Help me understand , why is semi automatic in a rifle so important to gun owners here?

[spin]

277. The AR-15 is a very easy rifle to modify to better suit the owner...

and this can be accomplished without the aid of a gunsmith.

GUNS
The Wild and Crazy World of AR-15 Modification

By Adam Clark Estes

The AR-15 has become the most infamous gun in America in the last few month. The rifle, originally designed for United States troops in Vietnam, has been flying off the shelves since the Newtown and Aurora shootings. In fact, the AR-15, which fans also refer to as the Black Rifle, has been flying off the shelves for years. There are now around five million AR-15s in the hands of everyday Americans.

Exactly why the Black Rifle has become so insanely popular is up for debate, but Wired's Jon Stokes makes a strong case in an article that declares "The AR-15 Is More Than a Gun. It’s a Gadget." Among other revelations, Stokes attributes the AR-15's popularity in part to the gun's hackability. Like the hot rod craze, high definition stereo trend, and the fixed gear bike phenomenon before it, the AR-15 appeals to the American desire for individuality and customizability.

"I always tease that it’s like Legos for grown men," Jay Duncan, the vice president of sales for AR-15 maker Daniel Defense, explained to Wired, “because there’s plenty of guys that get one, two, six ARs. And they’re constantly tinkering with them — changing barrel lengths, changing optics, putting different sights on them. It’s the same reason that a guy gets into remote-controlled cars or fly tying. Because it’s a fun hobby, and it’s a distraction from reality sometimes."
http://motherboard.vice.com/blog/the-wild-crazy-world-of-ar-15-modification

History of The American Rifle

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For well over a century, many of our most popular sporting rifles have directly evolved from a service rifle of a particular era. Battlefield requirements in a rifle such as accuracy, ruggedness, reliability and fast follow-up shots are features equally sought by hunters and target shooters.

The bolt-action centerfire rifle, for many decades America's classic deer hunting rifle, is a descendent of the First World War battle rifle, the 1903 Springfield. The bolt-action of the Springfield offered smooth and rapid cycling of the action and allowed for the use of a more powerful cartridge, the .30/06, accurate at ranges out to 1000 yards. More than a hundred years later, the .30/06 remains as America's most popular big game hunting cartridge.

The first semi-automatic (one shot per pull of the trigger) U.S. service rifle, the Springfield .30 M-1, popularly known as the Garand, saw service initially in the Second World War. Not long after the war, a wide range of semi-automatic hunting rifles as well as semi-automatic shotguns were developed by sporting arms manufacturers and have gained widespread popularity among both hunters and clay target shooters.

Today, the AR-15 looks like the M-16 service rifle that first saw combat in Vietnam. To be sure, the AR-15 does not look like a traditional sporting rifle. Neither, in their time, did the Spencer or the Springfield. What the AR-15 does look like is the latest iteration of a modern rifle that employs advanced technology and ergonomic design to produce an exceptionally reliable, rugged and accurate sporting rifle. Produced in different configurations and chambered in a variety of calibers, AR-type rifles not only can be used for, indeed are exceptionally well suited to, many types of hunting, precision target shooting as well as personal protection. In recent years, AR-type rifles have become among the most popular sporting rifles sold in the United States.
http://www.nssf.org/msr/history.cfm

I also feel the reason that many people have bought AR-15 rifles is because of all the publicity they have received in the movies and in the gun control debate. I remember the Dirty Harry movies and his S&W .44 magnum revolver. Prior to the movie, .44 Magnum handguns were firearms only used by serious hunters and were considered far too powerful for the average person. The Dirty Harry movies caused many people to run out and buy one just to show to their friends and the price increased dramatically. For several years it was difficult to even find one in a gun shop as gun stores had a long list of buyers waiting to purchase one.

I should point out that I do not own an AR-15 at this time as I have no reason to own one. However I plan to move to a rural area of Florida in the future and may decide to buy an AR-15 to hunt feral hogs on my property and to target shoot.