcanistan deployment for sexual harassment…might ‘splain being a terminal PFC
This is my shocked face.
And yeah, I got more training and range time after I got out than I ever dreamt of when I was in, and that’s being part of the QRF for Repel Boarders. Most sailors get their pistol/rifle ribbons and that’s the last time they handle a weapon.
Marksmanship is often more a matter of initiative, innate talent and personal practice time.
You really can’t just rely on only the trigger time afforded on the job.
Anybody that puts in the effort can shoot well, especially from supported positions without time constraints.
When I was at the training group cadre had our own range. We could shoot almost any time, using government rounds/weapons or personal supplies.
All we had to do was call in we were going hot and run up the flag.Good times.
I’m lucky enough to live in the boonies where I can go hot 24/7/365
Kuntzman might read that and need to call his counselor
When I was at Fort Bragg, the Rod and Gun Club had their own range where members could sign out the range flag and open the range whenever they wanted.
McKellar’s Lodge…I haven’t been there in awhile. It has always been fun when I have.
That was always our cover story if caught with a weapon during a random search…I’m on may way to the lodge.lol
Bragg has changed by leaps and bounds in the past 5ish years. There are 3 and 4 star commands there now, thousands more people, they’ve expanded huge areas for certain units.
Mckellar’s Lodge is still there though. When I was there we used to run our PT test out there, nice flat decent run down and back.
Speaking of Kuntzman, somebody(s)has been editing his Wiki page ever since he tore his pantyhose over an AR. Click on the page history in the upper right corner and follow the previous versions.
It is hilarious.
Thanks for pointing that out, I’m crying it is so funny.
One extra fun fact. Cunt gave himself the nickname “King of Brooklyn” if you go back to the edits in January 2016.
What a tool. lol
That is a hoot.
IDC SARC, you and I. 35 feet from my door, is the 150 yard marker for my home range. I shoot something daily, usually more than one something. I also have a tree that is the backboard for my throwing training, with knives, machete, and tomahawk. My time in Airborne Infantry didn’t offer me this. Even being a member of the post Rifle/Pistol team for a little while didn’t afford the level of range time that I enjoy today.
sahweeeeet!^^^^^^
Braggarts….
IDC SARC man you’re taking me back to good times. The old SOT course at Mott Lake was similiar for cadre. Spent many an off day shooting at the range there. This POS carpenter didn’t get training to develop his skillset in the reserves. The media is guilty for spreading this false narrative.
Article linked above- interesting read.
the matrix crowd will try anything, and do anything, they can…
to hype up a story and to ban guns
F$&@ Liberals !!!!!!
There’s another news article this morning where the news talked to this guy’s Trial Defense JAG Officer.
Apparently this guy was sent back home early from Afghanistan for a sexual harrasment incident with a recommendation from his CoC to be processed out with an OTH
It appears they just let him ETS out instead of taking care of business
thats what commanders do. Let othersd eal with the problem children. We had an E6 in Germany beat his wife for not having sex with another soldier, yes you read that right. He was about to pcs to Bliss, so his commander swept it under the rug. Mind you he had beaten her when they lived in Fort Sill, before he EVER deployed.
When he got to Bliss, he attempted to kill her in the casino parking lot. His commander said he suffered from PTSD and he now out of the army, collecting bennies. He was a POS. Every single commander he had passed the buck! Didn’t want to deal with the problem child. He is still wanted in Texas.
We had a nut case on my last deployment with a similar issues he pointed a gun at his commander
when they where demobing and sum how avoided all hell from big army, then he came to us a reserve unit and had no issues getting back in… he flipped a noodle over in the sand box and tried to shoot our TOP…
Having seen the processing in reserve units for getting troops out with an OTH, it all depends on the G-1 channels and how much paperwork they want from higher and how much higher commanders want to deal with it. (And JAGs are a 50/50. Some will help you push them out with an OTH, some will scrutinize your work so harshly that it isn’t worth trying to OTH.)
We recommended multiple times for troops to get OTHs for pissing hot. At one point there were so many stacking up that they started offering troops a “General” discharge to just get out and not deal with a long drawn out ordeal. I had one Soldier who I inherited that waited over a year for his appeal board.
In the past few years the Army Reserve as a whole is “short” of personnel. So they want paperwork up the ass to kick people to the curb. “Oh, but how hard did you work to rehabilitate that Soldier?” “How many times did his command team go to his home address to talk to him?” “Did he actually understand what he did?”
