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TV Journalists Try Buying AK-47 On Dark Web, Fail (deepdotweb.com)
An anonymous reader writes: "It was supposed to be a great story about terrorism, uncertainty and the evils of the DarkNet," writes Deep Dot Web, describing an investigative report titled "Fear of Terror -- How Endangered is Germany?" After interviewing security experts, federal investigators, and a survivor of the Paris terrorist attack, a TV news crew in Germany attempted to buy an AK-47 on the dark web -- only to be scammed out of $800. "If he had done a little research he could have known that most weapon dealers on the DarkNet are actually scams," the article points out, adding that German customs officers say they would have intercepted any AK-47 had a delivery been attempted.
Motherboard reported in November that the high number of scams -- some of which are undercover agents -- prompted several dark web markets to stop offering guns altogether, though they suggest the German news crew was trying to recreate the purchases of "disabled" weapons which were then converted back into their original form.
Motherboard reported in November that the high number of scams -- some of which are undercover agents -- prompted several dark web markets to stop offering guns altogether, though they suggest the German news crew was trying to recreate the purchases of "disabled" weapons which were then converted back into their original form.
A similar meme here in the US: "you can buy a gun on the web without a background check! The horror. Must close that loophole."
Any journalists trying to do this for a story would quickly realize that only is possible if buyer and seller are able/willing to meet physically, otherwise the act of shipping the firearm, which must go through a licensed dealer, gets backgrounds checked. And a physical meetup between individuals is pretty hard to regulate with or without an internet.
Wow, imagine that, one person agrees to exchange private property with another person for some money. Is that not how a free society, a free economy, works?
Oh, but it was a *GUN* they traded? I'm reminded of a cartoon of three frames. First frame, man with a bat and a bloodied dead person at his feet, an observer to this shouts, "Someone needs to stop this madman!" Second frame, man with a knife and a bloodied dead person at his feet, an observer shouts, "Someone needs to stop this madman!" Third frame, man with a gun and a bloodied dead person at his feet, an observer shouts, "Did you see that? We need to ban guns!"
Oh, but guns are only good for murdering people, right? Is that why police officers carry them? Tell me, if we ban the private sale of firearms who will enforce it and how? I know the answer, it will be police officers carrying guns. If the police officers show up to stop people with guns from exchanging them then how is that going to play out, huh? That's right, dead police officers and guns getting into the hands of murderers.
Guns are good for killing people and that is why people want them. Killing is different than murder because there is such as thing in law as "justifiable homicide". This is why police officers carry guns and this is why law abiding citizens need unrestricted access to them.
This summer I'm taking a history course at the local university. We start with the French Revolution. For centuries the people of France were kept in perpetual slavery by kings and nobles. This was largely possible by keeping the people poor, uneducated, and disarmed. Anyone with a sword, bow, or arrow without the permission of the king would be killed on sight by the mercenaries and soldiers under the employ of the king. The king's rule was brought to a very brutal end when the people stormed the armory and took weapons to be used against the king. The people that took over were unfortunately just a brutal as any king, they were able to rule by terror on the rest of France because they now had the weapons. Next week's lectures will be over how Napolean fucked things up.
People are only free if they are just as well armed as the government. That means being able to buy an AR-15 from some guy in a parking lot with cash.
I am armed because I am free. I am free because I am armed.
Well, you don't really want the gov't, or really anyone else, to be setting some kind of bar to indicate who can be part of the 'press', because then it becomes very open to abuse. And that's generally worse than bad reporting by your grandma.
Sleep your way to a whiter smile...date a dentist!