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Police Swarm Bungie Office Over Halo Replica Rifle
sv_libertarian writes 'A panicked person in Kirkland, WA called local police on Wednesday, claiming they saw someone walking down the street with an AK-47. It was actually a Bungie employee carrying an overgrown model of a Halo sniper rifle, which resembles an AK-47 as much as a Volkswagen resembles a Formula 1 racer.'
Halo 3: ODST is set to launch on September 22nd, and fans got some new details and early looks at the game during PAX.
Comment removed based on user account deletion
Win!
Maybe Congress can attempt to pass an "Assault Replica" bill.
I've never understood the logic of banning a gun because it looks scary. American "assault rifles" are semi-automatic. Pull the trigger, and one shot comes out. Politicians want to ban them because they look intimidating next to, say, a standard bolt-action Ruger 30.06. This is like banning a V-6 equipped Camaro because "it looks fast".
Life is hard, and the world is cruel
Washington is an open carry state.
http://opencarry.org/wa.html
"The average reporter we talk to is 27 years old......They literally know nothing." - Ben Rhodes
But it looks very much like something real to me. Sure you can make fun of people not knowing it does not look like an AK47. I can also imagine that somebody who knows very little about riffles would say 'ak47' where he means 'looks like an assault wepon that is not like any standard hunting rifle'.
Don't fight for your country, if your country does not fight for you.
...it doesn't look like an AK-47, but that's become the generic term for "semi-automatic rifle with detachable magazine", thanks in part to lazy reporters who don't know the 1st thing about firearms.
.50 sniper rifle, so even I'd wonder if it was the real deal or not.
However, it does look like a whole lot like a Barrett
"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former."
their way to the local farmer's market called 911 saying that they thought they saw someone walking down the street with an AK-47
I've seen people get paralyzed because a black beetle crawled across the kitchen counter. I suspect many people have the same irrational fear of guns, therefore if you carry ANYTHING that even resembles a gun their first instinct is to call for help (aka "call 911"). It's a phobia which is NOT rational, and it's no wonder they irrationally identified a toygun as an AK-47.
>>>officers advised Bungie officials to transport the gun more discretely in the future.
No. Read the Constitution mister cop (you know, that thing you pledged to protect, but apparently never read). Carrying a flag, sign, or other item is considered "symbolic speech" according to the Supreme Court and therefore protected.
"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." - historian Evelyn Beatrice Hall
If you go around with a replica of a BFG-9000, the name of the gun claimed would be probably more similar to the actual weapon name.
And while they called out the SWAT team for a replica gun, people shrug their shoulders at Labor Day traffic, which kills a lot more people than any shooting spree. Human beings are absolutely terrible at risk assessment.
Bullshit. The Americans are just scared of someone walking around.
"It's such a fine line between stupid and clever" -- David St. Hubbins, Spinal Tap
Whether it resembles an AK47 or not, it still looks like a scary looking piece of kit to the untrained eye. I know nothing about guns, and while it looks comically oversized, I wouldn't automatically assume it was fake.
As a part-time theatre tech, I sometimes have to transport fake guns for shows, and I always do it discreetly. Just because I know they are fake, doesn't mean other people will, or indeed should know. It's not like people take classes on gun recognition at school. Unless you have an interest in such things, I don't see why you would know what different guns look like.
Reminds me of that girl who strolled into an airport with circuit-boards, wires and blinking lights attached to her jumper, and was surprised when security got rather twitchy. It might not have looked like a bomb to you and I, but to the average person bought up on a diet of Hollywood films, where the bombs always have sticky out wires and flashing lights (and beep, just to let you know they are there), it certainly looked suspicious.
At least in this case the police were a bit more calm and restrained once they figured out what was going on.
Paul Leader
While you can buy a replica at Big5, Kirkland is in Western Washington where any random person you meet is more likely to live a vegan lifestyle than own a firearm. In Eastern Washington, the guy with the replica would have been swarmed with requests for information regarding caliber, accuracy, and where to get one.
What changed under Obama? Nothing Good
Yea, I personally own a WASR-10. It's the lowest end possible semi auto AK-47 variant, but I love taking it out to the range. When I bought it at a gun show in indianapolis, IN. I had to walk it out without a case holding it in my hands 2 city blocks downtown to get to my car. Nobody called the police. In fact, my friend was carrying the other weapon I bought, a AR-15.
