I think Les Jones and I are pretty much of the same mind on this episode. Next week is shoot, no shoot scenarios, a topic I sincerely hope Caleb has improved on since I last shot with him. My dad, who is also not a shooter and never owned a gun (I do not come from a gun owning household) is watching the show as well. I continue to agree this show is great PR for the shooting sports.
Month: June 2010
How Brownell’s Tests Magazines
Fun video from Brownells about their magazine testing. The closed captioning is funny. But I have to wonder how many M16/M4 barrels and gas tubes they end up melting:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15N-YQxfLNg[/youtube]
These are the civilians magazines they sell being tested. I’m told the actual military magazines are very tightly controlled from factory through deployment. But rumor has it a few of the tan follower military mags have appeared in the wild, which were absconded from military bases. I wouldn’t suggest buying one, because I’m pretty sure it’s some kind of felony or another to buy stolen federal property.
Photoblog: Fort Washington
Bitter and I made a last minute trip down to DC this weekend to see two of her friends from college. One is a lobbyist on the hill who we always see when we’re down in DC. The other was in from Minnesota, who Bitter hasn’t seen in a number of years. But as long as we were down there, I decided to do some sightseeing. I’ve always wanted to visit Fort Washington, which was one of the main fortifications that protected the U.S. Capital from attack by water for most of this nation’s history. Built first in 1809, it was in use as a fort to protect the Capital well into the 20th century. I decided to do a photoblog on it. I used to do these somewhat often, but they take a lot of time to put together, so I kind of stopped. But I figured since I got a lot of good gun pics, folks wouldn’t mind too much. I like old artillery pieces, and they keep the ones at Fort Washington in good shape. Click on the pictures for more information.
Alito and Ginsburg Are What’s Left
Dave Hardy notes that after today’s opinion release that Alito and Ginsburg are the only two remaining justices that have not issued an opinion from this sitting. This worries me because while many have always felt that Kennedy was the weakest link in the Heller Five, I’ve speculated that it’s actually Sam Alito. Let us hope this doesn’t say anything about the outcome of the case.
Today is Nosy Neighbor Day
If you have kids, you might find you have a couple of nosy neighbors today. It’s National ASK Day. They like to say that it’s not about gun control, yet their “activists” say that this is about preaching to others about the dangers of owning guns. So, it’s not about taking your guns with force, just trying to be nannies who bother you into giving them up. Because that’s so much better – death by harassment and annoyance.
At least if we had kids, no one would have to ask. We’re pretty outspoken about our gun ownership in a very polite and “normal” way – whether it’s the NRA stickers, the political volunteer time, or the fact that we’d probably be shooting parents instead of soccer parents, I think we’d send the message pretty loud and clear while sending the right messages about gun ownership being a normal thing.
Semi-Autos Safe in Finland
Based on the comments in this article, I think they were trying to ban any gun that held more than one round at all.
Finland will not impose a full ban on semi-automatic weapons, the interior minister said Monday, rejecting an inquiry commission proposal following two deadly school shootings.
“I will not take this proposal forward as it is,” Interior Minister Anne Holmlund told national broadcaster YLE in a televised interview.
“I don’t really believe that the banning of one approach in weapons would be the way to ensure massacres are prevented,” she said, adding several different actions were needed, including giving police wider access to information about gun licence applicants. …
Finland’s parliament is currently debating a new gun law, and the so-called Kauhajoki inquiry commission had asked Holmlund to back its proposal for a total ban on semi-automatic handguns in the new legislation.
“Both the school shootings of recent years and the Sello massacre were carried out using semi-automatic weapons.
“It is clear that single shot weapons would not have created similar victim figures,” Pekka Sauri, chairman of the Kauhajoki commission told YLE.
Pro-Tip for Dan Onorato: Research
Sebastian noted that our Democratic nominee for governor is blaming the Republican candidate for a non-loophole that he declares to independently be a loophole – reciprocity. Unfortunately, he kind of got some big freakin’ facts wrong – but as any internet commentator knows, that won’t stop a blowhard from beating his chest indignantly.
First, there’s the fact that Onorato is specifically blaming Corbett for the Florida reciprocity agreement. Which is funny because the Florida reciprocity agreement was signed in 2001 – before Corbett took office in 2005.
Second, there’s the fact that under the law, the Attorney General actually has an affirmative duty to sign the agreements. So it doesn’t matter who is in the Attorney General’s office, they are supposed to seek out reciprocity opportunities with other states. The laws for issuance of the other states are all at least as strict as ours – and Florida actually has more requirements to obtain a license than Pennsylvania. So if they can do away with the Florida agreement, the anti-gun folks will just pick another state to target. And it won’t be long before all of our concealed carry agreements are gone.
Onorato Blaming Corbett for Non-Loophole
Onorato is blaming Tom Corbett for the so-called “Florida Loophole,” showing that the candidate for Governor in 2010 is not shy about sending his gun control views up the flag pole. This is in contrast to Governor Ed, who conveniently dropped the issue like a hot potato during his 2002 and 2006 runs.
I’m convinced that Governor Ed has convinced fellow Dems that the NRA can’t touch them. His evidence? His two terms, and Barack Obama’s ten point win in this state. Except Ed ran against two lackluster candidates, and so did Barry. Corbett isn’t a weak candidate. He’s a hard campaigner and a good fundraiser.
It’s absolutely important we send Dan Onorato packing this fall, or it’s going to be over for us in Pennsylvania. Democrats will say the NRA can’t hurt them, only then they will be right.
Last Word on DISCLOSE Before the Weekend
Cam Edwards on his show tonight reads a response from Brad Smith from the Center for Competitive Politics, the group Cam mentioned on Tuesday as being the premier group for fighting this kind of campaign finance nonsense. They are the one that coined the term “Shotgun Sellout.” Well, Jim Geraghty of National Review picked up on this story too, which got Brad’s attention, so Cam reads his response here, which is considerably more conciliatory:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmc1kY9dcHo[/youtube]
I have also lent some monetary support to the Center for Competitive Politics, because I really appreciate Brad’s response and honesty here. My comment to them?
I am disgusted by DISCLOSE. I do support NRA’s position on this bill as an NRA member, concerned about the Second Amendment, but I am hoping you folks will do some good work bringing in the First Amendment support. Campaign Finance reform is an abomination for First Amendment rights. I look to the NRA to defend the Second. I will look toward you to defend the First. Thank You.
I will be honest. I did not know about CCP except through Cam’s show. Now that I know about them, I will support them. Fighting Campaign Finance laws is difficult work. The people pushing incumbent protectionism in the name of clean politics have the rhetoric on their side. It is an uphill battle. I wish CCP all the luck in the world in this fight. It’s a difficult one, but it is of supreme importance.
Changing Technology Challenges the Law
Under Pennsylvania law, if these “stun gun bandits” robbed a Starbucks with a gun, you’d be legally justified in shooting them. But they are robbing with a stun gun, which is not deadly force. In many states, you can use deadly force to stop a forcible felony, and robbery counts. Pennsylvania is not one of those states, however.
Could you claim self-defense for the use of deadly force if you had a pacemaker or bad heart, and were threatened with a taser? More importantly, if you’re carrying a firearm, and are threatened with a taser, can you claim self-defense because they could use the taser to disarm you?
If it were me, I’d probably spray them. But I’m not sure that’s the smart move. I tend to think the use of deadly force to stop a forcible felony is the correct standard. That standard does have its roots in common law. If you’re committing a robbery, you’re taking your life into your hands. No matter what the instrument. That seems, to me, to be the right balance.