Mossberg FLEX 590 Tactical Shotgun (courtesy mossberg.com)

To no one’s surprise, a member of the Associated Press has adopted the term blurted out by a know-nothing NBC reporter during the U.S. Navy Yard massacre, during which Aaron Alexis used a Remington 870 shotgun to murder 12 people. And now . . . “FREEHOLD, N.J. (AP) – Authorities say a 2-day gun buyback program staged in central New Jersey last weekend netted 218 firearms. Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher Gramiccioni says the weapons collected at a church in Asbury Park and the Rumson police department included 126 handguns, 39 shotguns, and 24 rifles. Among the assault weapons surrendered was a Colt AR-15, a Mossberg assault shotgun and a World War II-era Japanese bolt-action rifle. Participants were allowed to turn in weapons for cash with no questions asked. Gramiccioni says officials spent $15,000 to buy the firearms.” Demonizing firearms? Priceless! To be fair . . .

There is a firearm called the Atchisson Assault Shotgun or AA-12. But that’s a rather specialized beast. The term “assault shotgun” has certainly not entered the lexicon of those who sell and/or use scatterguns for offensive or defensive purposes. The armed forces likes to use the phrase “combat shotgun” for smoothbores that are less suitable for trap, skeet and hunting than strategic objectives. Civilians favor the term “tactical shotgun” for home defense shotguns

The fact that the AP is trying to slide the term “assault shotgun” into the popular lexicon—presumably unbidden by the civilian disarmament industrial complex—shows just how far the media’s willing to go to further the civilian disarmament agenda. Worse, it could be an effective ploy. Look how California has widened the definition of “assault rifle” to any rifle that accepts a detachable magazine. We’ll be keeping our eyes peeled for this insidious assault on our Constitutionally protected right to keep and bear arms…not to mention our language.

[h/t MS]

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

59 COMMENTS

  2. Only target guns are not assault guns. That’s the problem with any comparison of gun deaths to any other cause of death. Guns were invented, and are designed to kill. Unless you want to try and have a discussion about what defines an assault.
    Don’t get me wrong, I carry nearly 100% of the time. I also understand why.

    • I think we need to get away from this “guns were designed to kill” thing. Guns were designed to expel a projectile. Nothing more. They were no more designed to kill than a knife is designed to kill. A knife was designed to cut. It doesn’t matter if it’s a piece of paper, a chicken or a person. The same way a gun was designed to shoot a projectile no matter if it’s at a piece of paper, an animal or a person. It just seems to give these anti-gunners more fuel for the fire when we use their terminology.

      • Don’t be a metrosexual wuss.

        I have no problems with the idea that many guns are primarily designed to KILL. However, they were not designed to MURDER. Two entirely different things and that’s why there are two different words. That’s why there is such a thing as a morally correct justified killing and not a justified murder. Leftists and university professors always try to blur the two into something that is always wrong. We should not join them in their stupid thinking.

        Don’t play their game by their stupid rules, play your own game. Start off with a morally and logical sound position that….

        “Many killings are perfectly moral and correct, and guns enable that”.

        “I much rather have my wife KILL her potential rapist than for her to be strangled and MURDERED with her panty hose around her neck”

        Get the tactic?

    • Well, if you are engaging a target with anything it would be considered assaulting it. So technically any object used to engage something is an assault xxxx. I saw a bunch of assault bats on tv during a baseball game last night so I called the cops on the MLB because it made me feel uncomfortable (though that feeling may have been due to my old couch) and something had to be done.

    • There’s even ASSAULT BIBLES. Remember to audio “Texas Ladies”, about the little oled grannies that beat the Hell out the guy that ran into their car?

  5. So despite being specifically exempted by Feinstein’s “assault weapons” ban, shotguns like this have become “assault shotguns?” Excellent. I love this sort of “common sense.” I guess as soon as somebody uses a certain tool to assault others, that tool becomes an “assault ____.” The tool did it.

  9. Wait. Included in their list of “assault weapons” is an Arisaka. A bloody Arisaka, a rifle as technologically advanced as a M91/30 or a G98 or a M1903? I swear, TEOTWAWKI.

    • It is a military weapon. All military weapons are assault weapons that belong only in the hands of the military. Geez, that’s why they call them MILITARY rifles, right? Ban the ’61 Springfield!

      • Ban everything then… I mean, my lever action 30-30, my Remington 700, my 1911, even my .38 revolver where or are used by the military. I would say almost every gun or firearms platform has at one point been used, or is used by the military in some fashion with some small caliber lines being the exception. Of course “ban everything” is the end game to those on the other side, just look at the above “assault shotgun” term.

  10. Geezus, an Arisaka bolt action is not lumped in the assault rifle category? If this isn’t the clearest evidence of their ultimate intentions than I don’t know what is. Especially if its one of the 6.5mm rifles that you can’t find ammo for except at boutique prices or hand loads.

    If this is the way things are going, I am headed out to buy a case of Mosin assault rifles now, before they are banned.

  11. A WW2-era Japanese bolt-action rifle is now an “assault weapon”? Seriously?

    I think I just figured out the “reasoning” here, if you can call it that: if a gun is chambered for a cartridge or shell which has been used by combat troops of any nation, anytime in recorded history, it’s an “assault weapon”. Suddenly it all makes sense.