Add to that, “well, if we process him out this way, it’ll take so much paperwork. Just put him in the IRR and then we won’t have to worry about it.” (The same thing they were doing pre-2004 which caused huge issues later.)
In Johnson’s case, I thought I read somewhere that someone said he was currently in the IRR. It sounds like he finished his first 6 years and was in the IRR for that last 2 years, the typical Reserve obligation.
if he was in theater it should not have been a major issue with giving his ass the boot his COC was lazy and probably ate up or a host unit that was going after this shit bag and they where giving cover for him
Here is that article. I’m surprised that a defense counsel would tell the press so much that was detrimental to an ex-client (he reveals what he remembers from the complaint, though not any confidential communications from the client himself).
In other words, it is precisely the kind of rifle that the gun-banners claim they will magnanimously let us keep. Which of course they are lying. When the gun-grabbing fascists talk about “common sense gun safety”, what they really mean is that they want to ban and confiscate all your guns. Never forget that is their end game.
I’ve never meet one of these types that could tell the truth
And JFK was shot with a bolt action.
Just goes to show that it is the person behind the weapon that does the killing, not the weapon.
Mannlicher Carcano as I recall. When they tested expert marksman with the same rifle doing the same scenario, only 7 of 10 could match the results. I believe it was done in the 70s?
As I recall, those tests used invalid timing (an erroneously too short a period for the 3 shots taken – around 5 seconds, as I recall), and I believe some started with an empty chamber. Starting with a round in the chamber (as Oswald would certainly have done – he wasn’t dumb) and allowing 7 or so seconds (the actual most likely time period between shots 1 and 3) makes it a much easier shoot.
http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/scearce.htm
As it was, Oswald’s 3rd shot – the deadly one – only clipped the top 1″ or so of Kennedy’s skull; he damn near missed the shot that killed JFK. But that 1″ was enough.
Start with a round in the chamber. Fire once to start the timer, load, fire twice. Effective range 20 yards (4X scope at about 80 yards actual) and tell me if you think you could get an 12″ group. I suspect any reader on the forum (with the possible exceptions of Lars, CLong, etc) would hang their heads in shame if unsuccessful.
Thank you for that comment…
“what they really mean is that they want to ban and confiscate all your guns”
Exactly, “OUR” Guns. Not THEIRS. They’ll get exemptions and exceptions and waivers. The hollywood celebrities will get to ignore the laws, so will DC politik types, so will millionaire and billionaire types who have powerful lobbies, just like is the case already.
If the ‘they’ who say and write these things took the time to learn even a tiny little bit about the subject, they’d have nothing to say. They intentionally remain ignorant for that reason.
Saw a tweet from the Dallas Police Chief where he says the shooter shot and moved positions “military style” or some bullshit.
As far as I am concerned, the fact this asshole was a PFC in the reserves for 6 years is irrelevant to the entire shooting. The only legit veterans there that I know of with certainty, were two officers that got murdered while doing their jobs.
It was not irrelevant. Most soldiers are given a decent amount of MOUT training including room clearing and basic tactics involving shooting, moving, and communicating in a built up area during basic. They then repeat that training prior to mobilization.
So he was more effective than he would have been had he never received training.
Additionally, he apparently practiced and trained on his own or sought our additional training.
I think his military training is relevant.
“I think his military training is relevant.”
Would that be DOD military training or New Black Panther military training?
Me thinks you overthink too much.
Pics of him at a NBP event a few years ago
https://pjmedia.com/jchristianadams/2016/07/08/obama-justice-department-laughed-off-armed-new-black-panther-threat/
His sister’s screed on FB (account now closed:
http://thesmokinggun.com/buster/dallas/micah-johnson-facebook-547310
And a man that sees the truth:
https://pjmedia.com/trending/2016/07/08/sheriff-david-clarke-blasts-obama-for-dallas-police-massacre-his-irresponsible-rhetoric-fuels-this-sort-of-thing/
Yep. I wondered in the original Dallas thread how he went to Afghanistan and didn’t even manage an ARCOM. There’s my answer.
Some Junior enlisted only got AAMs. It depends on the units you are with, I knew quite a few that only got AAMs.
In 11-12, in our Bde AAMs and ARCOMs became a memo with list attached. It wasn’t exactly by rank, but even still him getting sent home for sexual harassment must’ve been a significant pattern of activity.
Wow, seriously? If you don’t mind, can I ask when that was? I was in Kandahar from Dec 2012-Sep 2013, and getting an AAM as your end-of-tour was a definite sign of shitbaggery.
