NBC news article quote below. I'm not sure if NBC changed his words, or if the Colt CEO is so dumb that he says he's making AR-15s for the military. This conflating AR-15s with actual military weapons is a big problem already. We don't need the manufacturers adding fuel to the fire.
Can you clarify your stance here for me?
From my perception: Armalite/Stoner invents rifle model AR-15. It has a select fire switch. This is pre-86 FOPA, there's no difference between Stoner's AR-15 and the military designation M-16 for the rifle sent to Vietnam. Prior to 1986, there were tens of thousands of AR-15's in the civilian market that were functionally identical to the M16's sent overseas as military rifles. Same receiver, same 3-position safety switch.
I see your stance as echoing that of the M1A/M14 situation. There are mountains of people that think the Springfield M1A is an M1 series rifle (i.e. Garand) rather than an M14 pattern rifle. Yes, the M14 was heavily derivative of the M1 in its design process. But the M1A is unarguably an M14 rifle, not an M1. M1A and M14 parts are interchangeable. M1 and M1A parts are absolutely not interchangeable. The M1A is a commercial trademark of an M14 pattern rifle. I own an Armscorp M14 (it is stamped M14 on the receiver, not M1A).
The M-designation is stupid military jargon. Sometimes it crosses over into the commercial marketplace, other times it does not.
As evidence that AR-15's prior to 1986 can be full auto, I submit a picture.
