Anonymous #2 1w

So did artillery so I'm not really sure what you're getting at

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Anonymous #2 1w

Should we allow both since there is a legitimate argument that they had intent of that? Or should we interpret the law in its plain text, and set aside whatever intents were involved that did not make it into the text? The courts have gone back and forth on this since the founding, but the intent argument tends to be popular because it allows more judicial discretion, and the justices are the ones deciding whether or not they have it.

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Handguns (spelled handgonne at the time) also existed at the time of the founding

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Anonymous #1 1w

(US v. Wong Kim Ark)

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Anonymous #2 1w

Not in any modern sense. The longest lived founding father was James Madison, who died in 1835, which was before the brass cartridge existed. Did they have some extremely rare, ludicrously impractical multi barreled, superposed loaded muskets? Yes. Is that a machine gun? No.

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Anonymous OP 1w

It would literally be considered a machine gun under modern atf definition if it was at all considered a firearm

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Anonymous OP 1w

One trigger pull gave you more than one fire cycle. Was it of the utmost practicality and at the level of a modern firearm? No, nothing of that era was, but it certainly was a machine gun from my understanding of what that means. Would you like to pose an alternative definition?

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Anonymous #2 1w

Well, if we’re talking legality, those are not machine guns by definition. They’re “antique firearms” as defined in 18 USC § 921(a)(16) which generally exempts them from GCA “firearm” regulation.

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Anonymous OP 1w

Hence "if it were considered a firearm at all"

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Anonymous OP 1w

I'm aware it's legally not considered a firearm, but my definition of firearm differs from the government's definition since the government's is wholly inaccurate, specifically exempting entire classes of firearms like muzzle loaders, but I'm curious where your definition of machine gun differs from the governments because I don't really see any inaccuracy with it.

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