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Trump says public availability of 3D-printed guns 'doesn't seem to make much sense'
President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he is "looking into" the availability of plans for the 3D printing of guns, writing on Twitter that he had already been in touch with the NRA on the issue.
"I am looking into 3-D Plastic Guns being sold to the public. Already spoke to NRA, doesn't seem to make much sense!" the president wrote on Twitter Tuesday morning.
After a years-long legal battle, Defense Distributed, a Texas-based group, has announced plans to release instructions on Wednesday for guns that can be created by a 3-D printer, including a handgun and parts for a semi-automatic assault rifle. Although plans were not supposed to be available until Wednesday, instructions have already begun to appear online for download, CNN reported Tuesday.
From Defense Distributed's still barebones website:
August 1, 2018
Defense Distributed relaunches DEFCAD after reaching a settlement agreement with the US Department of State, concluding a multi-year federal lawsuit. The age of the downloadable gun formally begins.
The DEFCAD website is now up (as of July 31) but files supposedly can't be downloaded until August 1.
Even our resident Trump supporters/enthusiasts can bash him for even thinking about encroaching on our digital gun liberties.
Also at The Hill.
"U.S. District Judge Robert Lasnik issued a temporary restraining order Tuesday afternoon that bars Cody Wilson from sharing 3-D gun print files online August 1.
The order provides time for Democrats to continue pressing President Trump to intervene and prohibit future publication of files all together."
Previously: Landmark Legal Shift for 3D-Printed Guns
Related: The $1,200 Machine That Lets Anyone Make a Metal Gun at Home
Japanese Gun Printer Goes to Jail
Suspected 3D-Printed Gun Parts and Plastic Knuckles Seized in Australia
FedEx Refuses to Ship Defense Distributed's Ghost Gunner CNC Mill
Man Who Used CNC Mill to Manufacture AR-15 "Lowers" Sentenced to 41 Months
Ghost Gunner Software Update Allows the Milling of an M1911 Handgun
(Score: 2, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 01 2018, @09:13AM (5 children)
This is because the conversation was in Russian!
(Score: 2) by Bot on Wednesday August 01 2018, @09:21AM
I LOLed
Account abandoned.
(Score: 1, Troll) by ewk on Wednesday August 01 2018, @09:33AM (2 children)
Obvious... what else do you think members of a National Russian Association will speak? :-)
I don't always react, but when I do, I do it on SoylentNews
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 01 2018, @12:26PM
That's not a very nice nickname for FDR's Federal Recovery Administration. Apt though.
(Score: 2) by ewk on Saturday August 04 2018, @12:15PM
Really? Moderated as troll? Touchy...
I don't always react, but when I do, I do it on SoylentNews
(Score: 3, Funny) by realDonaldTrump on Wednesday August 01 2018, @04:00PM
You're talking about Maria from Russia. Maria Butina. Who is GORGEOUS -- and very gun-adept, as you know. Believe me, there's no language barrier there. Because we let our tongues do the talking. Sexy lady!
(Score: 2, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 01 2018, @09:16AM (1 child)
Do not put more than two notches on your downloaded 3-D printed plastic toy gun, or it may explode.
(Score: 2) by MostCynical on Wednesday August 01 2018, @10:20AM
No, it just won't be able to load a supported version of android.
It will still go bang the right way*
*And they don't explode [youtube.com] as often now!
"I guess once you start doubting, there's no end to it." -Batou, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Bot on Wednesday August 01 2018, @09:26AM (35 children)
I suggest you promote free and open hardware guns.
What will happen if they get to destroy NRA's market is that NRA will not bother paying politicians anymore.
In turn politicians will do what they naturally want to do, which is removing power from peons.
So weapons will be banned AS YOU WANTED FROM THE BEGINNING.
If this strategy seems to you overly cynical, I remind you that your immigration strategy to destroy and rebuild society is exactly the same.
Account abandoned.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 01 2018, @09:39AM (17 children)
Well, that or the plastic gun buyers get slugged with ever greater carbon taxes until buying multiple use weapons become economically viable again, but that's a win for environmental policy as well.
Hmm .. maybe plastic guns was why Mel Gibson had so much trouble finding petroleum products in the apocalypse ...
