DR>I was wondering your thoughts on mercury points?  Around here people are
DR>poping up with a bullet that's point is a hollow point filled with mercury
DR>and sealed with a thin layer oof something. Apparently its supposed to 
ill
DR>whatever it hits.  Wondering your thoughts on this?
What is "people around here"?  Do you mean this conference, or do
you mean people who live where you live?
What do you mean by "poping up with"?  Does that mean talking
about them or actually making them and offering them for sale?
Since you said "whatever it hits" and not "whoever it hits" do
you mean that they are supposed to be used against non-human
animals?
Why even bother to mercury-poison the critter you're hunting?  If
you want to eat the game, you can't use it.  Mercury poisoning
leads to brain damage at the least, and death at worst, in
humans.  You could get mercury poisoning just handling the
bullets if they leak.  If you target shoot to sight in your gun
with that bullet, you're going to be spreading mercury around the
target area, which is bad.
If someone carries them for self-defense, and ends up shooting
someone, the prosecutor is going to hang the shooter by the short
hairs. If someone shoots someone and the shoot-ee lives, he's
going to have mercury poisoning, and sue the hell out of the
shooter.
*EVERY* bullet intentionally shot at a living creature is
"supposed to kill" because you shouldn't shoot at a living thing
unless you want it dead.  In reality, there is no such thing as a
gauranteed killing bullet.  You might hit the foot, which is
unlikely to kill.  On the other hand, *any* bullet or other
object which disrupts the medula oblongata part of the brain is
sure to kill.
The EPA also considers mercury a hazardous material, so whether
you shoot a target, a 4 legged critter or a human, you are also
opening yourself to state and federal charges of improper
disposal of hazardous material.
There are all sorts of movie legends and urban legends about
mercury-filled bullets.  It's an interesting thing to SPECULATE
about hypothetically.  But actually making or using one is
incredibly stupid.
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 þ SLMR 2.1a þ When guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns.
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