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Miss Demeanors
April 14, 2000, 02:37 PM
In the Chicago SunTimes Thursday edition, this small article was printed:

Guns Melted down

Nearly 400 handguns, shotguns, and rifles seized by DuPage County sheriff's police, abandoned or turned in since 1993 were melted down Wednesday at a Lemont mill, molded into steel bars to be used for highway construction and other purposes.


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Why do they melt these guns? I could see if they were broke and beyond repair but from reading this, it doesn't seem like they were. Why not have a raffle and have the money go to a charity? (like the all kids foundation that Rosie supports :D)

They use them for the highways? I pay a toll each time I use my highway and I am driving on melted guns? (See where your money went Don ;)).

I just don't see the purpose of this. I need to find out where this mill is ;) I'll be glad to take them off their hands~ :) Maybe this is where they get their saying "Guns in the streets" literally :D

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ArmySon
April 14, 2000, 03:38 PM
Heck, they could've donated the guns to me! I would've put them to good use. ;)

Son
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[This message has been edited by ArmySon (edited April 14, 2000).]

dZ
April 14, 2000, 03:38 PM
they do this because the believe that the only safe way to dispose of evil guns is to decompose them into basic elemental material.

I would hope nothing of structural value is made from all those mixed metals.

If they sold them, they could reapear and do more evil.

Sort of like "why do you burn Witches?"

dZ

Andrewh
April 14, 2000, 04:05 PM
"Cause they are made of wood?"


:) sorry couldn't resist.

Don Gwinn
April 14, 2000, 04:17 PM
It's Chicago. Don't evaluate it logically. Ask instead, my child, "What did a politician stand to lose or gain here?"

Thus we see that the politicians stood to lose votes if they did anything as horribly irresponsible as raffle guns off to people. It's not as if people in Illinois have to pass background checks to prove they're harmless before they could buy the guns, is it?
Oh, yeah.

All they'd gain by not melting the guns is the money in the budget and the satisfaction of knowing they didn't do something stupid.

Frankly, people who believe in making a stand over trivial principles like "not being stupid" don't last very long in Chicago-area politics.

Bud Helms
April 14, 2000, 06:25 PM
Well, we have to melt them down so that at the base material level, they don't remember what they used to be. Then they will be able to shed all the evil that was in that little bit of steel and they won't kill any more chi'rren.

Herodotus
April 14, 2000, 06:39 PM
Don't forget that "other things" could also be weapons for sport or war. The highway thing is just sophistic rhetoric to make it seem like they have nobel(???) intentions and actually have a considered purpose for what they are doing.
But they are not ridding the world of weapons or leading us to peace. They are just making big fools of themselves. People do see through this type of thing. Thank God that this type of mentality tends to be on the other side.

sbryce
April 14, 2000, 10:15 PM
It is their way of supporting the gun companies. If they melt down the guns, the gun companies will have to make new guns to replace them.

B24H
April 14, 2000, 10:38 PM
Many years (1970's) ago in California a bunch of confiscated guns were rounded up and melted down. This was an environmentally-friendly situation, as the options were to dump them at sea or grind them up and put them in a landfill. They were going to be made into a monument commemorating victim's rights or anti-violence or something like that. It was done at a factory in Torrance, Ca that had two 25-ton electric melt furnaces. TONS and TONS of guns were brought in under tight security and melted into a giant ingot amid great fanfare and speeches by dignitaries, etc. etc. etc. The ingot was probably 2-ft by 2-ft x 8 ft in size when finished. And after it was made there it sat, untouched, in the back lot, never to be moved again for at least a decade. It was probably moved out when the factory was turned into a strip mall, and now rests in honored glory in a scrap yard somewhere. This happened before I worked there, but the whole thing was regarded with awe by the old timers, who said they could have opened a gun store and retired on the proceeds.