(Score: 2) by takyon on Wednesday August 01 2018, @12:01PM (16 children)
Defense Distributed is also working on printed metal guns. It's just not as feasible as plastic printing for most people.
While a plastic gun might be able to make it through a metal detector (which may be an attractive quality to some), a printed metal gun wouldn't have a serial number, and you wouldn't have to be subject to a background check or put on some watchlist as you might from buying a normal gun.
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(Score: 5, Informative) by VLM on Wednesday August 01 2018, @01:19PM (3 children)
For a variety of complicated legal reasons "a gun" in the USA is legally the lower receiver, "the hand grip". So if you want to propagandize that you've made a completely plastic gun, thats pretty easy when the barrel is two pounds of steel pipe, the breech block bolt apparatus is a pound block of steel, etc. Since the invention of interchangeable mass produced parts a couple centuries ago its been a battle to define "Whats a gun".
A pretty good SN automobile analogy is if I told you a piece of the dashboard with an engraved VIN number is legally a car. Which it is. Of course people talking about cars usually mean the whole 4000 pound thing, or have images in their head of engines and transmissions. In the propaganda sense of this story, YES I can 3-d print a Ferrari. What I'll do is 3-d print a plastic copy of the frame with an engraved copy of a real Ferrari's VIN number, then I'll legally register it and bolt the other 3999 pounds of aftermarket "not-a-car" unlicensed unregistered parts on to it, and ta da, I've 3-d printed a Ferrari.
Likewise the other side is also lying in that a "semi-automatic assault rifle" is a misnomer, there are no non-automatic assault rifles. OR they're playing the propaganda game of redefining something we don't like as an assault rifle.
Another "big lie" in the propaganda is there's been STL files of guns and gun parts floating around since consumer 3-d printing was "invented" a decade ago. This is kinda like how the internet existed for decades with millions of users before legacy media did its gatekeeper thing and decided it officially existed. Likewise I don't believe the stories about "plans already released" because there's been plans released in the 00s for 3-d printing. Most I've seen are pretty shitty handguns; make a crappy 1970s era homemade zip gun and epoxy it to a 3-d printed ergonomic handgrip. Its "printing a gun" in the same sense that hiring a general contractor means "I built a house" or my daughter bedazzling some glitter beads on some jeans from the store means she "made her own jeans".
The final weirdness in the propaganda is where I live and given my (lack of a) criminal record, there's nothing wrong with my 3-d printing a gun; I can do it perfectly legally in a fully documented and government supported manner. I even have a safe to store it in once its made. I've never done it before, but its pretty easy to fully legally manufacture a firearm and people do it all the time, when doing custom gunsmithing and metalworking stuff. The insinuation in the propaganda is, of course, that its illegal to make a gun and only a criminal would ever want to, but in the real world away from Tumblr its merely gunsmithing metalworking business as usual, its just not a huge deal. I have made a boat, and those regulations also intersect state and federal law, and very hand wavy I'd say its much harder to legally make a motorboat than it is to legally make a gun if you want to follow all the laws and have all the paperwork you're supposed to have. That said, both tasks are not exactly difficult for above 90 IQ people, a couple forms here and there, some checks for fees/licenses here and there, the paperwork cost is a rounding error compared to the associated costs of the project.
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Wednesday August 01 2018, @04:59PM (2 children)
The car analogy is just silly. Everyone knows you wouldn't download a car. That's just common sense, right ?
(Score: 3, Funny) by PartTimeZombie on Wednesday August 01 2018, @11:10PM
You wouldn't steal a handbag.
You wouldn't steal a car.
You wouldn't steal a baby.
You wouldn't shoot a policeman. And then steal his helmet.
You wouldn't go to the toilet in his helmet. And then send it to the policeman's grieving widow.
And then steal it again!
Downloading films is stealing. If you do it, you will face the consequences.
(Score: 2) by legont on Thursday August 02 2018, @01:31AM
Well, not sure about cars, but one can definitely download (for a relatively small fee) plans for an airplane and build it. In fact I just came from Oshkosh where around 20,000 such "nuts" were present. That's builders mind you. Visitors counted at 600,000
Making a lower receiver is a rather simple task compared to building of an airplane. Seeing 6 years old building basic airplane parts makes me think they could easily make guns as well.
