The other day I was standing in front of the High Court building on Poai Road. Across the street is some kind of military compound and guarding the compound were two Conscript Kids. They were all decked out in their uniforms and white helmets and standing opposite each other at the drive-in gate.
One of the Conscript Kids had an M-16 and whenever a car drove in the “sans-rife kid” would bark something and the other kid will do a port arms (i.e. snap the rife up and across his body) Then after the car had driven in the kid with the gun would return it to rest with the butt on the ground. All of that is fine.
But, having shot pistols and rifles most of my adult life (and being a card carrying member of the NRA) I noticed something that quite disturbed me. Each time the kid ported his rifle he stuck his finger into the trigger guard and wrapped his little conscript finger around the trigger. In the process of doing so, he has passed the muzzle of the gun across the door of the car and across the body of his fellow guard. All of which is a gross violation of firearms safety. Now I realize the locals are not much on safety and usually display a childish glee around guns and generally have no sense about anything so the event does not surprise me.
But now the question; are the rifles issued to military guards, at least in Taipei City, loaded?? Now from a safety standpoint, that makes no difference. Firearms training in civilized countries, like California (I realize California is not a country, but then neither is Taiwan), teach that “all guns are always loaded”. But I just kind of wondered if the rifles they give the Conscript Kiddies are loaded.
Private Poagao, ROC Army Retired, maybe the man to answer this question. Of course it maybe a State Secret!
In the US Army an M-16 is never, ever referred to as a “gun” but rather as a “weapon”…“guns” are artillery. Never make that mistake. Usually all they do is have you strip nude and run around the company area several times waving your M-16 over your head with one hand while clutching your “little guy” with the other all the while shouting:
“This is my weapon,
this is my gun!
This one’s for fighting,
this one’s for fun!”
I wasn’t an MP, though I stood guard alongside MPs at our ordinary base. Their rules may be different, though: it might be that they have empty cartridges in their weapons but loaded cartridges in their packets on their belts. I dunno. We had loaded cartridges, but the first bullet was a blank, since according to the rules you have to fire a warning in the air before firing at the person. Fingers on the trigger are not a good idea, though.
And that’s Corporal Poagao, ROC Army Reserves, btw
I’ve always liked that silliness …the police here do the same but no one ever thinks about where that fired round is going to finally end up. Warning shots? I’d put the first in the head followed by 2 in the chest. That’s usually warning enough.
Corporal Poagao,
Thanks for the rundown on ROC Army practice. Your book is still only available in Chinese? What is the status of the english version? I just got the good news that one of our mutual friends has agreed to edit my book on Chinese martial arts books.
Given the fact that the first round is generally a blank and given the fact that most local hoods were in the Army for a spell and know that, I am surprised more hoods don’t just walk up to more military guards and “help themselves” to the guard’s rife.
Although I guess “guns for hoods” are easy enough to come by since the ROC Customs (as I found out when researching one of my recent articles) carries on the Grand Traditions of the Chinese Customs Agents of the Qing Era; i.e. no shipment of contraband is too big to be ignored…if the hong bao is fat enough.
take care,
Magistrate Brian
“I kick Judge Dredd’s As*”
[quote=“brianlkennedy”]Corporal Poagao,
Thanks for the rundown on ROC Army practice. Your book is still only available in Chinese? What is the status of the English version? I just got the good news that one of our mutual friends has agreed to edit my book on Chinese martial arts books.
Given the fact that the first round is generally a blank and given the fact that most local hoods were in the Army for a spell and know that, I am surprised more hoods don’t just walk up to more military guards and “help themselves” to the guard’s rife.
Although I guess “guns for hoods” are easy enough to come by since the ROC Customs (as I found out when researching one of my recent articles) carries on the Grand Traditions of the Chinese Customs Agents of the Qing Era; i.e. no shipment of contraband is too big to be ignored…if the hong bao is fat enough.
take care,
Magistrate Brian
“I kick Judge Dredd’s As*”[/quote]
The first bullet may be a blank, but how long do you think it takes for the second bullet to follow in automatic mode? If the guy’s close enough blanks are lethal, and of course there’s always the bayonette at that range. Also, just because that’s the way our base did it, doesn’t mean everyone does it that way. This was also several years ago.
Forgive me if I don’t know some of the terminology; none of this was introduced to me in English.
No developments on the English version to report. There’s a chapter on swords in your martial arts book, right?
If you ever made the mistake of firing a blank followed by a normal round, you’d have your head blown off when the charging handle and bolt blew back. The M-16 (and it’s various derivatives) is gas operated. For a blank round to cycle the weapon a blank adapter must be fitted on the muzzle. This makes it impossible for a normal round to be fired without blowing up the weapon.
M-16 Blank Adapter
I do know that MPs were removed from guarding bridges in Taipei about 6-7 years ago. Two armed MPs were on duty when a car load of gangsters pulled up and shot one. One gangster calmly got out of the car and shot the MP again in the head and then took the MP’s weapon, got in the car and drove off. The other MP was huddled in the gutter across the street. He did not fire on the gangsters because he was “shocked”. Military guards were soon removed from the bridges.
