MOSCOW—Mikhail Kalashnikov, whose work as a weapons designer for the Soviet Union is immortalized in the name of the world's most popular firearm, died Monday at the age of 94.
Kalashnikov once aspired to design farm equipment. But even though his most famous invention—the AK-47 assault rifle—sowed havoc instead of crops, he often said he felt personally untroubled by his contribution to bloodshed.
"I sleep well. It's the politicians who are to blame for failing to come to an agreement and resorting to violence," he said in 2007.
People talk about how capitalism screws the worker, communism screwed Mr. Kalishnikov. He received no royalties for designing one of the most used rifles ever. And dozens of countries came out with their own versions, Finland, South Africa, my two are from Poland and Bulgaria.
(eventually I think he did receive some honors and money for his design decades later.)
And they are still making the rifles 65 years later.
Thomas Sowell: There are no solutions, just trade-offs.
