Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween from The Real Gun Guys!
May your night be filled with nothing but treats!



In case you're curious...
(from left to right) A Lion, A Witch and a Spooky Skeleton.

Fred Thompson on the UN

Here we have Senator Fred Thompson giving his views on the UN's attempt to take guns from law abiding US citizens.

Fred Thompson for President!

"Last year, the United Nations Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights declared that international human rights law requires all nations to adopt strict gun control laws. These "minimum" provisions are much more restrictive than any of those on the books anywhere in the U.S. and would almost certainly violate the Second Amendment of our Constitution.

Besides concluding that all nations are obligated under international human rights law to control the small arms and light weapons to which its civilian population has access, the UN report remarkably denied the existence of any human right to self-defense, evidently overlooking the work of Hugo Grotius, the 17th century scholar credited as the founder of international law, who wrote, "It is to be observed that [the] Right of Self-Defence, arises directly and immediately from the Care of our own Preservation, which Nature recommends to every one. . . ," and that this right is so primary, that it cannot be denied on the basis that it is not "expressly set forth."

There is another disturbing aspect to this call for international global gun control. Throughout modern history, the forced disarmament of people by its government has often been accompanied or followed by that government's commission of often massive human rights abuses. In fact, no genocide in the 20th century occurred when the victim population still possessed small arms, legally or illegally, with which to defend themselves.

So now the UN wants to disarm civilians? Where was the UN when the massacres in Rwanda occurred? What did the UN do to protect the victims of ethnic massacres in Bosnia? Disarming civilians under the guise of international human rights law will only lead to more such genocides by ensuring that civilians can never defend themselves! It would be funny if it weren't so perverse.

Thankfully, the Framers of our Constitution recognized this potential peril to our liberty, and enshrined in our Second Amendment the more basic right of self-defense. The U.N. can say what it likes about other countries' citizens' possession of small arms being a violation of human rights law, but so long as the United States is a sovereign nation governed by its Constitution, its words will have no effect here. And I am glad for it."

Thanks to The Shooting Wire.
Robb at Sharp as a Marble also has the story.

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

BIASED Much?

This is prime anti-gun media bias on full display. What exactly are "Shoot First Laws"? What makes "authorized journalist" Fanny Carrier think that it's a good idea to allow a burglar to sue his victims if they shoot him in the commission of a crime? Seriously, where does she get off? Defending yourself against a bad guy is somehow wrong?

She goes on to portray the criminals in the most flattering light possible and portraying the true victims of these criminals as murdering, trigger happy thugs.

Tellingly, the sole source of information quoted in the article is a spokesman for The Freedom States Alliance, a virulently anti-gun organization, founded by the Joyce Foundation. One has to wonder if they wrote this article for the "authorized journalist"?

My favorite bit of bias is on the original web page where they illustrate the story with a picture of a soldier and a .50 caliber machine gun.

Thanks to www.sondrak.com for the tip.

----------------------

'Shoot first' laws make it tougher for burglars in the United States


by Fanny Carrier Sat Oct 27, 3:53 AM ET


WASHINGTON (AFP) - Burglars in the United States could once sue homeowners if they were shot, but now a growing number of states have made it legal to shoot to kill when somebody breaks into a house.


John Woodson, 46, found that out last week when he ambled into Dennis Baker's open garage in a Dallas suburb. A surveillance video showed the robber strolling inside, hands in his pockets.


From the shadows, Baker opened fire and killed Woodson.


"I just had to protect myself and that was it," Baker told reporters despite the fact Woodson had not tried to enter the bedroom near the garage where Baker had been sleeping.


The incident made national headlines since it was Baker's parrot that gave the alarm when it innocently squawked "good morning" at the intruder.


But Woodson's death seemed anecdotal compared to another Dallas resident who a few days earlier had killed his second robber in three weeks inside his home.


Police are investigating both cases, but it is unlikely charges will be filed. Texas recently passed a law branding anybody breaking into a home or car as a real threat of injury or death to its occupants.


In contrast with traditional self-defense laws, this measure does not require that a person who opens fire on a burglar be able to prove that he or she was physically threatened, that force was used only as a last resort and that the victim had first tried to hide.


Florida was the first state to adopt in 2005 a law that was dubbed "Stand your ground" or "Shoot first."


But now they have proliferated largely under pressure from the powerful National Rifle Association (NRA), the main weapons lobby in the United States.


Today 19 out of 50 US states, mostly in the south and the central regions of the country, have this kind of laws, and similar legislation is pending in about a dozen others.


"This law will bring common-sense self-defense protections to law-abiding citizens," said Rachel Parsons, a spokesperson for the NRA.


"If someone is breaking into your home, it's obvious that they are not there to have dinner with you," she continued. "You do have a right to protect your belongings, your family and yourself.


"The law needs to be put on the side of the victim, and not on the side of the criminal, who is attacking the victim."


But for the Freedom States Alliance that fights against the proliferation of firearms in the United States, these new laws attach more value to threatened belongings than to the life of the thief and only serve to increase the number of people killed by firearms each year, which currently is estimated to stand at nearly 30,000.


"It's that whole Wild West mentality that is leading the country down a very dangerous path," said Sally Slovenski, executive director of the alliance.


"In any other country, something like the castle doctrine or stand-your-ground laws look like just absolute lunacy," she continued.


"And yet in this country, somehow it's been justified, and people just sort of have come to live with this, and they just don't see the outrage in this."


According to Federal Bureau of Investigation, there were 2.18 million burglaries to the United States in 2006, up 1.3 percent compared to the year before.


But the number is still well below the 3.24 million burglaries a year committed 20 years ago.

The Top Ten Manliest Firearms

I just found a link to a list of the Top Ten Manliest Firearms. Though it looks like I'm lacking in the manly firearm department (I have 3 out of the 10), it's still a good list. Here's what the author says about Ronnie Barrett:

"After securing military contracts for anti-materiel sniping (Generators, vehicles, radars, etc), and facing the wrath of Sarah Brady and her Gun-Grabbing Sideshow (which wrath he snickered at, it having all the intimidation of an angry kitten and Ronnie, as we noted, being a Viking), he gave the ultimate middle finger gesture and redesigned the weapon into 25 mm, or TWICE as big. This is a man so cool even his sperm smoke unfiltered Camels."

LMAO! Good stuff! Go here to check out the complete list!

Monday, October 29, 2007

More on the Empty Holster Protest

This time a completely positive article in the East Tennessean. How school officials thought it would cause a panic is bizarre, but apparently they let it proceed. -Yuri

--------

Aiming to protect

Marksmanship Club participates in National Empty Holster Day

Adrienne Cline

Last Monday the ETSU marksmanship club participated in National Empty Holster Day. In this demonstration, students who are members of the club wore empty gun holsters to class as part of their efforts to get a state gun law changed.

Right now, those who are licensed to carry a handgun are prohibited from carrying one on a university or college campus. Organizations like this one want the law amended so that those who have a permit can carry on campuses as well as everywhere else.

A few weeks ago, some of those participating went to the administration to inform them of the activity the club would be taking part in. At first the university officials were against to demonstration.

"They were afraid that wearing holsters might cause a panic," said Jay Adkins, one of the marksmanship club's vice presidents. Since the club was not breaking any rules or laws, they were allowed to follow through with the demonstration on the allotted day. They also advertised their upcoming plans so students knew what was going on.

