Taking Action to Allow Import of 100,000 M-1 Rifles from Korea

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Mr.Davis

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Taking Action to Allow Import of M-1 Rifles from Korea

I'm sure many of you have heard about the large number of M-1 Garands and M-1 Carbine rifles that the South Korean government is attempting to sell to a US importer.

Little detailed information available about this issue, but here's what we know so far:

Korean Times: US opposes Seoul’s bid to sell old rifles

Fox News: Obama Administration Reverses Course, Forbids Sale of 850,000 Antique Rifles

It appears that the import ban is politically motivated. According to the Fox News article, the Obama Administration approved the import of the rifles, then quietly reversed their decision in March of this year.

That said, let's get a letter-writing campaign going to gather factual information as to why the import was denied and to demand pressure be applied to allow the rifles to be imported in compliance with current regulations. Here's a letter I sent to my two Senators and my Representative. Please feel free to excerpt or steal the whole letter for your purposes.

Please report back any concrete information you receive from your congresscritter so we can determine the next steps that should be taken.

Contact Info for Representatives
Contact Info for Senators

My letter:
Senator XXXXXX,

In the last few months, the recreational shooting community became aware that the Obama Administration has reversed its previous decision to allow the South Korean government to sell US-manufactured World War II era rifles to an importer in the United States. This importer would then presumably offer these rifles for sale to law-abiding collectors and shooters in the USA in compliance with all existing regulations governing firearms.

A FOX News report indicates that the Obama administration has blocked their import for reasons that are unreasonable and misleading. You can see the article here: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/201...everses-course-forbids-sale-antique-m-rifles/)

It’s important to know that there is plenty of legitimate precedent for selling historical M-1 Garand and M-1 Carbine rifles to law-abiding citizens who can legally purchase firearms. The Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP, http://www.odcmp.com/), a federally-chartered corporation that serves youth through gun safety and marksmanship activities, partially finances their operations by selling such rifles to citizens from US government stocks.

These relics were paid for by our tax dollars, and were carried by our fathers, grandfathers, uncles, brothers, cousins and friends, the cornerstones of “the greatest generation”. These firearms served admirably in the defense of our country and our allies, and I'm asking for your help in facilitating their return to the United States so current and future generations can enjoy and honor their history.

I request that you speak to the Obama administration to demand that they allow these firearms to be imported and sold to American citizens in compliance with current regulations. Identical firearms are legally sold to civilians every day through the CMP without incident, serving a vital and honorable role in teaching gun safety and marksmanship. The Obama Administration's objections are clearly motivated by political ideology rather than reasoned analysis.

We in the millions-strong shooting community appreciate your staunch support of Second Amendment rights, and hope to hear a statement from you soon in regards to this important issue.

Sincerely,

XXXXXX
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EDIT: Adjusted letter to include better information which has come to light since the first draft.
 
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why cant the cmp get involved? can the gov't stop them as they were created by the gov't? at least i think they were.
 
The CMP is apparently not involved at all with the import of these rifles. It appears that a private firm is attempting to import them. If they're indeed lend-lease rifles, then under the terms of the agreement they'd have to be returned to the US for free, meaning they could ultimately be sold through the CMP.

The main thrust of my letter is to find out what the heck is going on, since there's virtually no information about this issue available.
 
Sent as well.

I would like to encourage any and all replies from elected officials to be posted to help keep each other in the loop.
 
Was a lot of discussion at Volokh Conspiracy over this. Post opened by Dave Kopel.

Korean Times quoted Anony Moose U.S. official saying sale was blocked over safety concerns about the guns and fears that the guns could fall into the wrong hands.

Actually may be concerns whether the guns were Korean War Era (early 1950s) loans to the Koreans (which means they should be returned to the US govt (if true hopefully to CMP)) or were purchased by the Koreans and could be sold to a US importer like Century. If that was the real reason, then why the story about "dangerous guns" or "wrong hands" excuse?

