The Firing Line Forums - View Single Post - Bulk purchases: How many rounds are actually fired in mass killings?

Kleinzeit · January 9, 2013, 10:39 PM

Among the various themes arising in the perennial gun-control wars, we often hear of perpetrators and suspects who have purchased (or amassed) quantities of ammunition that some find alarming.

When it emerges that so-and-so had (for example) two thousand rounds in his home, many people swoon in fevered imaginings of slaughter enacted on unprecedented scales.

Many call for ammunition to be coded and "finger-printed," or for sales of amounts beyond a certain level (such as a thousand rounds) to be reported to the authorities.

People who shoot regularly do not tend to react with such alarm, knowing that a thousand rounds might easily be gone through in a mere weekend (or even a day) of target shooting or plinking, and that buying in bulk is one of the few means available by which to reduce the costs of what is, for most people, a somewhat expensive pastime.

What I'm curious about is this: How many rounds actually get fired by loonies on their crazed killing sprees? My guess is that it's probably never been more than a few hundred or so. I'm wondering if any of you folk happen to have looked into this? I've made an attempt at researching this online, and come up short. I'm hoping maybe someone who has more knowledge than I about these incidents can bring some light to bear. I believe it would help us address these sometimes hysterical concerns about bulk purchases.

January 9, 2013, 10:39 PM	#1
Kleinzeit Senior Member Join Date: January 30, 2009 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 566	Bulk purchases: How many rounds are actually fired in mass killings? Among the various themes arising in the perennial gun-control wars, we often hear of perpetrators and suspects who have purchased (or amassed) quantities of ammunition that some find alarming. When it emerges that so-and-so had (for example) two thousand rounds in his home, many people swoon in fevered imaginings of slaughter enacted on unprecedented scales. Many call for ammunition to be coded and "finger-printed," or for sales of amounts beyond a certain level (such as a thousand rounds) to be reported to the authorities. People who shoot regularly do not tend to react with such alarm, knowing that a thousand rounds might easily be gone through in a mere weekend (or even a day) of target shooting or plinking, and that buying in bulk is one of the few means available by which to reduce the costs of what is, for most people, a somewhat expensive pastime. What I'm curious about is this: How many rounds actually get fired by loonies on their crazed killing sprees? My guess is that it's probably never been more than a few hundred or so. I'm wondering if any of you folk happen to have looked into this? I've made an attempt at researching this online, and come up short. I'm hoping maybe someone who has more knowledge than I about these incidents can bring some light to bear. I believe it would help us address these sometimes hysterical concerns about bulk purchases.