Adkins said about 15 to 20 students in the club wore holsters last Monday. The marksmanship club set up a booth in participation also with the homecoming charity fair and sold tickets to an "Open Range Day" at the mini dome's rifle range. Students who bought tickets were given proper safety gear and one-on-one training time with experienced shooters. There were also range safety officers patrolling during the activity to ensure well-being of all those present.
Thirty-seven people showed up to shoot. Adkins says that most of them were new shooters, too.

It is not yet known if the law has a chance to be changed to suit its supporters.

As long as a person has a permit, he or she is allowed to carry a concealed handgun wherever they please - the grocery store, a party, the street, etc. These students fear that in a crisis situation there may not be adequate protection available in crucial moments needed by the few officers who patrol the university. By not allowing licensed individuals to carry on campus, the club feels that college-age students are not being treated as adults when they are treated so under most other circumstances.

To obtain a permit, an individual undergoes an FBI background check, takes an eight-hour training course, pays a training fee of $50 to $60, and pays a fee of $115 to the state for the permit. They must also be 21 years of age or older.

"I would feel a whole lot safer if someone had a license to carry and stop someone from going on a rampage," said Jordan Taylor, marksmanship club member.

It is for their and other students' safety that they are fighting to change the law.

"Awareness is key," said Stephanie Adkins, club member. Knowing that there are others in the vicinity who could take action in the event of such happenings like a shooting could provide more reassurance, she feels. "Campus safety can't always be there immediately," she said.

In continued efforts to promote the change in state law, the marksmanship club is also wearing and selling T-shirts that read, "What you can't see can save your life."

Sunday, October 28, 2007

Overreact much?

Apparently two school kids stole some rifle cartridges from a shed a few blocks away and brought them to school. When they were found, the school went into lock down and Police from at least six surrounding towns were called in.

NO GUN WAS EVER FOUND!

Man, those students sure look terrified that they got to go home early!

----------

2 boys charged after shells found in Alsip school

October 26, 2007


Two students at Prairie Junior High School were arrested Friday after ammunition was found in a school bathroom, prompting a lengthy lockdown at the Alsip school.

The two 13-year-old boys brought rifle cartridges into the school from a storage shed they broke into a few blocks away, Police Chief Robert Troy said. Additional rounds were found outside the school. No firearms were brought into the school,

The boys were each charged late Friday with one count of burglary and one count of possession of ammunition, police said. They were released to their parents.

Police received a call about the ammunition about 9:45 a.m.

Friday was supposed to be a half day of school today at Prairie Junior High but the last students didn’t leave until after 2 p.m.

The school was locked down and students were told to stay in their classrooms, then all were taken to the gymnasium. Students’ lockers were searched, and they were not allowed to take home their bookbags, seventh-grader Dan Lesko said.

Sandy Lesko, Dan’s mom, said parents received two alerts from the school.

Later, parents who showed up were allowed, one by one, to take their children home.

Students who ride the bus were released next, then students who normally walk home were dismissed about 2:15 p.m.

Police from at least six surrounding towns were at the school.

"The NRA wants to arm even blind people and..."

I can just hear the anti's heads exploding over this...



Good on him! Some idiot crook decides that he's an easy mark because of his disability and gets more than he bargained for. I like the Police's response to this too. I just hope they give him his gun back soon, seeing as how CNN announced to the world that he's unarmed now.

How much do you want to bet he had the same bullets in the gun since he got it? I'm also betting it was probably a revolver.

Saturday, October 27, 2007

Oops! Plate Match Pics from today!

As Jeffersonian promised...


Me, taking aim with my GP100, smoke courtesy of 9 gn's Blue Dot. The glove is there to protect my hand from recoil. I still ended up with a sore hand, but no blister this time. Oh, and I'm not flinching in this photo, I'm right handed and left eye dominant...weird, I know.


Knock'in down plates, smoke, again, courtesy of 9 gn's Blue Dot.


Placing pumpkins for the slaughter...


Making pie...


Exploding pumpkins, photo courtesy of Jeffersonian.

Plate Match Round-up

Well, I didn't win...my suckage was on full display this morning up at the range.

A mis-feed with my 22/45 popped me into the losers bracket, from which I never recovered. My sights were mis-adjusted on my GP100, causing me to shoot low. I managed to raise the rear sight 5 or 6 clicks and I was back on target, but my confidence was blown. Plus, the new load I am trying kicks harder than I'm used to, add to that the fact that the LRN bullets I loaded have a small ledge between the body and the nose part which hangs on the chamber edges in my cylinder. This makes it hard to do a fast reload from my speedloaders. I also tried shooting my Kahr CW9 today for the first time in competition and had trouble with pulling the muzzle down slightly as I pulled the trigger. As the match went on though I managed to work out of that to a large extent. Once I stopped doing that I managed to hit a lot of the plates just fine. I wasn't good enough though to hang with the other autoloader shooters. This being the first time I've shot it in competition though I'm sure I'll improve over time.

So, not a great day at the range, but winning is secondary for me. I go to the plate match just for the fun of it and the fellowship of the other shooters. I'll keep working at my accuracy and shooting technique and improve. :-)

Plate Match Today!

Well, it's that time of the month again. Wish me luck, or not...

Today after the match, in true holiday style, we get to shoot pumpkins off the plate stands! :-) Sounds like a blast (pun intended)!

The reason I'm up this early is I'm helping Jeffersonian get the pumpkins before the match and he doesn't have the room in his car for them all.

Oh, and NRA, if you're reading this...I still haven't received my wheelbarrow full of cash yet...


Friday, October 26, 2007

Gun Love!

Oh my, where to begin?

Tex Slim (not his real name I'm sure), a free-lance journalist from Lubbock, TX opened forth his mouth and did spew out this bit of tripe. Go ahead and read it (and comment) if you want to, but I'll hit the highpoints here and give my thoughts. Gotta love the anti's though, they're nothing if not predictable.

The first thing this idiot did is smear one of my favorite music groups, big time gun guys (so I've been told) ZZ Top. Don't mess with the Top! The spew is entitled "ZZ Top's GUN LOVE all the rage on college campuses." Click here for the lyrics to "Gun Love", and here to watch a video of a guy loading and shooting a BP revolver with the song playing.

Hold your nose, we're diving in!

"Just when everybody thought college campuses were a peace loving bunch a new idea has surfaced that could bring back the "ugly" american past known as "gunslinger era".This is "Guns On Campus" week and of course Texas Tech students(fringe group,hopefully)will be wearing empty holsters protesting rules and maybe even state law that prohibits concealed weapons on any school campus.This "empty holster" protest will last from Oct 22-Oct 26 and is thought to have 110 college campuses effected. (Shouldn't that be 'affected'? -Yuri)"

First this guy seems to have deluded himself into thinking that college campuses are some magical bastion of peace and tranquility, a Utopian island amid the wild and uncivilized outside world. Last time I checked, schools were still a part of the community and all of the same problems that exist outside don't magically stop at the property line. Every crime that occurs off campus, robbery, rape and murder, to name just a few, occur on campus as well. What makes this guy think that the students are any safer on campus than off? I got it, he "feels" that it is so, and therefore it is...at least in the fantasy world he has made for himself in his own head.

