I first encountered this when I worked as a salesperson in a gun/army surplus/police supply store. Almost daily we would have a customer come in, look in the case, ask what we suggested, and after we wasted hours with the guy he would finally say “well, my sister’s husband’s uncle is a cop, and he said I should buy an xyz so I’m going to go with that.” I always wondered if these people also bought the same car, pens, sunglasses, and underwear (ok, not really) as their sister’s husband’s uncle. Especially since after dealing with LE customers for 3 years it became evident real quick that most cops couldn’t tell you a revolver from a semi-auto, and that their entire firearms knowledge was learned in the 15 minutes at the academy they spent on shooting.
Lately, the internet version seems to be the alleged “Operator” friend. The poster can rarely define what an “Operator” is, what the alleged “Operator” operates, or in fact what makes this friend qualified in ANY way to evaluate the relative merits of the offerings available on the commercial AR market. In fact, most often it seems that the “Operator” was issue only one brand of firearm, and from that either grew to love or hate that brand, and has since based their entire knowledge on the system on that one issued firearm.
This is not to say that there are not exceptions. Obviously the vast majority of the LE and “Operator” membership here are the exception as they have chosen to take the time to obtain, and share, actual qualified and quantified knowledge. But those same members know exactly what I’m talking about.
If you’re wondering what prompted this post, go here. Yes, I was an ass to the guy, but I was an ass for a reason. And in the end, rather than explain what it is that he was alluding to he instead gets offended, tosses up his hands, and says “nevermind”. Makes me wonder if perhaps what the “Operator” in question actually operates is a sewing machine, and if he can tell me if I’m better off with a Singer or a Kenmore.
Someone once said that converts are always the most devout practitioners and believers of any religion. This situation kind of reminds me of that. To most LE and “Operators”, guns are a tool, they have little to no say in what tool they are issued, it costs them NO money, and they have little interest in learning any of the details of that tool beyond what the powers that be deem appropriate to teach them. On the other hand, a dedicated non-LE, non-Operator is much more likely to seek out the knowledge required to make a purchase with their own hard-earned money. I’d much rather take the advice of that guy than the guy that has never even fired a non-issued weapon.