Or maybe the police were smart enough to realize there was a gun show in town.
Nobody called the police. In fact, my friend was carrying the other weapon I bought, a AR-15.
You're obviously a white guy
Well, with the exception of the UK (too far gone past 1984) this kind of shit doesn't happen in strictly gun-controlled western Europe, because seeing such a gun is so unlikely that most people will assume it's a toy or something.
Our pigs are just as fucktarded as the typical US donut muncher, but they have the luxury of not having to assume every jaywalker is going to start shooting. As a result, they still have to use their hands or not-100%-lethal flashballs to beat up journalists. Old school shit. Should they pull their guns, they would have to fill lots of forms afterwards, and that would considerably eat into their free time. So little time, so many pastis bottles to empty.
Anyway, I trust the 2nd amendment brigade will vote me down with thoughtful historical references to Hitler taking the guns of the Jews (that's exactly how WWII started) and Stalin denying conceal-carry to Sakkharov resulting in the Cuban missile crisis, but I thought you needed to be reminded of the cost of that particular hobby, err I mean "freedom."
Yeah, I wish AKs were a common sight in my neighbourhood, so I'd be able to recognize them at a glance.
Haida Manga
In the UK, this could easily result in prosecution for carrying a replica gun. I'm not opposed to that law.
If toy guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have toy guns. Wouldn't that be a good thing?
"And now, they're looking at banning toy guns.... and they're going to KEEP THE FUCKING REAL ONES!" - George Carlin
> no, yes, maybe (tagging beta)
The problem with your view is the fact that it is perfectly legal to carry an un-boxed assault rifle in Washington.
I would agree with you if he were brandishing it at people, that crosses the line, but just carrying it? Since when can you expect to be harrassed by the cops for doing something that is legal? I don't know what kind of world you want to live in, but extrapolate that out to other situations and you've got yourself a big-brother style police state.
What should have happened is this:
Irrational scared citizen: "There's a guy with an AK-47 out here, help!"
911 Operator: "Is the person pointing it at anybody?"
Irrational - "Well no, but he's going to shoot someone I know it!"
911 - "I'm sending a squad car out, stay on the line and tell me if he starts threatening people."
Now, if Bungee employee is dumbass enough to start pointing it at people, pretending it is real, he desearves what he gets. Same with someone brandishing a real gun. But if he's just carrying it, then the cop shows up, investigates, and tells the guy it would be a good idea to keep the gun in a case so he didn't frighten his neighbors.
Swarming Bungee is definitely overkill. If what someone is doing is suspicious but not illegal, you send someone out to make sure it doesn't become illegal, or they don't intend to do something illegal. Hell a few phone calls to nearby business would probably have hit Bungee and they'd have said "Oh shit, that's our employee, it's not a real gun, it's replica of a video game gun."
If you think that anytime someone sees a gun anywhere 911 should be called, you're an idiot. You're the dumbass who has been watching far, far too many mind-numbing action movies, and associates the mere presence of a gun with murder. You're an idiot, plain and simple.
Security is mostly a superstition... Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. - Helen Keller
why would you expect
I expect people to recognize the gun if they call it by name.
Heh, too true. (I live in Eastern WA)
Note it is also completely legal in Washington to have a unconcealed firearm without a permit. There was a court case of a felon carrying two rifles to a pawn shop that got stopped and arrested for possession. It had to be thrown out (even though he was in illegal possession) because the cops had no probable cause to arrest him even though he was walking down the street in broad daylight with two rifles. That set the precedent for OC in Washington.
That's great that you've instructed your children on "The Three Rules." Perhaps now you should learn them yourself? I sure hope they're not learning from your example.
I have two loaded handguns in my house right now.
And for my next trick, I'll copypasta the third rule, and perhaps you can compare these two statements and see what is amiss...
"3. ALWAYS keep the gun unloaded until ready to use."
And that uppercase is the NRA's, not mine. Next time you get all sanctimonious and YayGuns!, maybe you shouldn't shoot (Hah! See what I did there?) yourself in the foot while doing it.
Actually, considering that my neighbors are all upstanding, law-abiding citizens, I'd be thrilled if they all carried AKs. That'd be one helluva deterrent for criminals thinking about causing trouble.
And while they called out the SWAT team for a replica gun, people shrug their shoulders at Labor Day traffic, which kills a lot more people than any shooting spree. Human beings are absolutely terrible at risk assessment.