And then he brings up another anti talking point, that concealed carry will lead to wild west shootouts. I have news for him, concealed carry is the law in the majority of states now and the data is in, the nightmare scenario of blood running in the streets has never happened. Why should students who have their CCW permit have to sacrifice their own security for the unfounded "feelings" of hoplophobes? Shouldn't laws be based in facts and logic and not feelings and emotion? That is what this protest is all about. For taking part in this protest he libels decent, law-abiding young people as "gun nuts" (in the next paragraph) a "fringe group" and rounds it up by likening the protest to a disease that "effects" other schools.

"I,being a former Tech student and staff,have never been comfortable with the "Andy Taylor/Barney Fife" types calling themselves campus cops with that "heater" on their hip.I remember a plump elderly fella at Tech med school named "Todd" who proudly carried his "heater" on hip and when I ask him about safety being on he replied,"They don't give me NO BULLETS".I guess he was gonna use his "heater" to pistol whip criminals since he had no ammo.Some years ago Tech med school had a Levelland boxer(Robin Blake) on campus cop roster and we all know about boxers and guns(deadly mix).

My best advice to those characters carrying empty holsters is put a LARGE water pistol in that holster(NO ALCOHOL-PROHIBITED ON CAMPUS) and "Wash away those criminals".For the more adventuresome protesters I could recommend the local US military induction center since personel are in demand for this thing called "IRAQ WAR"."


Way to smear people with broad brush generalizations there "Tex". I've seen my share of overweight security personnel and "mall ninjas" but now you're just trying to be mean. And what's the deal with boxers and guns anyway? Apparently we don't all know about them, so clue us in here. I could generalize about hopolophobic, free-lance journalists from Lubbock, TX as bed wetting pussies but that wouldn't be right, even if it may be correct.

Listen closely dip-shit, it's not about shooting guns and killing people that these students are protesting for, it's about being able to protect themselves if the need arises. Saying that they should join the army if they want to carry guns is disingenuous. Oh, and you misspelled 'personnel'.

"Some Texas colleges such as UT and Texas A&M will probably be involved since guns were allowed on campus in the 60's when Charles Whitman shot up UT campus and fellow students were seen "firing back" at Whitman with their "hunting" rifles.More than likely some "gung-ho" military cadets and instructors at A&M will wear service revolver holsters empty as a show of support for "Guns On Campus" movement.

TEXAS IS "GUN COUNTRY"!!

The learning impaired community(college students,faculty&staff) want to carry concealed handguns on campus??

SAVE US FROM THE GUN-NUTS ON COLLEGE CAMPUS!!!"


"Tex" continues his streak by associating the protesters with the likes of Charles Whitman and then basically calls them "retarded." Again, I could make disparaging comments about the size of his genitals and the like, but that wouldn't be right...

Texas is "Gun Country"? Cool! :-)

Um, exactly who are you praying to there at the end "Tex", Sarah Brady...Nancy Pelosi perhaps...or Hillary Clinton? Who cares...

This little screed demonstrates the difference between the pro-rights and the anti-rights sides. They are losing and they know it, and when faced with a lack of facts and logic on their side, they resort to grade school insults and name calling.

Goodbye Tex, don't let the door hit you on the way out.

New Look

I got tired of the old template, so I decided to try a new one. Plus, one of my favorite reads opined a while back that all gun blogs seem to use the same template...something that's been on the edge of my mind since then.

What do you think? like it? Hate it?

Let me know...

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Local Reaction to the Empty Holster Protest

Click here for the video from KOMO TV 4 in Seattle, WA. This piece about Ethan Pratt and the Empty Holster Protest organized by the Students for Concealed Carry on Campus aired last night.

Over all I thought it was a pretty balanced piece, although a bit short. They did manage to slip in a couple of negative views versus the one pro-gun viewpoint though. One is the Seattle Pacific University spokesman Vick Peirson who thinks that getting behind a lockable door is the best way to survive a "Cho-like" rampage, and the anonymous young woman who says that guns on campus would make her nervous. How she'd know about it since it's called Concealed Carry for a reason is beyond me. Besides, the protest organizers have stated this isn't about arming every student, instead, it is just about letting the students who have CCW permits already to legally carry their weapons with them on college campuses.

Funny, I've never once considered carrying a lockable door around with me for protection. One, like a police officer, it's too heavy and two, a gun is more effective.

Sunday, October 21, 2007

Range day!

I met Jeffersonian up at the gun store yesterday and looked around a bit while he arranged for his transfers. Lots of guns and assorted stuff I wanted, but being broke I was able to resist splurging. From there we got a bite to eat and then headed up to the range.

I tested a new .357 Magnum load I cooked up, 158 gn LRN, 9 gn Blue Dot, Federal Magnum SPP. The book listed 1,049 fps, but I'm sure the magnum primer and the good roll crimp helped increase the pressure. OMG! Sharp, hard recoil and very smokey, but a very accurate load. Shooting about four inches high, adjusted sights and it was now shooting dead on. It kicked so hard it wore a blister in the web between my thumb and first finger...ouch! A very accurate load though, so I'm not too upset. Now to get some more dry fire practice in since Jeffersonian keeps showing me up in the accuracy department! *hiss* lol

Jeffersonian let me shoot his Hawken repro for three shots. For not being used to the rear sight, I think I did okay. That's my grouping in the lower left. The target was at 25 yards.



Not bad for having never shot a black powder rifle before, and being unfamiliar with the sights.

I'm now considering getting a black powder revolver, perhaps a Remington repro, but I really like the looks of the Colt repro models... Hmmm...

One thing that made me laugh was when Jeffersonian and I were joking about the "muzzle loader loophole." The point was brought up that "muskets" are all that some anti-gunners think the second amendment covers. The mental image of gang bangers frantically measuring out black powder, and ramming patched round ball's down their rifles with ram rods, while creeping past their target with rap music thumping... Okay, you had to be there...but it was pretty humorous.

After the range is was back to the house and cleaning...damn but that Blue Dot left a layer of soot on my gun! ;-)

It Happens Again!

This insanity has got to stop! I hope this kids parents fight this and hold the people responsible accountable! -Yuri

More information available on this story here.
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2nd-Grader Suspended for Drawing of Gun

DENNIS TOWNSHIP, N.J. —

A second-grader's drawing of a stick figure shooting a gun earned him a one-day school suspension.

Kyle Walker, 7, was suspended last week for violating Dennis Township Primary School's zero-tolerance policy on guns, the boy's mother, Shirley McDevitt, told The Press of Atlantic City.

Kyle gave the picture to another child on the school bus, and that child's parents complained about it to school officials, McDevitt said. Her son told her the drawing was of a water gun, she said.

A photocopy of the picture provided by McDevitt showed two stick figures with one pointing a crude-looking gun at the other, the newspaper said. What appeared to be the word "me" was written above the shooter, with another name scribbled above the other figure.

School officials declined to comment Friday. A message left at the superintendent's office Saturday was not returned.

Kyle drew other pictures, including a skateboarder, King Tut, a ghost, a tree and a Cyclops, the newspaper reported.

Friday, October 19, 2007

He shouldn't have made such a mess to begin with...

Couple make burglar clean up at gunpoint

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

MONTGOMERY, Ala. -- A burglar in Montgomery chose the wrong family to mess with, literally. Adrian and Tiffany McKinnon returned home on Tuesday after a week away to find that thieves had emptied almost everything the family of five owned, Tiffany McKinnon said through tears.

"Tears just rolled down my face as I walked in and saw everything gone and piles of trash all over my home," she said.

Adrian McKinnon sent his wife to see her sister while he inspected the piles left behind. As he walked back into the sunroom, a man walked through the back door straight into him, Tiffany McKinnon told the Montgomery Advertiser in a story Thursday.