Of course, now I’m having second thoughts. Maybe there were a few privates who only got AAMs, but I can’t remember who or why. I somehow put it in my brain that everyone got ARCOMs or BSMs, but maybe that was only amongst officers…
Oh, now I see when it was, MSG. Never mind that question.
Trust me, I’m sure there were plenty of Commanders who took care of their troops on deployments.
Problem is, some commanders think giving someone an award, especially one that would be “above” their rank takes money out of the Commander’s pocket.
I was fortunate enough to even put my E5 in for a BSM because he was that bad ass and it got approved.
Heh–as far as officers trying to get you an award goes: Way back when in the early ’90s, stateside, 2/3 or so of my unit went TDY out west to act as data collectors. We arrived in late September from our post in the SE. By November it was freezing cold (not Graphenwahr cold or Afghanistan cold, but cold enough for this Southern boy). I was flagged for flunking a record PT test (I ain’t proud of it, but give me a minute here). The 2LT (prior service–green to gold, I think) to whose platoon I was attached wanted to put me up for an AAM so she had two NCOs administer a record PT test. When I passed my push-ups, I knew I had it. (I still have long skinny arms like Gilligan even though I have acquired about half of the Skipper’s gut.) I think I ran my best or second best time in the snow flurries that morning.
By the time the paperwork went to the company, it got shot down either because I was only attached to that platoon or because I wasn’t with the platoon anymore. I don’t remember; she showed me the paperwork and I told her that it’s the thought that counts.
We had plenty of people in 09-10 OIF in our BDE that only got AAMs about 50-55 percent
In the last half of the war the award number were given according to a quota system and units even put out policies that dictated rank/responsibility and “suggested” awards.
I saw a lot of AAMs.
Turns out Turd Boy was a panty thief in A-stain.
According to his former buddy’s.
Was he stealing them from men or women?
I couldn’t help but notice that, while the LA PD had on riot type gear, the Dallas PD had on biking clothing and helmets as well as regular duty uniforms. It made me wonder that since this WH Admin has asked the PDs to remove or downplay the military style uniforms, gear and vehicles, does this make it more likely for an attack from a lone gunman with this lessened show of force.
Seeing the bicycle police out there trying to take cover was painful. They wore reflective tops and helmets which would be perfect targets for someone to shoot at.
Understandable when you’re riding a bike, but they need to come up with a way for those cops to swap out that reflective material if a gun fight happens.
What strikes me is the officers going in harms way, under fire, to remove civilians from the fray. Stones by both men and women officers. Yes, there are bad cops; there are bad shoots. But those officers putting themselves in harm’s way to protect civilians is what stays with me. Stones
I think it’s pretty obvious who the Good Guys were.
The SKS can be modernized.
More like “the SKS can be Bubba’d with varying results.” Sure, you can give it a tacticool synthetic stock with accessory rails and shit, but aftermarket AK mag conversions often don’t go well, even when done by pro gunsmiths. The L-shaped dedicated-SKS detachable mags can work better. For every conversion that functions as advertised, there’s a dozen more butchered jam-o-matic frankenguns that should’ve been left alone. But the bottom line is that Simonov designed his rifle to be a charger-fed fixed-magazine weapon, and that’s what it’s really good at.
The unmodified SKS is an excellent rifle that has stood the test of time, much like the M1 Garand. It is considered obsolete for being a fixed-magazine rifle with fixed iron sights, but that doesn’t mean it’s not an effective weapon. I like my SKS (an actual Russian one at that) very much, and would consider myself well-prepared for most gunfights with it. It’s not my favorite, but it’s good. It’s accurate, reliable, and easy to use for anyone who knows how to shoot. Plus, it squeezes better ballistics and a longer effective range out of 7.62×39 than the AK, thanks to a longer barrel and more efficient gas system.
This asshole chose to use his for evil. That’s sad. But it goes to show that the weapon is not what’s important, it’s the asshole using it for evil. He could’ve done the exact same thing with a Winchester ’94, an old .30-40 Krag, or an even-older Trapdoor Springfield. Or he could’ve mixed diesel with fertilizer in the back of a truck and done far worse.
The weapon didn’t matter. It was the asshole behind it.