The full weight of Labor Day traffic deaths is borne by fifty states and a population of 300 million people.
The 2006 Amish school shooting spree occurred within a one-room schoolhouse in rural Pennsylvania.
The body count doesn't tell you everything you need to know.
Risk assessment isn't meaningful when a singular event overwhelms and devastates an entire community. When there are no mechanisms in place for recovery.
The loss of the Titanic became more than an indictment of the technology and management of the vessel.
It became an indictment of a social order in which the First Class passenger lives and Second and Third dies with her working class crew.
That - in an instant - changed the survival equation for everyone in every setting.
Bullshit. Nearly every major PD in America has carried AR-15's (civilian version of the M-16) in their patrol cars since shortly after the North Hollywood Shootout.
Considering you are incredibly unlikely to encounter someone carrying an actual assault rifle (no semi-auto EVIL BLACK RIFLES!!!!1111 are not assault rifles, most traditional hunting rifles are deadlier than "Assault Weaponsâ") and doing so is entirely legal, it is silly to send five cars after someone just carrying one. What next? Do you want the police to send five cars when someone sees a "hacker" (aka someone with glasses and a laptop) sitting outside an office building?
========
CINC, 4th Penguin Legion
Years ago I was talking to a guy who was a civil war re-in-actor and he told me about traveling from Michigan to New York via Ontario. He pulled up to Canadian Customs and the agent asked him if he was bringing any weapons into Canada. He was kind of taken aback but answered" Well yes, there is a cannon on the trailer with 20 cannon balls and black power for ammunition" this was all in plain sight. The Customs agent then said "but no handguns or unregistered rifles or shotguns?" he replied "no. but I do have a saber in the trunk" to which the Customs agent replied Thank you have a nice trip."
Apocalypse Cancelled, Sorry, No Ticket Refunds
You're not far wrong... It doesn't look like an AK-47, but it looks scarily similar to a Barret M107.
http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=50+cal
Finally had enough. Come see us over at https://soylentnews.org/
This:
and this:
seem contradictory.
BTW, unless I missed something in the 911 call, the caller did not say anything about anyone being black. She said that one might have looked Hispanic, but she didn't get a look at the other. The police report says that she described two black men breaking in, but there's no reason for her to change her story in the short time between the 911 call and talking to the officer.
You can never go home again... but I guess you can shop there.
black power for ammunition
So he was playing a yankee, huh?
"They were pure niggers." – Noam Chomsky
Have you listened to the 911 call? I have - the caller did not mention race until the 911 operator asked her. When asked, she replied "one looked kind of Hispanic but I'm not really sure." This hardly jives with your idea that she was "some busybody neighbor doesn't like your skin color living on her street."
Agreed, the situation could have been handled much better on both sides. Personally from what I've read I think Gates was just being a twit and the cop didn't do much to help the situation. Before you spew racial vitriol all over the internets, get your facts straight.
Since you apparently have not yet read the transcript I assume you're too lazy to look it up (it was posted on the front page of major news sites for some time after the incident). I'll save you the google time and provide a link:
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/national/transcript_of_gates_call_1llqzVbjNMc0kloOxegLhO
Since it's common for 4 cars to show up for a fist fight, 2 for a car accident, 3 for an angry wife, I wouldn't call the police response for an armed man surprising. There are a hell of a lot of bored cops working at any time, so it would be silly not to use them.
You can expect that to change in an instant once Toronto's street gangs start staging pitched battles with black powder artillery.
~Idarubicin
They used to support the Mac just as much as (actually more than) Blizzard does these days. They were never exclusively a Mac developer, but many of their games came first to Mac and then later to Windows, and they may have had one that was a Mac exclusive. For example, Halo was premiered at an Apple keynote address and was scheduled to ship for the Mac well in advance of PCs, before they were bought up by Microsoft.
As for these days, not too many, but they've only been out from underneath Microsoft for about a year now. Not even really enough time to develop anything new that they could bring to Mac. Halo was actually the last game from them that I remember seeing for Mac (and it was ported by Gearbox, as I recall, not Bungie itself), but I haven't been paying as much attention to them in recent years since all they've been working on is Halo, and that franchise never really panned out the way I expected it to.
http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f234/PORSCHER/BarrettM107.jpg
Table-ized A.I.
Yeah, and I've never seen them snap...