"My husband Adrian caught the thief red-handed in our home," she said. "And what is even crazier, the man even had my husband's hat sitting right on his head."

Adrian McKinnon held the suspect, 33-year-old Tajuan Bullock, at gunpoint and told him to sit on the floor until he decided what to do.

"We made this man clean up all the mess he made, piles of stuff, he had thrown out of my drawers and cabinets onto the floor," Tiffany McKinnon said.

When police arrived, Bullock complained about being forced to clean the home at gunpoint.

"This man had the nerve to raise sand about us making him clean up the mess he made in my house," she said. "The police officer laughed at him when he complained and said anybody else would have shot him dead."

Capt. Huey Thornton, a police spokesman, said police arrested Bullock at 2 p.m. Tuesday on burglary and theft charges. He was being held in the Montgomery County Detention Facility on a $30,000 bond.

"The victims were lucky in this case to be able to catch the suspect in the act and hold him until police arrived," Thornton said.

Recall Joaquin Jackson

A movement to recall NRA board member Joaquin Jackson from office has been gaining steam recently. I have just been made aware of a new blog dedicated to his removal here. Please go and show your support for this effort, and if you are a voting member of the NRA, please download the recall petition.

If you are unaware of the reasons for his needing recalling, I'll refer you to the following quotes from a television interview he gave.
"Well, I'm a person that believes in a weapon should never…I personally believe a weapon should never have over a – far as civilian – 5 round capacity. If a hunter, if you're a hunter if you're gonna go hunting with a weapon, you shouldn't need over but one round…"
and
"Well we've talked, we've discussed it you know, but uh this thing about assault weapons has been a kind of a touchy deal, but personally, I think these assault weapons basically need to be in the hands of the military and they need to be in the hands of the police, but uh, as far as assault weapons to a civilian, if you… if you… it's alright if you got that magazine capacity down to five…"
To be fair, he did post a "spin control" retraction later on, but it is basically unsatisfying in a, "cover your ass" sort of way.

Here's the video for your reference:

Thursday, October 18, 2007

Will an electric arc ignite gun powder?

Unique smokeless powder in an electric arc.

...apparently not.

More here.

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

How to (not) Reload!



...and that was the last anyone ever heard from him! ;-)

Monday, October 15, 2007

More PSH

Consider the following:
"Allowing people to run around with machine guns in order to maintain the integrity of the Bill of Rights is a sickening display of blind faith."
...and...
"The Second Amendment was drafted in the infancy of our nation and is not just inapplicable to our contemporary nation but detrimental to our contemporary nation."
45superman does an excellent fisking of another bottom feeding anti, masquerading as a journalist. Go read!

Saturday, October 13, 2007

Arnold Schwarzenegger - Waste of Space

Forgive me, I think I just threw up a little in my mouth...

We need to start a campaign, ala Ronnie Barrett, to get all gun and ammo makers to boycott the state of California. I'm serious, this crap has to stop! What an idiotic piece of work this bill is. Only in California could this POS bill become law. I already knew Arnold was a RINO, this proves it once again. Way to go Arnold, you worthless excuse for a governor! If I had owned any movies with him in them I'd take them outside and burn them.

Gov. Schwarzenegger Signs Landmark Legislation to Solve Gun Crimes

SACRAMENTO, Calif., Oct 13, 2007
PRNewswire-USNewswire via COMTEX

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed into law cutting-edge legislation that will provide police with an important new tool in solving gun crimes and apprehending armed criminals and gang members. AB 1471 passed both the Assembly last spring and the State Senate last month.

"We applaud Gov. Schwarzenegger for taking a bold step to solve gun murders in California. This ground-breaking law gives police officers a powerful tool to apprehend armed criminals and gang members before they strike again," said Brady Campaign President Paul Helmke. "The Governor has set a new national standard for the rest of the country to follow."

The Crime Gun Identification Act will require that all new models of semi-automatic handguns sold in the State of California starting in 2010 be equipped with technology to allow police to match bullet casings found at a crime scene to the handgun that fired the bullets. This technology, known as "microstamping," consists of engraving microscopic characters representing the make, model and serial number of a handgun onto its firing pin and other internal surfaces. These characters transfer onto the bullet shell casing when the handgun is fired. In instances of drive-by shootings, where the only evidence at the crime scene may be a casing from a fired bullet, law enforcement will be able to quickly obtain a critical lead.

Assemblyman Mike Feuer (D-42), a former Los Angeles City Councilmember who recognizes that law enforcement needs more tools to combat gang violence, was the author of the bill. It was supported by the California Police Chiefs Association, the Orange County Chiefs' and Sheriff's Association, the Peace Officers Research Association of California (PORAC), and the Los Angeles Police Protective League, in addition to 65 police chiefs and sheriffs throughout the state.

Kay Holmen, the President of the California Brady Campaign Chapters, said, "Nearly half of all crimes go unsolved in our state. Microstamping technology will provide our police officers with solid leads for finding armed criminals before they do more harm. This new law will allow our police to trace the crime gun -- without the gun."

Friday, October 12, 2007

Sarah Brady, Blood Dancer

I just got an email from Sarah Brady. No, it wasn't an invitation to her Columbus Day BBQ, and no it wasn't an invite to her annual charity wheel chair race either. It was a solicitation asking for more money to help destroy my civil rights, using the latest school shooting as grist for her bloody donation mill. Nowhere in the email does she mention the six kids killed in Wisconsin by a deranged police officer. Where is her outrage about this? Are the lives of the school kids in Ohio worth more to her from a publicity standpoint than those snuffed out in Wisconsin? Do you still think that only Police and the Military are the only people who should have guns Sarah? be careful, your hypocrisy is showing...

Here's the email, and my comments.
More Guns at Schools While Senate Stalls on Improving Background Checks

Your support can help us break the logjam on a bill to strengthen the Brady law's NICS

Dear Mr. Orlov,

I'm once again heartbroken that a deranged teenager was so easily able to get his hands on two guns and ammunition, shooting four people before killing himself at a Cleveland school on Wednesday.

Together, we must stop senseless tragedies like this. And we can.
So, what do you propose we do Sarah? How about making murder more illegal, or making the "Gun Free Zone" signs just a little larger to make sure the bad guys see them. And how exactly is this, so called, NICS Improvement Bill supposed to have stopped a criminal who wasn't even old enough to legally own those guns in the first place?
The first thing we must do is convince the U.S. Senate to strengthen the Brady background check system by passing the National Instant Check System (NICS) Improvement Act.
In other words, you want to deprive even more people of their rights, rightly or wrongly, just so you can feel good about yourself? Here's some news for you lady, my rights are not there to improve your sense of self satisfaction. More feel good legislation that only affects the law abiding and which will be ignored by the criminals is not going to help matters any. How about you go after the real source of the problems, repeat criminal offenders?
Will you help me by making a special contribution to the Brady Campaign right now? Your contribution will be used to bring pressure to bear on the Senate, garner media attention, and rally public support for this critical bill.
Um, let me think about this...HELL NO!
Next week will be the six-month anniversary of the Virginia Tech tragedy where 32 were shot and killed. Since then, almost 6,000 sisters, brothers, fathers, and mothers have been murdered by guns.
While it may or may not have helped in the VT case, allowing CCW permit holders to lawfully keep their arms for defense of themselves and others around them is a huge step forward. Guns don't kill people Sarah, criminals misusing guns do.
Immediately following the Virginia Tech shootings, the Brady Campaign pressed elected officials by asking "What are YOU going to do about gun violence?"
What have you done about criminals who misuse guns to commit violence? You say you don't want to ban guns, and then you turn around and support gun bans. Liar. All you will accomplish is rendering the law abiding defenseless and empowering the criminal element.
In July, the U.S. House of Representatives took a courageous first step to keep guns out of the wrong hands by passing HR 2640, the NICS Improvement Act.
We all know whose hands are the wrong hands Sarah, the hands of every law abiding, freedom loving, gun owner in the nation! Don't lie to me, I know better.
Many states fail to supply thousands of records of prohibited gun buyers to the national Brady background check system. The result is that felons, domestic violence abusers, and those who are dangerously mentally ill can walk into gun stores or gun shows and buy weapons without being stopped.

