A CNN report is being widely mocked on social media after an alleged firearms expert claimed AR-15s are “full semi-automatic.”
Gary Tuchman, a correspondent for the network, also drew widespread laughter for effeminately handling the weapon and closing his eyes while firing.
1. All guns are loud
2. There is no such thing as full semi-automatic he should be a part of the @migos making up words like that.
3. The gun doesn’t kick that hard this Guy is just super saiyan beta.
4. Every gun is design to inflict
5. JUST THROW THE WHOLE @CNN AWAY pic.twitter.com/27iZnJeVAE— Colion Noir (@MrColionNoir) February 27, 2018
The clip begins with Tuchman struggling to hold the rifle properly as retired Lt. General Mark Hertling explains the weapon’s mechanics.
Despite Hertling’s alleged expertise, the former military man goes on to claim that the AR-15 is capable of being fired “full semi-automatic.”
The made-up term appears to be part of an attempt to frame the rifle as more dangerous than other semi-automatic rifles, the Daily Caller’s David Hookstead argues.
“It’s also worth noting that these two are pushing a narrative that somehow an AR-15 shoots at a more rapid rate than other semi-automatic weapons. That’s of course completely false,” Hookstead writes. “The cyclical rate of AR-15 can be faster than some semi-automatic weapons and slower than others.”
Social media users were also quick to pick apart the report, making fun of Tuchman and Hertling in the process.
The perceived recoil is inversely proportional to your daily soy intake.
— Beary Taint 🐻7🐻 (@nobullshytt) February 27, 2018
— Who_Killed_Betsy (@Whokilledbetsy) February 28, 2018
Ahh yes so much kick pic.twitter.com/giAMl69oU4
— Austin (@therealFJ) February 27, 2018
He shoots with his elbow out, everything he says is invalid
— Pablo (@pabalejandro78) February 28, 2018
I have literally watched a 10-year-old girl fire an AR-15 with more proficiency than this dude.
— Brittany Hughes (@RealBrittHughes) February 28, 2018
The 1st guy shoots a gun like Obama throws a baseball. Painful to watch if you’re a guy. The lunacy of the left just keeps reaching new lows.
— Terry Smith (@mogtrz) February 28, 2018
The report is strikingly similar to a 2016 article in which a New York Daily News journalist claimed to have acquired post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after firing an AR-15.
“The recoil bruised my shoulder, which can happen if you don’t know what you’re doing. The brass shell casings disoriented me as they flew past my face,” the writer said. “The smell of sulfur and destruction made me sick. The explosions — loud like a bomb — gave me a temporary form of PTSD. For at least an hour after firing the gun just a few times, I was anxious and irritable.”
Despite the AR-15 being identical in capabilities to countless hunting rifles, anti-gun advocates are demanding the rifle be outright banned based merely on its appearance.
CNN’s report comes amid a renewed gun control debate following the death of 17 at a Florida high school.
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