Gun Run

A number of big gun shops in California report a rise in demand for the AK-47 semi-automatic rifle, available on the open market for only about $350. Interest in the AK-47 increased substantially after one was used by a gunman last week to murder five children and wound 30 others at a Stockton elementary school. What isn’t immediately clear is whether the sudden rush to buy the rifle is due to concern that the Northern California massacre could lead to a ban on its legal sale, or whether gun fanciers have been so wowed by the AK-47’s most recent public performance that they feel they must own one. In any event some dealers say that they can hardly keep their shelves stocked. Not to worry, though. Officials estimate that more than 80,000 copies of the AK-47 have been imported from China in recent years. Even if a sales ban on such semi-automatic rifles is somehow legislated this year or next--a big if, giventhe cravenness of state and national legislators in the face of opposition by the gun lobby--it seems likely that tens of thousands of additional weapons will have passed into private hands before it could take effect. The AK-47 was designed to kill people in combat. Like other rapid-fire assault rifles, it has no legitimate sporting or recreational use. For committing mass murder, though, there’s nothing quite like it.