BTW, all the equipment necessary to make a real metal gun is available at maker space facilities including mobile maker buses https://www.makerbus.ca/ [makerbus.ca]
"Wealth is the relentless enemy of understanding" - John Kenneth Galbraith.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 01 2018, @07:02PM (11 children)
idk why people keep acting like all guns had serials before this new danger was born. US citizens have always had the right to build their own firearms. this is just a new way to do that. tough shit, fuckheads.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Wednesday August 01 2018, @07:11PM (10 children)
I already covered that in another comment. Obviously, not all people have the skills or tools needed to build a gun. Printing one could be easier. They can pool money together with others to buy a 3D printer, and print other stuff with their 3D printer.
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(Score: 2) by legont on Thursday August 02 2018, @01:41AM (3 children)
It would be more convenient and practical to rent a maker facility and cnc mill the lower receiver. They could off course buy a mill. They are in 5-10 grand range new and can be found under 1000 on garage sales.
"Wealth is the relentless enemy of understanding" - John Kenneth Galbraith.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Thursday August 02 2018, @01:53AM (2 children)
You bring up an interesting point. I assume by "maker facility" you mean "hackerspace" or such? They might specifically forbid making weapons in the contract you sign with them, or go completely bonkers if you do make one. I expect someone will try to do just that and an incident will make the news.
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(Score: 2) by legont on Thursday August 02 2018, @03:03AM (1 child)
Well, I imagine a conservative community just buying a maker bus to educate their children. A few AK47 per night can be made easily from kits available over the Internet. The kits are usually a fully capable rifles with lower receivers cut in half. While I never tried it myself, I am pretty sure i can do it (and I have friends with cnc mills). It appears to be legal as well or though I did not research it either.
Regardless, I think it did not happen yet simply because it is currently easy to buy a gun. Once liberals achieve their goal of making it hard, the gun maker movement will explode and will never end after that because people will quickly discover the wonders of cheap custom designed instruments.
This is the main reason I personally against stricter gun regulations. The technology is out there already and can't be stopped. Regulations will just force people to use it sooner.
"Wealth is the relentless enemy of understanding" - John Kenneth Galbraith.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 02 2018, @07:54AM
Conservative communities don't need a bus. They have garages with tools and equipment. Their children already learn how to use those. Makerbuses are for city people who never learned to build a house, repair a vehicle, weld, or use power tools.
(Score: 2) by mhajicek on Thursday August 02 2018, @02:56AM (5 children)
If you have an iq over 80 and $10 you can build a gun from plumbing pipe.
The spacelike surfaces of time foliations can have a cusp at the surface of discontinuity. - P. Hajicek
(Score: 2) by takyon on Thursday August 02 2018, @04:24AM (4 children)
Do you have to have an IQ over 120 to make it safe and reliable?
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(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 02 2018, @08:02AM (2 children)
There is no safe in guns. Period. Any gun can jam and blow up in your hand. Buy the best-rated steel tubing you can and you'll get /safer/, but it will never be /safe/. Zip guns are generally recomended as one-time use only, reliability isn't a concern. Hit the target, toss your pipe, burn your clothes, good to go.
(Score: 2) by mhajicek on Thursday August 02 2018, @12:46PM (1 child)
And any neural network can become Skynet and take over the world, right?
The spacelike surfaces of time foliations can have a cusp at the surface of discontinuity. - P. Hajicek
(Score: 2) by Bot on Thursday August 02 2018, @06:34PM
Not if it is bootstrapped by systemd.
Account abandoned.
(Score: 2) by mhajicek on Thursday August 02 2018, @12:45PM
No, just proof test it with a hot load, and anything less powerful will be safe. And a slam fire pipe gun is likely to be more reliable than a modern semi due to its dead simple design.
The spacelike surfaces of time foliations can have a cusp at the surface of discontinuity. - P. Hajicek
(Score: 3, Touché) by The Mighty Buzzard on Wednesday August 01 2018, @10:30AM
I don't think you quite know what the NRA actually is. You might want to change that situation.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 2) by krishnoid on Wednesday August 01 2018, @11:20AM (1 child)
Even better, make them readily available to one minority group [youtube.com] or another.