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"Our most pressing problems...are at their core moral, not material, problems." Richard Nixon
"We should not substitute the state for the parents or the family." Lee Kwan Yew

4V50 Gary
April 14, 2000, 11:55 PM
I will gladly destroy a gun if Feinswine jumps off the Golden Gate Bridge (no 'chute or bungie cord), freefalls, and hits the Bay.

Tamara
April 15, 2000, 07:10 AM
Coming soon, my new line of dangerously carcinogenic asbestos-framed semiautos. With a pack of Camel Filterless in every box!

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Tamara's House o' Weapons: If we can't kill it, it's immortal.
10mm: It's not the size of the Dawg in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog!

jeffer
April 15, 2000, 07:11 AM
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by 4V50 Gary:
I will gladly destroy a gun if Feinswine jumps off the Golden Gate Bridge (no 'chute or bungie cord), freefalls, and hits the Bay.[/quote]

May I add "with rocks in her pockets".

tc556guy
April 15, 2000, 07:46 AM
Destruction of confiscated guns, as much as it doesn't make sense to many people, is done in many jurisdictions. My agency routinely takes many numerous seized guns, some NIB, to a local scrap yard where they are chopped up.
I too hate to see such a waste, but until the law is changed, it is the only legal way to dispose of these guns in NY state. I don't see this changing any time soon....a few years ago Governor Pataki ruled that any State agency guns being decommissioned would be destroyed rather than sold as surplus.

JimR
April 15, 2000, 08:02 AM
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>a few years ago Governor Pataki ruled that any State agency guns being decommissioned would be destroyed rather than sold as surplus.[/quote]

Just another example of a politician thumbing his nose at the taxpayer while foolishly spending our money.



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The ultimate purpose of gun control is to render people incapable of the ultimate form of protest and resistance to tyranny.

ctdonath
April 15, 2000, 08:53 AM
Don't forget that "other things" could also be weapons for sport or war. The highway thing is just sophistic rhetoric to make it seem like they have nobel(???) intentions and actually have a considered purpose for what they are doing.

What they forget is that the Interstate Highway system was built for military purposes. It allows rapid transfer of personell & equipment, and is useable as airfields (notice that in almost any 5 mile section, there is one mile that is straight).

Can't let people use them assault highways!

Jeff Thomas
April 15, 2000, 10:47 AM
Miss D, never underestimate the foolishness of some government bureaucrats and politicians.

Not a gun story, but illustrative of the same stupidity ...

I once received a call from a friend in Colorado, in the car business. He had a Porsche on his lot, an '87 as I recall, which was what they call a 'grey market' car. It was imported illegally, because it did not have the required emissions equipment. The state of Colorado became involved, and seized control of the car. In addition to the emissions questions, the car also had an illegal VIN (vehicle identification number). The price was right, so I offered to pay CO to correct the VIN problem, and I would also have installed the correct emissions gear. The inspector refused.

When I asked what they were going to do with the car, she told me it would be 'shredded'. That's right ... shredded. This was a Porsche Carrera in nearly new condition. I told the inspector I could pay a fee to CO, and they could use that fee for whatever, including a contribution to their favorite charity. No chance. When I asked her why they would shred a nearly new Porsche, she said 'it is contraband'.

That was it. No emotion. Clearly, no brains. If I had any remaining respect for government, it was gone at that point.

Never underestimate their potential for stupidity, and for that matter, violence. Governments have the ability to astound you in both areas.

Regards from AZ

DaHaMac
April 15, 2000, 01:18 PM
I would like to know how many "innocent" people were killed with the guns they melted, versus the number of people that die on the highways in Chicago each year. hmmmmm.

Better not press that logic too far, the liberals will have us riding bicycles while they melt our cars. I wonder how long it would take me to get to work in the morning, considering it would be a 45 mile bicycle ride.