    JWM, you should note that this makes your thumb-biting Mosin an assault rifle because it uses the battle-proven 7.62x54R cartridge. But you saw that coming, right?

    • Agreed. And for the record, I figured out why my thumb was being bitten. I deep cleaned the mosin before I met you at the range. I reattached the mag well/trigger gaurd improperly. The rifle was safe to fire but it was rapidly becoming a single shot. Problem solved and lesson learned.

  12. Just rename things to put a lefty spin on it. they do it all the time.
    I am reminded of the attempt, several years ago by some tree hugging dirt worshipers, to rename fish (yes the same fish we catch for food or eat in restaurants etc) to “Sea Kittens” so they could turn us all into vegans and thus save the world. http://features.peta.org/PETASeaKittens/

    Allow me to display my “Tactical Assault Finger” for their perusal and edification.

    • Just like the ‘squaw fish’ here in Oregon. They are now called northern pike minnows so as not to offend.
      Good grief. TEOTWAWKI indeed.
      I’ll raise one with you.

  13. I expect “assault baby killer level three sex offender weapon of war” to enter the douche-bag lexicon very soon.

  14. “Among the assault weapons surrendered was….a World War II-era Japanese bolt-action rifle” Literally destroying history. This makes me fighting mad. I hope these people die in fires.

    • No kidding, huh? And exactly how many WWII era bolt action Japanese rifles have ever been used in a crime? Exactly how much would the ammo cost and how hard is it to get it? Meanwhile I can go buy Remington 700 in .30-06 for $400 tomorrow that is far more useful than a historical relic.

  15. I’ve never used one of those M16 style shoulder stocks on a shotgun. I have the black mossberg 500 combo gun and the black maverick 88 security shotgun. They both have conventional stocks. This set up works for me and it’s what I’ve used for years.

  16. Or we could embrace this “weapons of war” lexicon the left uses since Miller v US said citizens could have the weapons the US military did . . . .

    Just saying

  18. Now that’s just stupid, anyone can see it’s a “boogieman gun”. It’s black – duh?

    • And here I thought they were black because black guns are invisible in the dark! Learn something new every day.

  20. I have a Remington 11-87 with a 26″ barrel that’s great for hunting/trap/skeet. Two minutes with a hacksaw and it’s a 14″ barrel pistol grip sawed off shotgun. Smoothbores don’t need alot of savvy to make them into highly illegal but still fully functional NFA regulated firearms. If anything the shotgun is the perfect example of why regulating firearms at all is the wrong approach to solving crimes. Or the perfect example of why we need to ban all firearms from non-police civilians if you want to keep with the left’s narrative.

  21. No no, guys. This is good. Just think of what we can sell our Mossberg Mavericks for once they’re declared non grata!

  22. The prosecutor is a politician they aren’t the sharpest tools, just tools. Like all politicians they use words that conjure imagery that helps them sell their agenda. As for the WWII era rifle, as corrupt as they are I wouldn’t be shocked to find that they would auction it off or sell it to a collector in their own party.

  23. The term Machine Pistol was originally meant for shoulder fired automatic weapons that fired pistol caliber bullets… A term for what we now refer to as Submachine Guns. Machine Pistols are now commonly thought of as pistols that are converted to automatic fire… I wouldn’t be surprised in the future if any pistol with a detachable magazine was dubbed an Assault Pistol.

  24. What a sad coincidence, a friend just two hours over the border in PA recently scored a Type 99 (mum intact) out of an old woman’s basement for $50. NJ sucks.

  25. Damn, that’s a sweet “assault shotgun.” I’ve gots ta get out and buy me one. I’ll tell ’em “Uncle Joe” sent me.

  26. well I for one am happy to give up my evil black assault shotgun just as soon as I get shoulder fired missles in the mail and my kiloton gernade launcher did I mention they will be painted a happy white and purple with bunnies and unicorns on them……

  27. That’s no and Assault Shotgun. a SAIGA 12 Gauge shotgun is an assault shotgun or is it that that is an assault shotgun as opposed to a CHILD-SAFE SHOTGUN.

  28. this must make my benelli supernova on par with nukes.
    black
    pistol grip
    tac rail
    holds more than one
    repeater
    HOLY CRAP BATMAN IVE SCARED A DEMOCRAT

  30. Actually, I think this is fantastic. There are still waaaaay too many Fuds out there who think everything will be fine if they just come and get these kids’ AR15 since no one would ever bother them and their hunting shotgun. The more they use this term, the less and less Fuds will be left out there thinking that no one is coming for them and their tools.

  31. We really need to start getting upset with the people that are feeding these buy backs, rather than the idiots running them. We should work on educating them on the real value of these guns.

  32. The things that really gets me is if the police are taking the trouble to determine if any of those guns are stolen and return them to their rightful owners. For some reason I doubt that…

  35. We could completely undermine their stupid word games … just apply the word “assault” in front of any object that could potentially be used as a weapon.

    That WW2 bolt-action rifle – it’s a WW2 Japanese Assault Bolt-Action Rifle.

    Making some toast? You’ll need an Assault Toaster and an Assault Butter Knife.

    Going out? Better put on your Assault Shoes.

    They’d soon get sick of the word as we are already.

Comments are closed.