The NICS Improvement Act would address this critical problem.

But the U.S. Senate has failed to take action and get this bill passed. The consequences of their inaction are a steady drumbeat of gun deaths, more student shooting rampages, more carnage, and untold suffering by the victims and their families.

The Senate should act to pass this important bill!
You mean the gun control expansion bill that expands the already illegal law? The one that has every gun control loving representative drooling in their eagerness to support it? The same bill the NRA is shortsightedly supporting? The same bill that will come around to bite them in the ass later on? Thanks, but no thanks Sarah. You can keep your phony act.
The Brady Campaign is working full force to convince the U.S. Senate to pass this bill immediately. Tragically, 32 Americans are murdered by guns every day and we cannot afford to wait another day for them to take action.
Again, guns don't murder anyone, criminals do. How many of these 32 a day you claim, are criminals, already disallowed from having guns, killing other criminals? How many are criminals shot by law abiding citizens who were defending themselves? How many are victims disarmed by gun bans and other unconstitutional restrictions which you support?
We need your support today to put pressure on the U.S. Senate to pass this legislation and help stop the senseless violence.

Please make a contribution of $25 or more right now to help fund our efforts to pass this important bill in the Senate.
If you really wanted to stop the senseless violence you'd go after the real source of the problem, criminals, and not law abiding citizens. Once again, I'd sooner crawl across broken glass, gouge out my eyes with broken sporks and eviscerate myself with a rusty pair of scissors, while rolling around in rock salt, than donate money to you and your organization. Is that clear enough for you?"
Sincerely,
Sarah Brady, Chair

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Wherefore Art Thou, Robyn Ringler?

It has been almost a month since we last heard from our favorite commentally challenged anti-blogger, and that was merely to take credit for the "I do not accept comments because I don't have time and I'm always right!" quip in her blurb. Apparently she doesn't even have time to post anything new. Lest you think this is a personal attack, I'll say right now that is not so. Of all the anti-bloggers, she was one of the more entertaining. Her posts were always a highpoint, with fresh material to fisk; a veritable banquet of long disproved anti-gun talking points and emotional hysteria.

There is Bryan Miller of course, but let's face it, there's a nastiness to his posts which makes them hard to read, at least in one sitting. He's not afraid to get personal either, which is another mark against him. In fact, currently, he is involved with an on going feud with Scott Bach with whom he lost a televised debate back in 2004. One can see how that experience would make him a little testy, but it's still no excuse for losing your cool.

Well, Robyn, wherever you might be, here's to hoping you make it back to post yet another overly long and emotion driven piece as to why we should ban all guns. And if you decide to pack it in, like many have before you, there's no shame it that. Logic and facts win out every time over emotion and biased, discredited research.

Until next time, sweet dreams!

Range Report

Howdy! It was raining cats and dogs and Shetland ponies up at the range today, but that didn't detour me from heading up there with my custom Ruger 10/22 and my Yugo SKS with the new scope mount on it. The fact that it was still hunter sight in days didn't keep me at home either. There was the usual assortment of people who hadn't had their Remchester Bambi thumpers out of the closet since dear season ended last year, kids of all ages with their spiffy brand spanking new rifles who had no idea how to use them, there were also two or three who brought their new rifles straight up from the store. I don't know about them, but every new gun I've purchased has been dripping with lubricant and needed to be cleaned before it was shot. God bless the RSO's up there at the range, I wouldn't want their job!

Ruger 10/22

Well, Volquartsen came through with the replacement hammer, hammer spring, and sear for my custom Ruger 10/22 and I wasted no time getting them installed. Right off the bat I noticed that the safety once again was functional, which was a good sign, but I was unable to take it up to the range until today. Using the same ammo as before, I was able to keep a 2" grouping at 100 yards. Not bad even if I do say so myself. I have no doubt that the rifle is capable of greater accuracy than I am at this point. Kudos to Volquartsen for their fast turn around on the replacement parts! I also got to try out the new bipod from Rock Mount and it really helped with my consistency and shrank my group sizes. Hallelujah! My 10/22 is now fully operational again!

Yugo SKS

The Scout Scope mount I got from Scout Scopes came with clear instructions and everything needed and I had it installed in no time. I am very happy with this scope mount and it functioned completely as advertised. Bravo Scout Scopes! The rest of this rant will not be about the scope mount, but about the POS NcSTAR red dot scope I got from a local gun show. Big mistake, this scope is a piece of crap that won't hold zero and needs an Allen wrench (supplied) to adjust, with no detents at all. It was so sensitive and easy to get off target that it took a long time for me to even get the rifle on paper. Thank you to the anonymous RSO who helped me with this, btw. We had to take the bolt out and look down the barrel and hold it on target while adjusting the scope. Doing this I was able to hit the paper, albeit always about four inches left of where the dot was at, and no amount of adjusting would get it on target. Did I mention that the dot covered a 4" circle at 25 yards. I'm junking this POS and getting a good one. Anyone have a suggestion for a cheap (below $100) red dot that will take the recoil of an SKS? Short story is, I burned up about 60 rounds of corrosive milsurp ammo that stinks to high heaven (Seriously, this stuff smells awful!) and still need to go back with a new scope to get it sighted in.

Ack, well it wasn't all bad, but it wasn't my best day at the range. *sigh*

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

It's been Forty Years Now...

...and yep, he's still dead!


Thanks to Conservative Scalawag for jogging my memory. Hey, if you liked the above graphic, go buy a shirt or something. For the record, I have NO link to the people who make the "Dead Che" shirts. But I do think they look pretty cool!

Sunday, October 7, 2007

New Game! Spot the Anti Lies!


With more than 300 murders so far this year, Philadelphia has been struggling to contain gun violence.
If I was a Philadelphia resident, I could walk into any gun shop in the city and buy 50, 100, even 1,000 guns, just like that. All they would do is run an instant background check, and assuming my record was clean, I'd walk out with all that firepower.

There's no waiting period, no rules on who I can and can't sell those weapons to. In fact, state law says I don't even have to get a license for the guns or register them.

Could this be contributing to the gun violence in Philadelphia? So far this year, there have been more than 300 murders, and more than 85 percent of them were the result of a firearm, according to the Philadelphia Police Department.

Ray Jones, a community volunteer with the group Men United, blames state lawmakers for not passing tougher gun laws and for keeping cities like Philadelphia from passing their own regulations.

"It's about survival," Jones said. "People are dying in the streets and we need to get help."

The fight over gun laws has turned into a power struggle between the state government and Philadelphia.