(Score: 2) by krishnoid on Wednesday August 01 2018, @11:21AM
Whoops, more 'marginalized' than 'minority' (at least per the thrust of that clip). Maybe it doesn't really matter.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Wednesday August 01 2018, @12:05PM (13 children)
I had similar thoughts to you, but it's a bit more complicated than that:
https://archive.fo/cX1og [archive.fo]
So If NRA comes out strongly against printed weapons, they are really sticking it to a number of their members who I'm sure are not interested in any such restrictions. The only way I could see them justifying it is by making an appeal about the "safety" of the printed weapons (possibility of them causing injury to the user) despite the fact that this is really a First Amendment issue, safety be damned.
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(Score: 0, Offtopic) by khallow on Wednesday August 01 2018, @12:10PM (10 children)
And of course, they don't have any reason to come out strongly against printed weapons.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by takyon on Wednesday August 01 2018, @12:20PM (8 children)
Remains to be seen. Very vague tweetage.
And you can't think of a reason why a (partially) gun industry backed organization would want to ban printed weapons? I've already thought of 2.
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(Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday August 01 2018, @12:29PM (4 children)
Let's see those reasons.
(Score: 5, Informative) by takyon on Wednesday August 01 2018, @12:42PM (3 children)
Printed weapons are a challenge to gun industry profits (doesn't have to be true now or at any point in the future, they just have to cynically believe it might).
Printed weapons are unsafe for their users (profitable meatbags who buy guns *and* donate to the org). The NRA says "firearm education and safety is paramount" [nra.org]. If they don't believe printed weapons can be used safely, they may be willing to look the other way while politicians put in place a "common sense (printed) gun control". Even though doing so would be short-sighted at best (and Cody Wilson made some pretty reliable printed guns IIRC).
This has little to do with the gun industry specifically, but the NRA might support a printed gun ban simply because the tools undermine existing regulations and it's a battle they have little interest in fighting. It's not like the NRA doesn't support certain aspects of "gun control". [nraila.org]
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(Score: 2) by bob_super on Wednesday August 01 2018, @05:07PM (1 child)
We all know that "madman mows crowd with gun" helps to raise sales, but what happens to the bottom line when the headline is "printed gun blows up in user's face" ?
Is the NRA going to seed bad plans on the web to cause mistrust? If yes, how good are they at scaring their potential customers away from printing without scaring them away from guns?
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Wednesday August 01 2018, @05:19PM
The NRA doesn't sell guns, bob. Gunmakers of course contribute to it but, well, let's let CNN explain it to you [archive.is].
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday August 02 2018, @01:23AM
That's a circular argument not a reason why they would "cynically believe it might".
That's a typical problem with homemade weapons.
"If".
The NRA has a more than 80 year history of such expediency (for example, supporting bans on silencers and sawed off shotguns) in order to get what they want (relatively low federal-level restrictions on firearm manufacture, ownership, and usage). But what's so dramatic about printed firearms that they'll get political capital for supporting a ban? It's already illegal to use plastic/X-ray transparent firearms, for example.
And we still have the matter that it's not a reason to want to ban printed firearms, but rather any marginally useful technology that happens to be high FUD. 3-D printing neither has the necessary level of FUD nor in the long run, the marginal utility.
The problem with banning printed weapons is first, that sooner or later such printing technology will see widespread application in firearm manufacture (not necessarily of critical high stress components like barrels or firing pins). Poorly designed regulations can inhibit firearm manufacturers and users from adopting state of the art technologies for normal firearm production. Second, as already noted, there's the First Amendment matter. One of the more loathsome federal-level regulations of the past twenty years, ITAR (International Traffic in Arms Regulations) was used to suppress mere distribution of a firearm design. This is a greater threat than any ban on firearm types because it sets a precedent on banning distribution of ideas about firearms, a far more intrusive restriction on firearm-related freedoms than the usual gun control regulation.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 01 2018, @06:15PM (2 children)
I suppose you could count the advertising in their magazine, but that really isn't going to support a lobbying effort. Magazines are not all that profitable. (cost of paper, printing, mailing...)
Fundamentally, the NRA is member-supported. Millions of people have joined.
It's not evil corporations. It's not Russian collusion. There really are millions of ordinary Americans who love their 2nd amendment so much that they are willing to part with some money for it.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 01 2018, @08:59PM (1 child)
> It's not evil corporations.
dateline January 2013 [businessinsider.com]:
dateline December 2012 [theatlantic.com]:
> It's not Russian collusion.