What I love about how the media described the weapon is how they change the reality to fit their “it is the black rifle” that is the cause of the mayhem. In the original Daily Mail online article I read about the incident in Dallas they had a photo of a Norinco SKS with a detachable 30 round mag. But in a later version (the one linked by a commenter here) they had replaced the SKS photo with one of an AR carbine with collapsible stock. I guess someone got to the Mail with directions that they were not being sufficiently “progressive” about “gun safety” and the evil scary black “assault weapon.”
oBaMa dusted off one of his favorite nonsensical expressions in Poland. Referring to the murders in Dallas by the nut who just wanted to kill whitey, oBama said, “That’s not who we are.” Really? WTF does that mean? What’s not who we are? Killers? Murderers? Apparently, some number of Americans are exactly that. Racists? Ditto. Bigots? Ditto. That’s who we are. We are also decent human beings, patriotic Americans, hard workers, loving Moms and Dads and many other good things. oBaMa is the last SOB who should try to tell us what we are and are not. Remember, racism is in your DNA. He needs to STFU. And someone needs to duct tape Wide Load. Not just her mouth. Her entire unsightly body, head to toe.
You have to remember that the one thing bodaprez the clowndog is really, really good at doing is making asinine statements before the facts are in.
He doesn’t have the common sense God gave a damned mosquito, for Pete’s sake. He just has to stick his oar in and say something, and it is frequently grossly inappropriate.
Ya ever think when his handlers give him his script and point him to the teleprompters he rolls his eyes and says, “awww dayamm, y’all just making me look stupid again!”
Never. I don’t think he knows how stupid he really is. But if you want a sample of it, when he was a senior law reader/lecturer at the University of Chicago, he turned the class over to the students.
I don’t think he knows his butt from a hole in the ground about much of anything at all.
I like the thought.
Seems a bit weird. Was he “sniping” from an elevated position in the garage, or was he down at street level engaging more closely and directly? There is footage of someone at street level. Did fire from above, and then run down the stairs to get close up? That seems rather unusual.
Most folks I see at the range with stripper-fed weapons, like an SKS, fumble around with them. Few simply zip in 10 in one smooth action.
I could see a 4-man fire team pulling this off, or even a two man team pulling this off. One “lone gunman” seems a bit of a stretch. On-scene witness comments are usually way off, so maybe I am also way off. Echoes in built-up areas can make sounds bounce all over the place.
Was this guy thown to the wolves by others who snuck away? Or, did all the people reporting on events simply identify the muzzle blasta and the supersonic “crack” sounds of the passing bullets as “two shooters”
^this.
Whole lot of carnage for one degenerate, mind you I am not one for conspiracy theories. I haven’t looked at any maps but the range seems intermediate, 200ish meters. That’s a stretch for flat shooting in waning light. Throw in elevated position… Guy must have had some skills
I can speed-load my SKS with a stripper clip, if the clip is a good one. I’ve found that a box of 20 (made in China, naturally) will usually contain 5-8 good clips that zip rounds right in without hassle, with the rest being deformed slightly and not working at all. The frustrating part is that you can never tell which is which until you try them out.
The shooter really wasn’t very big. Not being a huge individual, he was probably able to move quickly from one spot to another by firing enough shots to pin people down.
It’s logical to assume that he had planned everything he did, also. In addition, it was dark and he could take advantage of the darkness and the confusion on the streets. Therefore, the reports that he was the sole shooter make sense.
He was constantly shooting and moving until he was locked down on the second floor of the college. Which is why they thought there was more than one shooter.
Get some facts, will you? He was NOT in a college. He was in a parking garage.
http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/07/08/485202505/dallas-police-officers-killed-by-snipers-what-we-know-friday
Second paragraph: Suspect died in a parking garage.
Nowhere does it say he was in a college or a college building. Belo Garden Park is NOT a college campus. It is a park in downtown Dallas, Texas.
New reporting coming out is that it was not an SKS. Now I am hearing that he used a saiga AK-74. This is just rumor since no major source has come out with a story indicating it was not an SKS.
During the newscast it was clear it was a probably a 7.62mm due the sound of the fire. Pretty unforgettable sound and immediately recognizable. I am not buying that it was a Saiga AK-74 yet.
But who knows.
And it matters not in the least to me – a mere mortal not in any way involved in the investigation of the crimes this thug committed.
For the record, I also don’t care how much his mama loved him, what his delusions about his fellow countrymen were, or much of anything else about him other than he is now dead. The treat has been neutralized.
It effects the “scary assault rifle” debate since the way assault rifles are generally banned is by feature. Meaning the SKS is rarely classified as one. Unless it has a detachable mag.