It is what it is.
The stupid part is that anyone had to "vouch" for him in the first place. Not because he is famous either. It's not illegal to not have ID on you and he wasn't otherwise doing anything illegal. They could have questioned him but then he could have told them to go away. Apparently they brought him back to the hotel to be vouched for... which doesn't make any sense and is illegal if they forced him to do that.
There's about fifty different ways my kid could quickly and brutally kill themselves or another person in my house, and there are no guns. I won't argue about the concern for safety; but I'm not sure there's a sensible reason to single out the risk from guns, when the staircase or powersaw represents a greater real danger.
and concealed carry. In fact, it is a 'will issue' state meaning the local PD MUST issue a concealed carry permit within 60 days unless the background check reveals an issue. But the issue is a little more complex. This is how a Police Lieutenant explained it to me when I was taking a gun safety class here: Although 'Open Carry' is specifically allowed in Washington for anyone not otherwise prohibited from owning guns (such as felons), any other citizen can claim 'feeling intimidated' and call 911. If this happens, the PD MUST investigate and MUST send a report to the prosecutor, period. In fact, this Lt. reports being harassed by citizens for open carry when he was 'out of uniform' (meaning he had on a sweater and his badge was on a chain around his neck in full view, which is an authorized uniform in this jurisdiction.) If these people only knew. He carries three guns at once: One Glock in a holster, another mid-back, and a third J-frame .38 in his pocket (A J-frame is a fairly small revolver. The Glocks are, of course, semi-automatics.) The last two you'll never see unless he needs it.
The bottom line here is that a gun-o-phobic populace can claim 'intimidation' because they 'feel frightened' if someone else is simply carrying a gun and lodge a complaint that must be 'investigated.' In this case people cannot be expected to know that a) the gun wasn't real and b) that it was not an automatic, which is PROBABLY illegal here (Lots of rules for this kind of firearm.) How the investigation was carried out is another matter, but here it had to get to that point.
How about a moderation of -1 pedantic.
They were never exclusively a Mac developer, but many of their games came first to Mac and then later to Windows, and they may have had one that was a Mac exclusive.
Uh... no, everything Bungie made prior to the Myth series was Mac exclusive, with the exception of Marathon 2 which was later ported to Windows but began with every intention of being Mac exclusive like everything that came from Bungie before it.
Granted, most people these days have never heard of and wouldn't care about those prior titles, but they were there for years before Bungie ever published a single Windows title: Gnop!, Operation: Desert Storm, Minotaur, Pathways into Darkness, and of course Marathon, Marathon 2 and Marathon Infinity.
Further, during the Myth era, Bungie was the most equitable cross-platform developer I've ever seen. Not only were the Myth games simultaneous releases, but the only difference between the Mac version and the Windows version was the label on the box! The discs were dual-formatted. I have here my original Myth CDs, purchased in a box that say for Mac OS, from which I've installed Myth perfectly fine on both Mac and Windows machines over the years.
It wasn't until Oni and Halo that they shifted development to Windows-first and then Windows only.
I miss the old Bungie...
-Forrest Cameranesi, Geek of all Trades
"I am Sam. Sam I am. I do not like trolls, flames, or spam."
I briefly remember as a kid when you would think twice about "toilet papering" a house cause you might get shot. (even though deep down inside you knew there would be a warning shot first...) Kids today have no regard for their actions.
I'm not saying that the threat of death should be the only thing dissuading you from taking an action that you probably shouldn't, but it's a hell of a good one.
Have we gotten so afraid of each other today that we feel we need to rubberize the world? (rhetorical)
Every time I start to have faith in humanity, I ruin it by driving to work between 7 and 8 am.
Brand recognition is a powerful thing. Now, will you hand me a Kleenex so I can wipe up the Kool-Aid I spilled earlier while using my Yo-Yo. Then I can get back to Googling the internet for a few more Genericized trademarks. ;)
Every time I start to have faith in humanity, I ruin it by driving to work between 7 and 8 am.
But in my house, there won't be guns. If there is going to be a gun in the house, it will belong to an Adult, and it will be with them at all times till they leave my house.
In my house there are guns. They belong to an adult, as it is the only way to be (you were somewhat redundant) and they are kept locked at all times, except when they are used.
I have a kid in the house, my kid might get curious, and though I will teach her about gun safety, I'm not going to risk her forgetting what she knows so she can get a good look at the business end.