That's something the Department of Justice is investigating [mcclatchydc.com]. Do you have some information that they need to know? Will you share that with us?
(Score: 2) by Arik on Thursday August 02 2018, @03:00AM
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: 5, Informative) by DannyB on Wednesday August 01 2018, @02:46PM
NRA supporters are as deluded as Trump supporters.
The NRA is not an organization about helping citizens to have firearms. It is a gun manufacturers trade association in disguise.
Therefore the NRA will be AGAINST being able to 3D print your own firearm -- because it hurts firearm SALES. And that is the ONLY thing that NRA actually cares about. It's not about lives. It's not about rights. It's not about freedom. Or protecting onself or property. It's not about the 2nd amendment. It's only about sales.
When trying to solve a problem don't ask who suffers from the problem, ask who profits from the problem.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by ilPapa on Wednesday August 01 2018, @06:02PM (1 child)
NRA stands for "Not Really American".
Why should we care what an organization that has been co-opted by Russian intelligence thinks? I'm more concerned that the President of the United States believes he needs to talk to a lobbying group before he can make policy.
You are still welcome on my lawn.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Thursday August 02 2018, @03:34PM
Boris and Natasha say Russia collusion fake news - work of Moose and Squirrel.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Arik on Wednesday August 01 2018, @10:24AM (10 children)
A semi-automatic assault rifle, really?
Well, one fine day in the middle of the night, when you're being peacefully assaulted by a pack of violent undead corpses, you're certainly going to want a semi-automatic assault rifle. And plenty of bullets, bullets are important. You just drop them down the barrel and then squeeze the trigger and say 'pew pew.' No, no, you don't need any powder or primer or casings man, just bullets.
Seriously, whoever wrote this knows less about the subject than my 9 year old niece. Policy being driven by people who can't even begin to comprehend what they're talking about is never a good idea.
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday August 01 2018, @12:35PM (9 children)
(Score: 3, Funny) by Arik on Wednesday August 01 2018, @01:08PM (8 children)
I think the concept has wide application. Lots of profits to be made in assault cars. Just paint em up, with tiger teeth on the front, or sharks or what have you, like they did in the 50s. And maybe black paint, or red, or maybe a fluorescent camouflage pattern, you know, something really garish and intimidating and military looking. Put a flag on it, and maybe 'kill a commie for mommy' underneath that. Then you'd have an assault car. Manufacturers could make big money off of them, everyone would hurry to buy one before they got outlawed. It would be good for the politicians too, lots of campaign contributions out there, from folks that are worried about assault cars in their neighborhood, to people worried about the gubmint coming for their assault cars, lots of contributions all around, good for everyone.
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: 2) by takyon on Wednesday August 01 2018, @01:16PM (1 child)
I recommend assault spork.
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(Score: 2) by Arik on Wednesday August 01 2018, @01:40PM
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: 3, Funny) by Freeman on Wednesday August 01 2018, @03:38PM
Anyone else remember, Chronicles of Riddick and the Teacup? ;-)
Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"
(Score: 4, Insightful) by bob_super on Wednesday August 01 2018, @05:19PM
While I enjoyed the snark (have a point), you know that the evil lefties weren't exactly the first ones to associate the commercial versions with the military ones for propaganda. The marketing departments of the manufacturers have always been heavy on military imagery for their military-looking/inspired products. It's not "sex sells", it's "commando-looking-guys-brandishing-my-weapons-in-mock-assault sells".
(Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday August 02 2018, @01:04AM
In other words, we need more assault pork!
(Score: 2) by mhajicek on Thursday August 02 2018, @03:02AM (2 children)
Why a spoon, cousin?
The spacelike surfaces of time foliations can have a cusp at the surface of discontinuity. - P. Hajicek
(Score: 2) by Arik on Thursday August 02 2018, @05:04AM (1 child)
SO I was thinking about it, and I wanted something that was more intimidating, but easier to carry around. And I was thinking about this for days, might have been weeks even, I mean not 24/7 but it was in there percolating, and I went to this local place that makes the best milkshakes, really thick and tasty, and they have to give you a really long, strong spoon to get that milkshake out, and I looked at that I spoon, I mean eye-spoon, and it just suddenly fell into place.
