AR doesn't stand for "assault rifle". AR stands for "Armelite Rifle", which comes from the company name that first designed the rifle in the 1950s. An AR is nowhere near military grade. It's based on the look, but you'd be really stupid to bring an AR to a war zone. That's because ARs are semi-automatic, meaning one trigger pull equals one bullet, and the popular AR-15 uses glorified vermin rounds. Most civilian firearms, including most hunting-style rifles and all pistols, are semi-automatic. Of course, there are things called bump stocks that can turn a semi-auto to act more like a fully-auto. While I think they should be more restricted, I don't think bump stocks should be completely banned, but that's another topic for another time.
Both ARs and other hunting rifles are becoming lighter and lighter every season. Hunters want the lightest gear possible. 30 pounds begins feeling like 80 pounds really fast, especially on high-altitude hunts in the mountains. That's why it makes sense that my great-uncle-in-law (aka uncle Courtney), would suggest I get myself an AR for hunting. They are great for hunting, since they are lightweight and very accurate with the right sights.
Plus, it's always nice to have a semi-auto, especially if I miss my target and want to finish the job fast. I don't miss my targets often, but when I do, I don't want the animal to suffer. Pest hunters almost always use semi-automatic weapons. When you have five or ten animals within range that need to be taken care of, it's best to have enough rounds at once to take care of the job fast.
If I wanted to, I could make a semi-auto hunting-style rifle look like an AR. All I have to do is switch out the stock and the barrel. And I could make an AR look like a hunting rifle, by doing the same thing. Like I said, there's no difference between an AR and a hunting-style rifle other than the look. People sometimes do it, if it's legal in their state (I'm not sure it's legal to do that in Colorado).
ARs do look scary, but they aren't any more dangerous than any other firearm. In fact, ARs are statistically safer than any other gun out there. Knives and handguns are responsible for almost all murders, accidents, and suicides. According to the FBI, in 2016 (which is the most recent year I could find) 374 people were murdered by rifles (not just ARs, but all rifles), 1604 people were murdered by knives, and 7105 were murdered by handguns. If you add in suicides and accidental deaths, only 393 people were killed by rifles in 2016. That's 393 people out of 323 million USA citizens. The only reason why they seem so scary, is because the media jumps on the AR every chance it gets, even though the AR is the most popular firearm in the USA, and statistically the safest firearm in the States.
https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2016/crime-in-the-u.s.-2016/tables/table-12