Poagao,
Of course there are a couple of sword books that will be mentioned. As an aside, Segue seems to be going from bad to worse in terms of trolls, idiots, nonsense discussions. I had not bothered to even take a look here for several months…now I know why. The “human rights” section has become solid stupidity and the rest seems not much better.
I note too a profusion of Segue Clones: TaipeiLife, Taiwan Whore, and TaiwanFun (the one for the south and central, which seems to be a “ghost site”, in the same sense as a “ghost town”).
I also sense that a large percentage of the idiots writing on these boards do not actually live here. They are Cyber Village Idiots who just wander through cyber space till they find a chat board without a resident idiot and then settle in.
Well all that is “off topic” so I will close for now.
Brian,
Californian is too a country; it’s called Mexico.
Why not ask the sentinals what the deal is? I asked a cop who was doing a raid on a tea house if I could see his side arm. He took out the clip and gave the 9mm to me.
I once had a student who was a member of Taiwan’s Special Forces. He invited me to see a demonstration they were having at their base because a new class was graduating. Everything was going quite well until this one part of the show where the soldiers, after exiting a car that had just come to screeching halt, where supposed to use their sidearms to blast some clay targets. There were three guys, and they were all going through the exact same motions at the same time, but only two of the guy’s targets were exploding. My student was standing next to me, and I turned to see him looking rather embarrassed. When I asked him what was happening, he said, “That guy forget to load his gun.” :shock: I suppose it was a lot safer that way, but it sure didn’t do much for my confidence in Taiwan’s military.
From the horse’s mouth, i.e. my colleague who served in the MP:
the soldiers standing guard don’t have bullets, only the officer carries the magazines and needs to hand them out when needed.
I do recall talking to Taiwanese blokes about this some time back and they mentioned the increased risk of suicide and indeed murder when someone had been on guard duty. Apparently it was one of the few opportunities thay had to smuggle away a round that could later be put through their own heads or whoever was bullying them.
That converstation reinforced my abhorence of conscription.
[quote=“blueface666”]If you ever made the mistake of firing a blank followed by a normal round, you’d have your head blown off when the charging handle and bolt blew back. The M-16 (and it’s various derivatives) is gas operated. For a blank round to cycle the weapon a blank adapter must be fitted on the muzzle. This makes it impossible for a normal round to be fired without blowing up the weapon.
[/quote]
I’ve never used or seen one of these before. Perhaps “blank” isn’t the right term for (kong bao dan)?
In the Germany armed forces we also had to use the adapters. They do fly very well actually and can also kill - if not fitted properly that is. The correct name is "Blank firing adapter / Man
[quote=“Poagao”][quote=“blueface666”]If you ever made the mistake of firing a blank followed by a normal round, you’d have your head blown off when the charging handle and bolt blew back. The M-16 (and it’s various derivatives) is gas operated. For a blank round to cycle the weapon a blank adapter must be fitted on the muzzle. This makes it impossible for a normal round to be fired without blowing up the weapon.
[/quote]
I’ve never used or seen one of these before. Perhaps “blank” isn’t the right term for (kong bao dan)?[/quote]
Is (kong bao dan) a term for a cartridge that doesn’t have a bullet in it? (Might have a plastic or wooden plug, but U.S. military blanks just have the front of the cartridge case crimped shut.)
Strictly speaking, the “blank firing adapter” is only if you want the M16 to cycle with blank rounds. Without installing the BFA, you could instead: load a blank round into the chamber and close the bolt on it, then insert a magazine with live ammo in it; when you need to fire, fire the chambered blank (which wouldn’t cycle the action), pull the charging handle (to eject the fired blank and load a real round from the magazine), and then start firing real ammo from the magazine.
Messy but it would work. I would hate to have to train anyone to do all of that in a situation where they actually needed to shoot assailants.
Edited to add: I couldn’t find pictures of the U.S. military .223 (5.56) blanks, but here are some similar ones:
But now the question; are the rifles issued to military guards, at least in Taipei City, loaded?? Now from a safety standpoint, that makes no difference. Firearms training in civilized countries, like California (I realize California is not a country, but then neither is Taiwan), teach that “all guns are always loaded”. But I just kind of wondered if the rifles they give the Conscript Kiddies are loaded.
Private Poagao, ROC Army Retired, maybe the man to answer this question. Of course it maybe a State Secret!
Capt. Brian
San Chung City Citizens Militia[/quote]
The conscripts with the white helmets are military police. Normal army wears vietnam camoflauge. The rifle we were issued they call it 65-k2 and its basically a copy of M16-a1. They are issued unloaded but there are about 10 rounds in the ammo pouch in case anything happens. I really get irritated that some of my fellow conscripts keeps playing with the rifle like its a toy gun or something (well it does look like one…). I have also been in the NRA and owned guns while I was in the US and it bothers me when someone points a gun at me wheather or not its loaded. I wish the officers who saw it would discipline the guy who’s playing with guns because it is very unsafe and none of these weapons are toys. Also I know what those .223 rounds can do to you if one hits you…
When I was in the military, if someone pointed a weapon at another person (loaded or unloaded, accidental or intentional) they got their ass severely kicked.
…the police here do the same but no one ever thinks about where that fired round is going to finally end up. Warning shots? I’d put the first in the head followed by 2 in the chest. That’s usually warning enough. 