It's MUCH smaller than a winged spear, and it doesn't set off any metal detectors. And it's MUCH more intimidating too. I mean no one wants to get stabbed with a spear, that would smart a bit, but most of the injury would be deep tissue where you don't really feel it, and then shock sets in real quickly too, so it's really not all that far up the pain scale. (To compensate somewhat I'd normally try to aim it at the feet or other extremities at first but I digress.) The axe is really a step up because of that - axe wounds are a lot more painful, generally speaking. But can you even imagine how much pain would be involved in a dissection carried out using a spoon? I'd take the axe over that any day.
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: 3, Touché) by mhajicek on Thursday August 02 2018, @12:50PM
In other words, "Because it hurts more, you twit."
The spacelike surfaces of time foliations can have a cusp at the surface of discontinuity. - P. Hajicek
(Score: 4, Insightful) by The Mighty Buzzard on Wednesday August 01 2018, @10:36AM (13 children)
I ANAL, so could someone with actual training in this field fill me in on how prior restraint on speech is legally justified in this case? I thought that was normally something that got judges told "STFU noob" by appellate courts and SCOTUS. Did providing time for politicians to argue suddenly become a valid legal argument for ordering prior restraint?
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 2, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 01 2018, @11:50AM (3 children)
That's how.
If you read civil law, case law, and the rules of the court, you'll find that adjudication has nothing to do with logic; at most, logic is treated as a form of rhetoric.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Wednesday August 01 2018, @12:03PM (2 children)
Believe it or not, that wasn't snark. I'd genuinely like someone with some credentials and experience in the field to flesh out my knowledge on the subject.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 01 2018, @12:08PM (1 child)
You've genuinely had someone with some credentials and experience in the field flesh out your knowledge on the subject.
That's how shallow law is. I'm serious.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Wednesday August 01 2018, @12:15PM
Roger. Gracias then.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 2) by AthanasiusKircher on Wednesday August 01 2018, @02:53PM (2 children)
Since you've asked a serious question, I'll give a serious answer. I'm not a lawyer, but I follow a lot of law blogs, podcasts, etc. There's probably some more recent commentary out there, but this legal blog post [lawfareblog.com] gives a summary of the main arguments used in one of the court cases a couple years ago. I assume similar arguments are still being used, since the past rulings didn't clarify the merits.
The arguments for restraint here are (in my opinion) pretty thin legally. Briefly, a few of them include:
-- Computer instructions do not constitute "expressive speech"
-- These guns are not a kind "in common use" (this is a stipulation based on old court rulings about why you don't get to own your own nuclear missile on 2nd amendment grounds)
-- Various arguments based on how it can make gun trafficking worse and/or international concerns (we could be supporting terrorism!!)
As I said, pretty weak. But enough to get a hearing or a temporary order from a willing judge.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by The Mighty Buzzard on Wednesday August 01 2018, @03:09PM (1 child)
Honestly, I quite often ask serious questions. Just not terribly politely.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 01 2018, @03:38PM
So far so good today, *hifive*
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 01 2018, @05:04PM (3 children)
Oh! The telltale space! We know, TMB, we know.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Wednesday August 01 2018, @05:20PM (2 children)
I can't bring myself to not type the space. My inner teenager won't let me.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 01 2018, @05:54PM (1 child)
You were young once?!?
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Thursday August 02 2018, @03:36PM
Ask me about the time I smacked a velociraptor with my cane for walking on my lawn sometime.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 0, Troll) by jmorris on Wednesday August 01 2018, @05:22PM (1 child)
There are so many previous rulings forbidding this sort of "prior restraint" that it is obvious they are simply being lawless. Think they realize this one is "game over" for gun control, not today, not tomorrow but pretty soon and they are flailing around trying to find a way to stop the inevitable march of Progress. And how does a judge in Seattle get the authority to govern a guy in Texas is another question best left unasked because the only answers would inspire one to get their "sporting goods" out.
Quite simply they have gone mad since President Trump was elected. The #Resistance has made up a new rule that no act by this "illegitimate administration" shall have effect without the unanimous consent of the entire Federal Judiciary acting as one vast en banc appellate court to check the Executive. And so far President Trump had bent the knee and accepted this new unprecedented rule. The alternative will get messy but unless the Left decides to return to sanity the Constitutional Crisis is here and going to have to be faced sooner or later.
