But, I could get an AK...

impulse418 wrote: If you want an AR, today is the day to buy. I guarantee there will be a rush tomorrow after tonight's speech.

I'm not sure anyone does at this point. It's insane how complicated this whole thing's gotten. I got no answers.

It's a difficult situation to be in for sure, but there ARE answers. They're just not answers that look good on an outgoing president's legacy, especially one that is trying to keep his party in power this next election cycle.

It all starts with domestic problems that were generated by the Brits and French trying to cobble together nations out of societies that were still very tribal/clan oriented at the end of WWII. Instead of building independent countries post-colonialism along tribal lines, they just used map lines that meant/mean very little for societies which still consider themselves of a particular subgroup first, and of a nation second. The Kurds are a prime example of this. They feel their identity to be Kurdish first, and Iraqi, Turkish, Iranian, Syrian, etc. second. Now, that's not to say that everyone identifies that way, but there are definite divides between some pretty large ethnic and religious groups. Cobbling a nation together out of such diverse entities along modern lines rather than historic ones means you have to have a very strong central government, which is why it's despots who stay in power over there, and why such a power vacuum is created when one of them is overthrown or dies without a strong "heir." Saddam kept Iraq together by fear and force. Same goes for the Saudis and Syria. Jordan has a central figure in the king, and the other smaller entities like Qatar, Kuwait, and the UAE have a much more unified identity (they're smaller in area and have much less diversity in religion and ethnicity) They also have strong central figures in government who maintain order through segregation.

That's why stuff falls apart, too many people trying to take control of a "make believe" country that exists by force of will alone. Iraq is a prime example, so was Libya, and Syria is proving to follow suit as well.

That's why I think the real solution is to dissolve these countries as they fall apart. The Kurds are the ones doing all the heavy lifting on the ground over there, and they've literally been dying for a country of their own for decades upon decades. Let them keep what they capture. Doing so will start a scramble for the pieces of Syria from its other neighbors in an attempt to not only expand their borders, but prevent the Kurds from becoming a major player in the region. They'll finally commit ground forces and let's face it, Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, Israel, and the Kurds are all better than a) ISIS, and B) Al Assad. It also prevents massive involvement (outside of supporting Hezbollah in Lebanon) by Iran which will help stabilize the region even more.

agentwhale007 wrote:  It ended up being a pretty milquetoast speech, all things considered.

Edited by StormyKnight - 08 December 2015 at 6:53pm

SSOK wrote: Why the 30 rounders for the SKS? They seem less reliable and the stock mag is handy.

SSOK wrote: StormyKnight wrote: SSOK wrote: Why the 30 rounders for the SKS? They seem less reliable and the stock mag is handy. Mostly because I wanted to try detachable magazines.  If they don't work out, I can always pop the 10 rounder back in and get some stripper clips. I see. You may want to try a Chinese fixed 20 rounder

I second this. Never had reliable lock-up with detachable mags on SKSs of any make.

StormyKnight wrote: agentwhale007 wrote:  <span style="line-height: 1.4;">It ended up being a pretty milquetoast speech, all things considered. </span> Regardless, the effect was the same.  Online inventories for AR-15s dropped and the prices climbed.  I was in the midst of nailing down somebody with an FFL to have a rifle shipped to before the speech happened.  Found a Ruger AR556 for $585 with $15 shipping.  Would cost me $25 for the FFL to receive.  That went to the 4 winds.  As it stands now, I'd probably be better off paying retail at a local store.  So, I think I'll have to wait it out for awhile. In the meantime, I popped out the standard 10rd fixed magazine out of my SKS and ordered two composite 30rd magazines.  I already have 1200rds of 7.62x39 I've been sitting on for years.  I'll get the AR eventually, but hopefully after the silliness dies down.  Man, has the POTUS been good for gun and ammo companies...

I urged my girlfriend too buy a EBR on Saturday. We went Sunday morning and she picked up a AR556. I'm excited too see how it shoots.

$629

impulse418 wrote: $629

I probably paid about that or more for my AR during the last freak out. That was with a free stock, barrel, and handguard (thanks again!) so I'd say you didn't do bad