Back in 1994, the state legislature overturned an assault weapons ban, making AK-47s as easy to get as hunting rifles. The next year, rules were eased on concealed weapons. Today it's actually against the law in Pennsylvania for a policeman to ask anyone why they want to carry a concealed weapon.

At last check, there are now 29,000 permits to carry concealed weapons in Philadelphia, compared to about 800 applications for permits back in 1995. One law enforcement source told me the state is handing out permits to carry like "candy."

State Senator Vincent Fumo is a gun owner, and he supports the current laws. "People want to think that this is the wild west, and we don't have any laws. What we don't have is enforcement of those laws," he told CNN.

Many here in the city argue that if Philadelphia had "home rule", as it's called, and the city was allowed to pass more stringent gun laws, people would be safer.

"It really would be appropriate for the city to determine its own sort of destiny," Jones told CNN. "Now our hands are sort of handcuffed."

Who do you think has the right to set the ground rules when it comes to guns? The state or the city?

-- Randi Kaye, CNN Correspondent

Only Cops Should Have Guns

At Least 5 Youths Dead After Shooting in Wisconsin

Sunday, October 07, 2007


A Wisconsin town was to have its state of lockdown lifted after a police chief said law enforcement is no longer looking for a suspect — believed to be with the local sheriff's office — who went on a killing spree early Sunday morning, gunning down at least five youths in a Crandon home.

Crandon Police Chief John Dennee, speaking outside the police department about two blocks from the shooting site, would not say whether the suspect was dead. But he said: "We're not looking for anybody anymore."

A dispatcher for the State Patrol who declined to give his full name as a matter of department practice said several of the patrol's officers went to Forest County to help investigators because the suspect is an employee of the Forest County Sheriff's Department and a part-time officer for the Crandon Police Department.

"It's a pretty tragic situation here," said Forest County Supervisor Tom Vollmar, who lives just outside Crandon, a city of about 2,000 people. "There are five or six people dead."

The State Patrol and the Crandon Fire Department detoured a steady stream of traffic from two blocks of U.S. Highway 8 in the downtown area. Some residents stood in nearby front yards.

Earlier in the day, Crandon Mayor Gary Bradley told FOX News that the town was under a "gag order" regarding the overnight event but no one in the town can leave church, home or anywhere else they happened to be Sunday morning.

A witness told WMTJ Radio that gunfire erupted in the home at about 3 a.m. Sunday morning. Ten area youths from the ages of 16 to 21 were reportedly in the home when the shots were fired. Fatalities are being reported, but the number of casualties is still unconfirmed.

A family member of one of the victims told WITI-TV, a FOX affiliate, that one of the victims involved in the shooting is a student at the Milwaukee Area Technical College.

The town of Crandon is located about 100 miles north of Green Bay. The area is known for logging, and fishing, hunting and snowmobiling.

Quote of the Day

It's long, but I feel this quote is as appropriate today as it was then. Here we have Abraham Lincoln in 1858, in his debate with Douglas, quoting Thomas Jefferson from 1820. It's something to keep in mind as we hurtle toward a second amendment showdown with the supremes. Whether or not they uphold the second amendment, and I hope they do, it does not lessen it's standing at all. For example, just because some group of people declares the Earth flat or round, doesn't change the facts. Even if we didn't have a second amendment, our right to defend ourselves and country is still no less valid.

"In public speaking it is tedious from documents; but I must beg to indulge the practice to a limited extent. I shall read from a letter written by Mr. Jefferson in 1820, and now to be found in the seventh volume of his correspondence, at page 177. It seems he had been presented by a gentleman of the name of Jarvis with a book, or essay, or periodical, called The Republican, and he was writing in acknowledgement of the present, and noting some of its contents. After expressing the hope that the work will produce a favorable effect upon the minds of the young, he proceeds to say:—

'That it will have this tendency may be expected, and for that reason I feel an urgency to note what I deem an error in it, the more requiring notice as your opinion is strengthened by that of many others. You seem, in page 84 and 148, to consider the judges as the ultimate arbiters of all constitutional questions,—a very dangerous doctrine indeed, and one which would place us under the despotism of an oligarchy. Our judges are as honest as other men, and not more so. They have, with others, the same passions for party, for power, and the privilege of their corps. Their maxim is, ‘boni judicis est ampliare jurisdictionem;’ (It is the duty of a judge, when requisite, to amplify the limits of his jurisdiction.) and their power is the more dangerous as they are in office for life, and not responsible, as the other functionaries are, to the elective control. The Constitution has erected no such single tribunal, knowing that, to whatever hands confided, with the corruptions of time and party, its members would become despots. It has more wisely made all the departments co-equal and cosovereign with themselves.'

Thus we see the power claimed for the Supreme Court by Judge Douglas, Mr. Jefferson holds, would reduce us to the despotism of an oligarchy."

Saturday, October 6, 2007

Good Guys 3, Bad Guys 0

Guard kills 2 in robbery attempt in Red Bird

Third suspect is in custody; man shot pair with assault rifle
08:48 PM CDT on Thursday, October 4, 2007
By TANYA EISERER / The Dallas Morning News
teiserer@dallasnews.com

A security guard used an assault rifle to kill two robbery suspects at a Red Bird strip mall late Wednesday, police said.

Police say the guard grabbed his weapon when one of the men pointed a handgun at him.

Brandon Stewart
Brandon Stewart

Sergio Vann, the 19-year-old gun-wielding assailant, died at the scene late Wednesday. Detavias Davis, 17, who was driving the getaway car, died at a hospital.

A third suspect, Brandon Stewart, 18, was being held in the Dallas County Jail on a charge of aggravated robbery.

Police are looking into whether the trio may have been involved in other robberies.

Dedrick Howard, the 20-year-old security guard, declined to comment. His employer did not return a call seeking comment.

The incident happened about 11:30 p.m. Wednesday in the parking lot of a shopping center in the 2200 block of West Red Bird Lane.

Mr. Howard, a licensed security guard, told police that he was on duty, sitting in his vehicle and working on a laptop when he noticed a white Mitsubishi circling the parking lot.

The car parked two spaces away from him, police said. Two men, identified as Mr. Vann and Mr. Stewart, got out and ran toward Mr. Howard's car, police said.

"One kid asked him, 'Do you have change for a $20?' " said police Sgt. Ray Beaudreault, a homicide supervisor. "Of course, he didn't. The other kid pulled a gun and told him to get out of the car."

As Mr. Howard got out of the car, he grabbed an assault rifle from the passenger seat and fired several rounds. Mr. Vann was hit, and Mr. Stewart ran.

The getaway car's driver, identified as Mr. Davis, restarted the car, police said. Thinking the driver might have a weapon, Mr. Howard then shot at the car, striking Mr. Davis, police said.

As Mr. Davis fled, fatally wounded, he lost control of his car and it struck another vehicle, authorities said.

Police think Mr. Vann, who had the gun, tried to fire it at Mr. Howard because police found a round in the gun's chamber and two live rounds on the ground, Sgt. Beaudreault said.

"I think that's probably what saved the security guard's life, because he had time to fire his weapon before Sergio did," Sgt. Beaudreault said. "He didn't know how to operate the weapon."

Sgt. Beaudreault said he believes that, typically, armed security guards carry handguns and not assault rifles. "It's not your standard weapon," he said.

Mr. Howard fired 11 rounds from the assault rifle, police said.

Police say Mr. Stewart was arrested when he returned about 15 minutes later to retrieve his cellphone and jacket from the car. Mr. Stewart told detectives that he and his accomplices planned to rob Mr. Howard of his laptop, a police report said.

