You're arguing semantics. In a very real sense, an AR-15 is largely seen as an assault rifle. Sure, it doesn't meet a strictly defined description of an assault rifle, but... If it looks like a duck, flies like a duck, and quacks like a duck. I'm someone who understands that an AR-15 doesn't meet certain legal requirements to be an assault rifle, but I agree that it may as well be one when it's placed in irresponsible hands. I know this won't be taken well by a certain number of people, but, in the end, it's close enough for public discourse. I also don't think that Star Trek and Star Wars are too fundamentally different: they both showcase hopeful optimism over realistic brutality, while showing the good and bad. My opinion may not be popular, but it is nuanced and based on real factors instead of nit picky details.