The Army won't let us call an M16 a gun. They claim it's a rifle instead. So, it's a gun with rifling! Everybody knows that anything that shoots bullets is a gun. Why is that so hard for the Army to understand?
2006-12-10 02:38:53 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics & Government ➔ Military
My definition of gun is a weapon incorporating a metal tube from which bullets or shells are propelled by explosive force.Or,a device for discharging something in a required direction.
The military is always trying to make things seem different, they're just maybe trying to get you guys think harder then you already are.
Well, there are many different types of guns, and they all have different names. They are all guns, because they are used to shoot something. It's very important that you learn the names of the guns that you are learning to use. So to be specific with what gun you are going to use, you need to know the gun's right name. It's a matter of safety, and from preventing mistakes (I think).
Other than that, I still think that the military is just trying to make you think hard.
2006-12-10 02:45:58 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
gun is a common name given to a device that fires high-velocity projectiles. The projectile, its caliber, or diameter, usually designated in fractions of an inch or in millimeters, is fired through a hollow tube known as the gun's barrel. Differing from the musket, the modern gun is rifled, excluding smoothbores on tanks, AFVs and artillery, with a series of grooves spiraling along the barrel, and indeed the first rifles were known as 'rifled guns'.
The term "gun" is often used synonymously with firearm, but in military usage the term refers only to artillery that fires projectiles at high velocity, such as tank guns, or naval guns. A gunner is a member of the team charged with the task of operating and firing a gun. Thus, by military terms, mortars and all hand-held firearms are excluded from this definition. The exception to this is the shotgun, which is hand-held, has a smooth bore and fires a load of shot or a single projectile known as a slug.
2006-12-10 02:44:33 · answer #2 · answered by ? 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
First off the M-16 (actually the M16/A2) fires rounds, not bullets. The Army is very specific in its lingo to further re-enforce that the members have joined the Army not that the Army has joined little Johnny from smalltown, USA. So remember;
The M16/A2 is a rifle that fires 5.56 mm rounds.
2006-12-10 06:40:13 · answer #3 · answered by Top B 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The army is just trying to play the semantics game, and playing with your head at the same time.. Any hand held, or shoulder firearm is a gun.
2006-12-10 03:49:43 · answer #4 · answered by WC 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
A gun is heavy artillery. A rifle is a hand held weapon. It dont matter what you call it, its what you do with it.
2006-12-10 02:44:01 · answer #5 · answered by David H 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The answer is obvious.
For everyone's safety, the members of the military must communicate clearly and efficiently, and that requires that there be specific names for things and that those names be used consistently.
It's not a matter of stupidity or bullheadedness. It's a matter of precise communication for purposes of efficient communication and safety of the troops.
2006-12-10 02:50:10 · answer #6 · answered by actuator 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
A gun is an artillery piece or cannon. A firearm is a handheld weapon.
2006-12-10 02:53:07 · answer #7 · answered by Black Sabbath 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
This is my rifle, this is my gun. This one's for fighting, this one is for fun.
2006-12-10 04:57:10 · answer #8 · answered by trigunmarksman 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