IIRC the first wave of Korean re-imports of M1s in late 1980s were guns that the Korean govt had paperwork they had bought (M1s imported by outfits like Blue Sky of Arlington VA). Story goes the guns surplussed in the late 1980s were less desirable examples and the guns retained by the Koreans were better quality for military reserve purposes.

Also questions were raised that the guns were being kept out by US to protect domestic manufacturers or the value of gun collectors' M1 collections, but that sounded like speculation. Or the excuses used since the 1960s to keep out military surplus (nothing unique to the Obama Administration).
 
Oh, the draft letter is a good summary of all issues, and avoids soapboxing.

Above all, folks, be aware of the speculation about various reasons, but as the draft letter states, the reasons for the bar on re-import are not clear.
 
A portion of these rifles had been released in 2006. Most were so low that few really wanted them. Don't expect Servive Grade. The CMP will not be involved nor do they want them. Tells you something.

This rumor has been going around for some time. So far the only source has been a Korean news media outlet. Sounds like they are trying to build interest in their sale.
 
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Thanks for the letter! I sent to the texas bunch. I own both M-1 Garand and M-1 Carbine and would hate to see these rifles melted down!!
 
Emailed my Congressman and Senator. I'd love to get my hands on a M1 Carbine one of these days.
 
Include the specs for the Garand in your letters and links from the CMP. A 43 inch rifle weighing 10 lbs and limited to a capacity of only 8 rounds and acceptable even in California is hardly a gang-bangers weapon.
 
I wrote my own email. A bit more succinct but still polite and non-accusatory. It's important to get some awareness of this sort of subject. Good job pointing this out and getting some actions started!

Thanks to the OP!

Paul
 
If the guns were going to the CMP, then I would actually be concerned, but since it's some S.Korean buisness (which is rife with kickbacks and nepotism) I could care less.

Any private importer/distributer is going to jack up the prices far beyond what they are actually worth, whereas the CMP deals honestly and at resonable prices, plus I hate to see a country which has benefited from America's protection and commerce for sixty years make money selling us our own rifles back to us.
 
Any private importer/distributer is going to jack up the prices far beyond what they are actually worth, whereas the CMP deals honestly and at resonable prices, plus I hate to see a country which has benefited from America's protection and commerce for sixty years make money selling us our own rifles back to us.
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It's quite unclear whether they belong to us or Korea, so I request that we withhold hearsay and speculation from this thread. Unless of course you have information to this effect, in which case it would be highly appreciated if you'd share it.

I'd also like to point out that it will be virtually impossible to maintain super-high pricing on these weapons, since it seems the Koreans seem intent on selling over 100,000 of them, which will probably overwhelm the market demand. Even if one importer only buys ten or twenty thousand, they'll just sell the rest to another importer until they're all gone.

If we're lucky, they're US Government property and can be returned and sold through the CMP. Ultimately, though, who cares how they get back here - law abiding Americans should have the opportunity to buy them.
 
wideym i agree with you mostly but those rifles are ours(us) they are part of our history and i would rather they be imported and the prices jacked up then destroyed.
 
I wrote my Congress members, so I've done my part. We need to keep the pressure on, this administration has caved to determined gun owners every time, with the exception of the Supreme Court. Let's not let them develop a backbone!
 
Here is a little more info:

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/201...everses-course-forbids-sale-antique-m-rifles/

The South Korean government, in an effort to raise money for its military, wants to sell nearly a million antique M1 rifles that were used by U.S. soldiers in the Korean War to gun collectors in America.

The Obama administration approved the sale of the American-made rifles last year. But it reversed course and banned the sale in March – a decision that went largely unnoticed at the time but that is now sparking opposition from gun rights advocates.

A State Department spokesman said the administration's decision was based on concerns that the guns could fall into the wrong hands.

"The transfer of such a large number of weapons -- 87,310 M1 Garands and 770,160 M1 Carbines -- could potentially be exploited by individuals seeking firearms for illicit purposes," the spokesman told FoxNews.com.

READ THE REST AT THE FOX URL TO COMPLY WITH FAIR USE COPYRIGHT CONCERNS

The White House referred questions on the issue to the Pentagon, which referred questions to the U.S. Embassy in South Korea, which deferred back to the State Department.
Click to expand...