"Kids at that age need to be in school, getting a good education," said Sgt. Beaudreault. "Why they're out there robbing a security guard is beyond me. I don't really know what to make of it."

After the shooting, Mr. Vann's mother called and spoke with a detective. She told police that her son worked at Wal-Mart and that Wednesday was his day off.

"She said he was a good kid," Sgt. Beaudreault said.

Sgt. Beaudreault said the deaths of the two suspected robbers will be referred to a grand jury. But it is unlikely that a grand jury will indict Mr. Howard because state law allows a person to use deadly force to prevent being robbed.

State law also does not require that someone retreat before using deadly force to defend themselves in their homes, cars or places of business.

Friday, October 5, 2007

Great! Even More to Worry About!

Doc, what’s up with snooping?

Pediatrician paranoia runs deep


By Michael Graham
Thursday, October 4, 2007

They’re watching you right now.

They counted every beer you drank during last night’s Red Sox [team stats] game.

They see you sneaking out to the garage for a smoke.

They know if you’ve got a gun, and where you keep it.

They’re your kids, and they’re the National Security Agency of the Nanny State.

I found this out after my 13-year-old daughter’s annual checkup. Her pediatrician grilled her about alcohol and drug abuse.

Not my daughter’s boozing. Mine.

“The doctor wanted to know how much you and mom drink, and if I think it’s too much,” my daughter told us afterward, rolling her eyes in that exasperated 13-year-old way. “She asked if you two did drugs, or if there are drugs in the house.”

“What!” I yelped. “Who told her about my stasher, I mean, ‘It’s an outrage!’ ”

I turned to my wife. “You took her to the doctor. Why didn’t you say something?”

She couldn’t, she told me, because she knew nothing about it. All these questions were asked in private, without my wife’s knowledge or consent.

“The doctor wanted to know how we get along,” my daughter continued. Then she paused. “And if, well, Daddy, if you made me feel uncomfortable.”

Great. I send my daughter to the pediatrician to find out if she’s fit to play lacrosse, and the doctor spends her time trying to find out if her mom and I are drunk, drug-addicted sex criminals.

We’re not alone, either. Thanks to guidelines issued by the American Academy of Pediatrics and supported by the commonwealth, doctors across Massachusetts are interrogating our kids about mom and dad’s “bad” behavior.

We used to be proud parents. Now, thanks to the AAP, we’re “persons of interest.”

The paranoia over parents is so strong that the AAP encourages doctors to ignore “legal barriers and deference to parental involvement” and shake the children down for all the inside information they can get.

And that information doesn’t stay with the doctor, either.

Debbie is a mom from Uxbridge who was in the examination room when the pediatrician asked her 5-year-old, “Does Daddy own a gun?”

When the little girl said yes, the doctor began grilling her and her mom about the number and type of guns, how they are stored, etc.

If the incident had ended there, it would have merely been annoying.

But when a friend in law enforcement let Debbie know that her doctor had filed a report with the police about her family’s (entirely legal) gun ownership, she got mad.

She also got a new doctor.

In fact, the problem of anti-gun advocacy in the examining room has become so widespread that some states are considering legislation to stop it.

Last year, my 7-year-old was asked about my guns during his physical examination. He promptly announced to the doctor that his father is the proud owner of a laser sighted plasma rifle perfect for destroying Throggs.

At least as of this writing, no police report has been filed.

“I still like my previous pediatrician,” Debbie told me. “She seemed embarrassed to ask the gun questions and apologized afterward. But she didn’t seem to have a choice.”

Of course doctors have a choice.

They could choose, for example, to ask me about my drunken revels, and not my children.

They could choose not to put my children in this terrible position.

They could choose, even here in Massachusetts, to leave their politics out of the office.

But the doctors aren’t asking us parents.

They’re asking our kids.

Worst of all, they’re asking all kids about sexual abuse without any provocation or probable cause.

The American Academy of Pediatrics has declared all parents guilty until proven innocent.

And then they wonder why we drink.

Michael Graham hosts a talk show on WTKK 96.9 FM.

Thursday, October 4, 2007

What Good is Gun Control Anyway?

Gun control doesn't protect us -- guns do

Mike Thomas
October 4, 2007

Tiffany Barwick and Michael Ruschak asked the cops to protect them from Barwick's former boyfriend.

She told them he had harassed her, threatened to kill her, bought a gun and sent an image of her riddled with bullet holes.

A Seminole deputy advised her to get a protective court order. We all know how effective they are against the criminally obsessed.

The deputy also would send her complaint to the State Attorney's Office, which is akin to tossing it into the Grand Canyon.

There is a lesson in all this.

The cops can't protect you.

The cops could not protect Erin Belanger and her five friends who were beaten to death by Troy Victorino and his band of thugs in Deltona.

She begged police for help in the days leading up to the assault.

"Can I ask you a question?" she said to a 911 dispatcher. "What can I do?"

Or better yet, what could they do?

Nothing.

I am not knocking the cops, just acknowledging reality. There are a thousand threats in the Big City. Picking out the real ones from the bluster is an impossible task.

Given this reality, given that Central Florida is turning into a bad Mad Max sequel, my liberal belief in gun control is getting wobbly.

I'm not advocating selling machine guns and cop-killer bullets at Wal-Mart. But if somebody faces an immediate threat, I have a hard time understanding why they need to wait three days or longer to buy a handgun for self-protection.

Shouldn't we be allowed to go to a reputable gun store, get a lesson in how to use a specific weapon and buy it after the background check?

The stated reason against this is that some ill-tempered lout will blow a fuse, run off to Guns R Us, buy a Glock and open fire on his spouse, neighbor, boss or co-worker.

One might assume someone this prone to venting with a volley already has a gun, locked and loaded.

A 2000 report in the Journal of the American Medical Association, hardly part of the gun lobby, showed cooling-off periods did not reduce homicide rates or overall suicide rates.

After examining 51 studies on various gun-control laws, including mandatory waiting periods, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention concluded in 2003 that there was "insufficient evidence" to say they reduced gun violence.

It seems we pass laws that feel good without a lot of proof they are doing any good.

Maybe I need a good slap from Ted Kennedy, but I almost buy the National Rifle Association argument that the primary target of gun-control laws would be the people who shoot them at ranges, then lovingly oil and ogle them before safely locking them up.

As far as keeping guns away from bad guys, gun-control laws work as well as crack cocaine-control laws. My footnoted reference on this would be our crime blog.

We even have high school kids in Orange County firing guns in the air at high school athletic events.

If there were no guns, I would say allow no guns. But since all the wrong people already have them, and the cops can't do much about it except match their firepower, then it may well be time to arm thyself, citizen.

When Florida liberalized permits for concealed weapons in the 1980s, critics predicted a Wild West bloodbath. It never happened.

Responsible gun owners don't use guns irresponsibly. Go figure.

Until the cops get better at enforcing gun control on those who shouldn't have guns, a better alternative for the rest of us is gun education, gun classes and secure gun storage.

Mike Thomas can be reached at 407-420-5525 or mthomas@orlandosentinel.com. His blog is OrlandoSentinel.com/mikethomas.

