*VIDEO & POLL* Want a free download of a semi-automatic rifle? Print one!

This is true Liberty when free born men
Having to advise the public may speak free,
Which he who can, and will, deserv’s high praise,
Who neither can nor will, may hold his peace;
What can be juster in a State then this?

Eurip. Hicetid.

Cody Wilson is the founder of Defense Distributed and he wants to make sure that you have a gun whenever you need one. Don’t believe him? Go to his website: Defense Distributed. 

There you can download a copy of the blueprints to print your own AR-15 receiver. It’s been downloaded over 10,000 times since it was uploaded on February 25th.

3D printing technology is rapidly saturating the marketplace with cheaper and cheaper devices aimed at giving customers the ability to create nearly any object from the necessary ingredients. Just pour in the “ink”, upload your blueprints and click “print”.

Wilson and the folks at Wiki Weapons aren’t your average gun activists though. The manifesto over at Defense Distributed is a full throated defense of free publishing rights taken straight from 1644 when Sir John Milton argued:

For the Liberty of UNLICENC’D PRINTING,
To the PARLAMENT of ENGLAND.

The Areopagatica, as it has come to be known, is one of histories most profound political tracts arguing against censorship, license and for a free press. He was believed to have been an influence on John Locke and John Stuart Mill. Now his writing is being used to defend the right of Defense Distributed to publish the blueprints to create semi-automatic rifles at home.

Should freedom of the press and free speech cover the printing of weapons? What do you think? Watch the video below and take the poll.

Editors Note:

BBC News botched this report on the American gun debate Saturday when a segment mischaracterized 3D printed semi-automatic rifles as fully automatic. The difference between the two was missed by one of the worlds premier news organizations that people trust for fair and honest reporting. The gun debate currently occurring is being carried out with very little facts being used on either side and with even major news media outlets misconstruing major important factors involved in the debate.

 
 
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