Makes me want to :barf::barf::barf::barf::barf::barf::barf:

I'll be contacting my elected officials for sure on this one!
 
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Some have dismissed this as just David Kopel quoting somebody at Korean Times saying this. I said three independent sources not quoting each other would be preferable. Now Fox News and Handgun Control Inc (Brady Campaign) have chimed in with seperate sources (ie, they aint quoting Korean Times). Its probably a real story.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/201...everses-course-forbids-sale-antique-m-rifles/

The sale was approved last year then reversed this March. Reason given to Fox News by State Dept: "The transfer of such a large number of weapons -- 87,310 M1 Garands and 770,160 M1 Carbines -- could potentially be exploited by individuals seeking firearms for illicit purposes."

Dennis Henigan of the Brady Campaign weighed in with: "Guns that can take high-capacity magazines are a threat to public safety..... Why let them into the country in the first place? If there is a legally sufficient way to keep them out, we think it's perfectly reasonable to do so.... They clearly were used as military guns, and the fact that they likely can take high-capacity magazines makes them a special safety concern."

When Fox News asked why the M1s were a special danger, State Dept passed the questioner to ATF. ATF diddled for two days and referred the questioner to the Justice Dept and Justice spokesman Dean Boyd sent the questioner back to the State Dept.
 
Here is what I wrote this evening.

Congressman XXXX,

It has recently come to my attention that the Obama administration has reversed course on the decision to allow South Korea to sell antique US Army rifles back to American collectors. I must say that this decision disheartens me for several reasons.

The first reason this decision bugs me is the stated reason for the change. A state department employee stated, "The transfer of such a large number of weapons -- 87,310 M1 Garands and 770,160 M1 Carbines -- could potentially be exploited by individuals seeking firearms for illicit purposes." These types of transfers have taken place in the past. Everything from German Mausers and P38s, to Chilean rifles locked in remote castles, have been shipped to this country in large numbers. As we have seen over the years very few of these military surplus items have been used illegally.

These are weapons that are of special interest to gun collectors and sporting enthusiasts. They represent a part of our national history that many American’s find interesting. More importantly, they represent a piece of our history that many Americans lived through. These are the guns that many, still living, veterans carried in to war in defense of this country. They are the weapons that our brothers, sons, fathers, and grandfathers carried in to war. Some never came back. These weapons are a chance for a small piece of their legacy to be returned to their families. It is a chance to return their legacy to their fellow countrymen.

None of those things seem to matter to the current administration. They are now poised to allow this part of our history be destroyed. The same state department employee that said these weapons pose a threat to American citizens has said , "We are working closely with our Korean allies and the U.S. Army in exploring alternative options to dispose of these firearms." They want to “dispose” of weapons that our soldiers carried through foreign lands in defense of family, friends, and allies. They want to erase the legacy of those that served proudly and those that gave the ultimate sacrifice. I find that shameful in ways I can not describe.

There is another reason this angers me. Those weapons were paid for with American tax dollars. The citizens of this country paid for those weapons. Now they are being denied the right to have that property returned to America. They are being denied the right to own what they paid for and what they may legally possess. To me that reeks of injustice. We have already paid for these weapons and they are legal to own. However, a government official now tells us we can not own them. More over we can not own them because of some possible scenario where the weapons may be used for “illicit purposes.” That means all citizens are being denied their legal rights because a bureaucrat has dreamed up a possible scenario. A scenario that so far has never been an issue and we have no evidence to suggest may become an issue. That sets a dangerous precedent for the same maneuvers to be used in other areas.

I would appreciate your support in demanding that the Obama administration reverse course on this decision. Their decision on this matter is wrong for many reason. No administration should be allowed to deny the American people their history, the very legacy of their forbearers, or their legal and creator endowed rights. To allow this move now only paves the way for more of the same in the future. At its very root such a maneuver means the very soldiers that died carrying these guns died in vein.

Sincerely,
XXXXXXX
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