I suspect his did though given his rate of fire. And if it was a Saiga Ak-74 then it was an assault rifle according to the way the laws are general written.
It shapes the gun control narrative.
It is irrelevant to magnitude and nature of the tragedy.
Bullshit. See the statement at this place: http://valorguardians.com/blog/?p=66743&cpage=1#comment-2872266
Quibbling over the use of a word? Childish in the extreme, and completely pointless.
Really?
I mean, who gives a shit?
If it was 7.62, that rules out the 5.45 AK-74. That leaves the possibility of a commercial Saiga model or an AK-100-series clone. Still, the fuckstick’s ROF was attainable with a stock SKS, provided he knew how to use it, which he evidently did.
After the Orlando shooting, I was informed by a liberal on Facebook that a semiautomatic rifle chambered in 7.62 was a hunting rifle and therefore not an “assault rifle”.
AP reports the POS received his tactical training at Academy of Combative Warrior Arts in Richardson, Tx.
Well, then, it appears that any relevance to his Army sniper status is nonexistent and irrelevant.
Can we go back to popcorn, cold drinks and the movie now?
I heard he could trim bricks to size using his Kung fu grip and knife hands! Shit you only learn as a PFC reservist.
I have Jack Single Barrel on the Rocks! I’ll skip the popcorn.
You guys! How about Slim Jims, Beernuts, pickled hardboiled eggs, pickled pigs feet and those little Polish hot sausages, plus some Black Label, 33, or black market Stoli, all courtesy of Three Sisters?
Pickled eggz….om nom nom nom nom nom
Pickled eggs from a jar so old there is rust on the lid! Washed down with some ice cold bud light… your farts will peel paint off the walls!
Personally, I have no issue with calling a rifle that was used to assault people an assault weapon. Doesn’t matter to me what other uses an object might have, when it is used to assault someone it becomes an assault weapon.
Can’t wait until the lefties start trying to get automobiles, broom sticks, butter knives, and every other object ever used to assault someone into the discussion when they talk about violence in their communities.
Can you just imagine if you had to pass a background check to buy a car? Why not? Cars kill many more people each year than do scary gunzzzzz.
Or what about a 3/4-ton pickup truck? Or a delivery van? Stake-sided flatbed? Or – dare I say it? — a Kenworth 18-wheeler, trailer and all?
[…] http://valorguardians.com/blog/?p=66743 […]
I know there is a strong bias towards the infantry on this site, but non-infantry personnel serving in ground units are required to undergo additional combat training before they can deploy. It isn’t out of the realm of possibility that the training he had as a soldier was applied to how he carried out the shooting in Dallas. Tactical proficiency is more about experience and less about MOS or awards.
Experience and dedication to being proficient. 1000 rounds, as someone else pointed out, is a lot of practice to someone who may not have ever fired a weapon.
IMO a 1000 rounds is not a lot of practice for anyone.
Yes, but if he got some post-military training at the Academy of Combative Warrior Arts as it says here: http://valorguardians.com/blog/?p=66743&cpage=1#comment-2872266
it’s more likely he benefited from that than from anything he got in the Army.
^5 How many CQB ranges/shoot houses would a carpenter in a reserve Engineer unit train on?? My guess… Zero.
It depends, if it’s part of a predeployment package then they may get that training depending on the unit http://www.shadowspear.com/vb/threads/calling-all-combat-engineers.9598/.
Your correct today’s engineers have to train for all types of missions in case they have to augment the combat engineer side like rout clearance and have to set up their own security and defensive positions. I’m SeaBee and our security teams do MOUT and CQB Training, but we train the Marine way so I don’t about the Army. I was assigned to a Army JTF for a year and part of my pre-training was MOUT and moving out on foot patrols. Engineers are not always working in full secure environments like you think and this is why training and techniques have been advancing.Ask yourself who placed the Hesco and berms, not just combat engineers but engineers period.
The media takes days to get it right. Here’s a photo of the rifle.
https://thearmsguide.com/8811/reports-ak-74-dallas-shooting/
Someone please notify me when that Fool on the Hill learns to zip his lip instead of running his mouth when he knows nothing about the subject. He just has to stir the pot every chance he gets, doesn’t he?
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-police-obama-idUSKCN0ZP0O6
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3682619/Pictured-female-soldier-pervert-Dallas-cop-killer-sexually-harassed-colleague-reveals-murderer-used-steal-girls-panties.html
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