The safest thing for you to do is to not only teach your kid the gun safety, but also to teach her how to shoot. This is an important factor in reducing the curiosity of children about guns. If you say "never touch" they will want to touch when you are not around (or when it's someone's else gun.) If you say "never touch without me" it's a different story. Once the child learns how guns work the curiosity will drop quick, and many children will never want to shoot a gun again, even when they get a chance. There is a web site all about this, and you might want to read it all.
Only now, if we had no guns, I won't have a deterrent for that kid, I can't tell them I have a gun, and I will shoot them if they enter my home.
The police, if promptly called, will need 20 minutes to get to my home. If someone decides to invade my home I have to keep that number in mind. If you have a child in the house you need to consider who and how will protect the child if an unlikely event happens.
But she won't even know I have a gun until (big IF) I have to use it to defend my family, or she is older
There is a reason to do it differently. What if she is to come across a gun outside? The safety rules will be probably too much for her to remember, especially if she is too young. A knowledge of a gun would do better. First, the gun will be recognized as such instantly (and not seen as a strange toy without a name.) Second, if you shoot a gun with a child she will remember that loud report that happens, and it will be a deterrent from exploring further. It will be a good deterrent because it will be in a different kind of memory - the memory that children use best. Safety rules, though important, depend on logical interpretation of what's happening, and we all know how good children are at that. Again I suggest reading that link above, it explains things better than I do.
I don't think gun control would work well in the US, mostly because of our combined 'I'm above the law' mindset, that makes the mass think they can do what ever they want.
Yes. The cat is not just out of the bag, it was never in the bag. And if you *magically* make all guns disappear overnight, the gangs will switch to knives. It's actually scarier than a gun. A gun works even in lightly trained hands of a housewife, but she would be a sitting duck against a knife-wielding attacker. The UK banned all guns, so knives are all the rage there.
I think the following people should be excluded from gun ownership:
- People without full mental capabilities
- Criminals
- People who are paranoid about terrorism
- People who are paranoid about government
- People who are paranoid about guns
- People who are paranoid
- People who are just generally afraid
- Anyone who would actually buy a gun for themselves
- Pretty much everyone, really.
Unfortunately, the US is far too addicted to safely wean itself off guns. Now, the criminals truly do have the guns, and it's too late. Everyone needs to now keep up the arms race.
You know, there is a difference between trolling and pointing out the flaws in your reasoning. Just saying.
this:
1) a gun is a weapon.
2) a weapon is a tool.
3) such tools can be used to directly influence life.
4) any tool that can directly influence life also effects the socio/political balance of power.
5) both the government and the people want/maintain power, usually for the same reasons.
6) almost anything can be used as a weapon.
Limiting how a tool is used is the right of any society. But forbidding access to such a tool is a sort-sighted attempt to effect the balance of power.
Short-sighted because
6) almost anything can be used as a weapon.
Guns are powerful tools, but certainly not the only tools which can be used to threaten the balance of power.
The kind of corny phrase 'guns don't kill people' is still as true as ever. People can and do use almost anything at their disposal to do it.
Quack, quack.
As a graduate of the "teach them to shoot and they'll be bored" school of gun safety, let me say that this works. I don't own any guns, because to me, here's what that means:
1) Go spend a lot of money at the sporting goods store (AFTER buying the gun, which ain't cheap) for a bunch of non-reusable crap (ammo).
2) Drive out to the boonies.
3) Plunk away at things for no good goddamned reason, gun oil staining whatever you're wearing that day.
4) Get bored or run out of ammo.
5) Drive back home.
6) Spend the rest of the goddamned day taking guns apart, cleaning and oiling them.
I actually kind of like shooting, but only if I am spared the ownership part. Oh, and I hate the noise, and the ear protection you have to wear because of it.
Now, if you're going out hunting, I can see that tracking something could be fun, but then let's say you bring something down. Now what? You're out their field-dressing a big bloody mammal, pulling out guts and lugging the carcass around. No thanks. Just bring me back some if you get anything, how's that?
I never played with the guns in the house, and they weren't even locked up until my dad inherited so many we needed a gun case. Why should I play with them? I'd shot all of them, and it was not that interesting.
And there is probably the heart of why I think pro-control people are kinda crazy. If they had any idea how mundane firearm ownership and use was, they would shrug their shoulders and move on as well.