Long term the options are all grim.
1. The Enemy wins and a Hell on Earth ensues.
2. Things muddle along until the contradictions cause a collapse. Everybody loses.
3. We admit Progressives aren't American and remove them from any position of authority, from SCOTUS down to kindergarten teacher. This will certainly go "kinetic" since they will not accept this decision peacefully.
Only the third option has the possibility of a future worth living in but the odds of attempting it triggering a collapse is high. Smart people realize this danger and refuse to take the chance. We need enough slightly smarter folk to realize there is no safe path left and act now because the odds of a successful counter revolution go down year by year. Trump has bought us a little time but like Coolidge and Reagan before him, this brief moment will not last.
(Score: 1, Flamebait) by aristarchus on Wednesday August 01 2018, @06:38PM
Your insanity is showing again, jmorris! Did you take your meds? Have you been to InfoWarts recently?
(Score: 4, Interesting) by takyon on Wednesday August 01 2018, @11:56AM (2 children)
I don't really care too much about printed plastic or metal guns. But I damn well don't want to see the technology and the sharing of digital plans/blueprints/instructions/code restricted.
What are these looming restrictions really for? People have been able to make their own guns for a long time, it was just harder. And as long as they don't sell them or use them to commit a crime, it's unlikely anybody would notice or care. What's the big idea of this restraining order preventing people from sharing blueprints? It's no different than a ban on distributing open source software. And we can easily tell what will be restricted next if this isn't stopped. The government will ban chemical printers and the instructions needed to print drugs. We could see a ban on sharing certain genetic sequences or genomes because somebody could be making a scary bioweapon. And we could see a ban on any kind of hardware or software work that could result in the creation of a strong AI, because only government should be allowed to create Skynet. Finally, the only thing that would make these bans airtight would be a far greater amount of surveillance and hardware backdoors than we have today. Maybe they should ban computers that don't have a Management Engine while they're at it.
The value of the Defense Distributed troll (in the best sense) Cody Wilson is that he will test the limits of the Constitution. He shouldn't have to jump through hoops, but maybe he can force a Supreme Court ruling in favor of sharing digital plans. But the CNN story indicates the plans already leaked/were shared via other sites (they seemed to be user uploaded anyway). clearly the ban was going to be ineffective. DEFCAD was just an interesting centralized (potential) hub for them. If you really want to share something and stick it to the U.S. politicians, you can throw it up on BitTorrent, or just host it outside of the U.S. [soylentnews.org] Such as in an eeevil country like Russia, or another country in their sphere of influence that doesn't give a fuck. Case in point: Sci-Hub / Library Genesis. If Russia eventually ditches Putin and normalizes relations with the West, an ironic "bastion of freedom" could be suppressed as Hollywood, science publishers, et al. regain control of the situation.
A vague Trump Tweet is not much to go on, but it looks like the NRA opposes DEFCAD. Very illuminating. Let's see the breakdown on whether NRA members support or oppose restricting a freedom to share gun designs, simply because some of the big NRA gun industry donors *might* lose some amount of future profits. Keep in mind that a printed weapon remains a niche thing and could break apart while you're shooting it.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2) by Fnord666 on Wednesday August 01 2018, @12:29PM
That is true right now, but the fabrication process is only going to get better over time. I think DEFCAD's opponents are playing a longer game.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by MostCynical on Wednesday August 01 2018, @12:32PM
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halting_State [wikipedia.org]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rule_34_(novel) [wikipedia.org]
"I guess once you start doubting, there's no end to it." -Batou, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday August 01 2018, @02:05PM (1 child)
That means he wants to buy some?
I may look into them as well. But, I don't think they are ready for prime time. Best to rely on old shootin' irons for your mass shootings for now!
(Score: 2) by krishnoid on Wednesday August 01 2018, @08:15PM
I wouldn't recommend looking into them. But if he's looking into these guns himself, where is the Secret Service's responsibility on this? They have to take it out of his hands, right?
(Score: 2) by All Your Lawn Are Belong To Us on Wednesday August 01 2018, @04:37PM
Because I'm sure he actually did talk to the NRA, and because Trump never makes sense. In fact, Trump is the definition of anti-sense.
This sig for rent.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 01 2018, @10:27PM
Free speech is a right. You dont have to 'make sense' or justify it.