A Liberal Laments

A liberal's lament: The NRA might be right after all

By Jonathan Turley

This term, the Supreme Court may finally take up the Voldemort Amendment, the part of the Bill of Rights that shall not be named by liberals. For more than 200 years, progressives and polite people have avoided acknowledging that following the rights of free speech, free exercise of religion and free assembly, there is "the right of the people to keep and bear arms." Of course, the very idea of finding a new individual right after more than two centuries is like discovering an eighth continent in constitutional law, but it is hardly the cause of celebration among civil liberties groups.

Like many academics, I was happy to blissfully ignore the Second Amendment. It did not fit neatly into my socially liberal agenda. Yet, two related cases could now force liberals into a crisis of conscience. The Supreme Court is expected to accept review of District of Columbia v. Heller and Parker v. District of Columbia, involving constitutional challenges to the gun-control laws in Washington.

The D.C. law effectively bars the ownership of handguns for most citizens and places restrictions on other firearms. The District's decision to file these appeals after losing in the D.C. appellate court was driven more by political than legal priorities. By taking the appeal, D.C. politicians have put gun-control laws across the country at risk with a court more likely to uphold the rulings than to reverse them. It has also put the rest of us in the uncomfortable position of giving the right to gun ownership the same fair reading as more favored rights of free press or free speech.

The Framers' intent

Principle is a terrible thing, because it demands not what is convenient but what is right. It is hard to read the Second Amendment and not honestly conclude that the Framers intended gun ownership to be an individual right. It is true that the amendment begins with a reference to militias: "A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed." Accordingly, it is argued, this amendment protects the right of the militia to bear arms, not the individual.

Yet, if true, the Second Amendment would be effectively declared a defunct provision. The National Guard is not a true militia in the sense of the Second Amendment and, since the District and others believe governments can ban guns entirely, the Second Amendment would be read out of existence.

Another individual right

More important, the mere reference to a purpose of the Second Amendment does not alter the fact that an individual right is created. The right of the people to keep and bear arms is stated in the same way as the right to free speech or free press. The statement of a purpose was intended to reaffirm the power of the states and the people against the central government. At the time, many feared the federal government and its national army. Gun ownership was viewed as a deterrent against abuse by the government, which would be less likely to mess with a well-armed populace.

Considering the Framers and their own traditions of hunting and self-defense, it is clear that they would have viewed such ownership as an individual right — consistent with the plain meaning of the amendment.

None of this is easy for someone raised to believe that the Second Amendment was the dividing line between the enlightenment and the dark ages of American culture. Yet, it is time to honestly reconsider this amendment and admit that ... here's the really hard part ... the NRA may have been right. This does not mean that Charlton Heston is the new Rosa Parks or that no restrictions can be placed on gun ownership. But it does appear that gun ownership was made a protected right by the Framers and, while we might not celebrate it, it is time that we recognize it.

Jonathan Turley is the Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington University and a member of USA TODAY's board of contributors.

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Attention Gun Banners...

...attempting to use the ATF's trace data to support your biased views. I draw your attention to the disclaimer on page two of every copy of the report, which says:

(1) Firearms traces are designed to assist law enforcement authorities in conducting investigations by trafficking the sale and possession of specific firearms. Law enforcement agencies may requires firearms traces for any reason, and those reasons are not necessarily reported to the Federal Government. Not all firearms used in crime are traced and not all firearms traced are used in crime.

(2) Firearms selected for tracing are not chosen for determining which types, makes or models of firearms are used for illicit purposes. The firearms selected do not constitute a random sample and should not be considered representative of the larger universe of all firearms used by criminals, or any subset of that universe. Firearms are normally trace to the first retail seller, and sources reported for firearms traced do not necessarily represent the sources or methods by which firearms in general are acquired for use in crime.

Also the typical "time to crime" is on the 10-12 YEAR range, and most crime guns are traced back to the same state they are recovered in.

That is all for now...

National Collegiate Empty Holster Protest

Press Release - National Collegiate Empty Holster Protest – Students for Concealed Carry on College Campuses – ConcealedCampus.com

On April 16, 2007, twenty-seven students and five faculty members at Virginia Tech lost their lives to a madman who possessed one distinct advantage over his victims—He wasn’t concerned with following the rules. Undeterred by Virginia Tech’s status as a “gun free zone,” this mentally unstable individual carried two handguns onto the university campus and indiscriminately opened fire.

During the week of October 22-26, 2007, college students throughout America will attend classes wearing empty holsters, in protest of state laws and campus policies that stack the odds in favor of armed killers by disarming law abiding citizens who are licensed to carry concealed handguns virtually everywhere else.

In thirty-nine U.S. states, thousands of collegiate students and faculty—age twenty-one and above—are licensed to carry concealed handguns throughout their day-to-day lives. And they do so without incident. However, despite the absence of any compelling evidence that these licensed individuals might pose any more threat to college campuses than they do to office buildings, shopping malls, movie theaters, grocery stores, banks, etc., they are currently prohibited, either by state law or school policy, from carrying their firearms onto most college campuses. On October 22 these students, through their Empty Holster Protest, will ask for a change.

In the last twenty years, the vast majority of the mass shootings in America—from the Texas Luby’s massacre to the Columbine High School massacre—have happened in “gun free zones.” Labeling an area “gun free” may make some people feel safer, but as the shootings at Virginia Tech taught us, feeling safe and being safe are not the same thing.

For over a year, state law in Utah has allowed licensed individuals to carry concealed handguns on college campuses. This has yet to result in a single act of violence. Numerous studies, including studies by John Lott, David Mustard, William Sturdevant, and state justice departments, show that license holders are five times less likely than non-license holders to be arrested for violent crimes. Clearly, license holders pose little threat to college campuses.

While some may argue that guns have no place in institutions of higher learning, the students of the Empty Holster Protest contend that it is the threat of uncontested, execution-style massacre that has no place on America’s college campuses, and these students respectfully ask that steps be taken to take the advantage away from those who seek to harm the innocent.

Oregon Teacher Steps Forward

Oregon teacher suing to carry gun in class reveals identity

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — An Oregon teacher suing to assert a right to carry a gun at school has made her name public.

She is Shirley Katz, 43, a teacher for 21 years, the last seven in Medford. She teaches English at South Medford High School.

She went public in interviews beginning Tuesday with Lars Larson on his talk radio show.

Katz says she fears her former husband. They were divorced last year, and she has had two restraining orders against him, the last of which expired in September. She said she missed a deadline to renew it.

Gerry Katz, 54, a photographer, told the Medford Mail Tribune that he's no threat and said his former wife has made unfounded accusations as part of her effort to limit his visitation with their 5-year-old daughter.

Shirley Katz has custody, and Gerry Katz has weekly visitation rights under the divorce decree, which required him to complete an anger management class, the Mail Tribune reported.

On Sept. 26, a judge denied her bid to limit visitation rights and his request for full custody, the paper said.

Gerry Katz also has a concealed weapon permit, but his gun was seized after he waved the weapon at another driver and was charged with disorderly conduct, the paper said.

Shirley Katz filed her suit under the pseudonym Jane Doe. She said she went public after the school district filed a motion to dismiss the case based in part on her anonymity.

"I am definitely under the microscope," she said. "I had sought to avoid that (by remaining anonymous). My son goes to school here. My daughter is in the school system."

Katz filed the lawsuit Sept. 18. Oral arguments are scheduled for Oct. 11.

The Oregon Firearms Foundation is financing her lawsuit.

Oregonians who have concealed weapon permits may carry a gun onto most public properties, including schools, without violating state law.

School districts, however, commonly bar teachers from carrying guns to classrooms.