A lit road flare in your hand is less recognizable than the shape of an AK-47 rifle. As a kid I once heard an adult describing U.S. Army soldiers in Vietnam who’d pulled AK-47s from the mud, shouldered or ditched their M-16s, and fought back with the superior rifle. It’s an impression that’s outlasted all subsequent glorification.
Take the AK-47 off the battlefield and into in Idaho strip mall, as the serial bank robber known as the AK-47 Bandit did earlier this week, and everyone will know just how much business you mean. Snap in a 75-round capacity drum magazine and the police will know it too. With one of their own recently having caught a round in Chino from the very rifle in question, there’s no forgetting.