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Know Yourself, Know Your Weapon, Know Your Enemy; then Know Victory! DaHaMac

Jim V
April 15, 2000, 06:07 PM
We had a city here in Michigan that would destroy any firearm that was reported stolen and then recovered. The owner and/or insurance company had no chance to get them back. Their reasoning was "If they were stolen, they were used in acrime and have to be destroyed." I think a change in city government and a BMF lawsuit got them to change that policy.

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Ne Conjuge Nobiscum
"If there be treachery, let there be jehad!"

Miss Demeanors
April 15, 2000, 07:51 PM
Thanks everyone! I'm glad I wasn't the only one who thought it was a bad idea. Like I said, I need to find the Lemont Mill :)

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Christopher
April 16, 2000, 12:12 AM
There's a steel mill in Lemont just north of the Citgo refinery on New Avenue. Lemont is a very small town, so I'd probably be safe in assuming that it is the only mill there. If you ever decide to go "liberate" those handguns headed for doom, stop by the downtown Lemont area. Lots of nice little antique stores. If you want to go 5 miles further into Lockport, head over to Rink's Gun & Sport on State Street. Not the most organized place, but they got some good deals on decent stuff.

Jim V
April 16, 2000, 06:17 PM
OOPS, the first time I reread this thread, I did not find my prior posting. http://204.235.96.21/NonCGI/redface.gif http://204.235.96.21/NonCGI/redface.gif http://204.235.96.21/NonCGI/redface.gif

[This message has been edited by Jim V (edited April 16, 2000).]

EQUALIZER
April 16, 2000, 08:13 PM
When I saw the title of the post I thought you were going to tell us about your new Clark Custom 1911 w/the Melt job. Oh well. Just figures that Uncle Sam is up to his ol bag of tricks again in Chicago land area. (Disneyland for commis).

Just goes to show that some like to identify themselves with those in power during the dark ages, as well as the many communist regimes in current history.

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"But now, he that hath a purse, let him take it, and likewise his scrip; and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one." -Jesus Christ (Luke 22:36, see John 3:15-18)
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"Reasonable gun law?............There's No such critter!" --EQ

Skyhawk
April 17, 2000, 12:31 PM
Having been a manager at a major military installation, in south central Texas for over twenty years, supervising the welding shop was one part of my broad duties. Base security forces frequently brought over weapons (gun & knives) to be destroyed after they were seized on base and the legal process had been completed. These items could not be returned to their owners.

When all welders were busy or out in the field, I would frequently “fire-up” the old torch myself and cut up firearms for the cops. This was a strictly monitored process with before and after photographs with forms and logs to be signed by all parties involved.

It is absolutely amazing to watch what an acetylene torch will do to aluminum and alloy firearms. Steel firearms didn’t last much longer. Those plastic grips sure do stink! Weapons were burned and/or melted almost beyond recognition, allowed to cool off, and then tossed into the scrap metal recycle bins.

Most of the pieces cut were junk but ever once in a while you would have to burn a nice Colt or S&W.

Opps.. Forgot to add:

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by sensop:
Well, we have to melt them down so that at the base material level, they don't remember what they used to be. Then they will be able to shed all the evil that was in that little bit of steel and they won't kill any more chi'rren. [/quote]

I don’t know if the little buggers had been “rehabilitated” after their traumatic experience. http://204.235.96.21/NonCGI/wink.gif

Skyhawk



[This message has been edited by Skyhawk (edited April 17, 2000).]

Coinneach
April 17, 2000, 02:10 PM
Skyhawk... doing that job sounds like about as much fun as being the guy at the pound who kills the strays. http://204.235.96.21/NonCGI/frown.gif

Skyhawk
April 17, 2000, 03:08 PM
Well Coinneach,

It was just part of the job.

At least I had the personal satisfaction of knowing that mine were safely locked up at home in one of the gun safes and would never suffer a similar fate.

Skyhawk

Mute
April 17, 2000, 03:13 PM
4v50Gary,

Regarding Feinswine. I think we have enough problems with polluting the ocean.