2011 – Page 66 – Shall Not Be Questioned

Lead Ammo Banned in Washington on WDFW Lands

Apparently this can be done by fiat in Washington State, and has been. I understand framing an issue, and traditional ammunition sounds a lot more like mom and apple pie than lead ammunition, but I’ve always hated using terms that basically try to throw some sheets over the elephant in the room.

Lead’s been what ammunition has been made out of since we’ve had firearms, so in that sense it’s traditional. But everyone knows the issue is the lead, and there’s probably not going to be much papering over that.

Good to see those assault weapons bans …

… getting hardened criminals off the streets. If I had to guess, he brought the weapons from home, and mistakenly believed he lived in America. Sad thing is he doesn’t have anything else of value to offer prosecutors to get them to drop the gun charge.

Carry on the Campaign Trail

Dennis Henigan is getting hysterical about Rick Perry awful early:

Perry recently was asked if he is armedÂ while campaigning. He didn’t respond by saying the question is ridiculous. He didn’t say that in the close quarters of a rope line, with a multitude of people pulling and tugging at him, a gun could easily drop to the ground or be taken from him. He didn’t say that an armed candidate would be a nightmare for the Secret Service. He didn’t say any of those things. Instead, he smiled and refused to say whether or not he carried while campaigning. He added, “That’s why it’s called concealed.”

He seems to have an issue with the fact that Perry is out and proud as a gun person, and then proceeds to let his imagination run wild with all the horrific things that could happen if candidates pack on the campaign trail.

Personally, if it were me, I’d be happy with the secret service protection, and would not carry on the campaign trail. The only stipulation I’d have is that I be allowed to play with their submachine guns. Dave Kopel has an interesting analysis as to whether the President can legally carry. It would seem the answer is yes. Dave also notes that Teddy Roosevelt carried a pistol on the campaign trail, and noted it didn’t seem to have any negative impact on his security. Well, it didn’t stop him from getting shot on the campaign trail by a deranged saloon keeper. Fortunately, his would be assassinÂ didn’t bring enough gun to kill Teddy, or even stop him from delivering his speech.

Tell a Lie Often Enough …

Daniel Vice, the Brady Center’s senior attorney, tells New Jerseyans:

But our countryâ€™s weak gun laws allow traffickers and killers to stockpile guns in states with weaker laws and smuggle them into our communities. In New Jersey, strong laws make it so much harder for criminals to get firearms that guns flood in from states with weak gun laws at a rate seven times higher than the number of crime guns trafficked out of the state.

That’s funny, because in the country I live in this practice is a felony. So I would like to understand how our “weak guns laws” are allowing criminals to “stockpile guns” in states with “weaker laws.” In all 50 states, it’s a felony for criminals to have a single gun or round of ammunition, let alone stockpile them. I’m afraid the weak laws they are speaking of are laws which allow them to be sold at all. One reason firearms are trafficked into New Jersey is that New Jersey only has a relatively small number of FFLs compared to most other states. There are few legal channels in the Garden State, so criminals do what the law abiding can’t, go out of state.

Ammunition Matters, Even for Pistols

Joe Huffman has an interesting report on accuracy of various kinds of ammunition fired out of a pistol. While I would not claim to be an expert IHMSA shooter, at those ranges, I’ve noticed that some ammo hits more than others. Seems especially noticeable in rimfire calibers.

Canadian Academic on Guns

Exurban Kevin finds some choice quotes from a Canadian academic that might be surprising to you.

Strategy for California

Gene Hoffman talks about his plan for getting carry in California. Their plan is quite sensible, I think, and likely to succeed. One though on my mind lately is how long the other side is going to keep playing games before they just accept the way things are going to be.

In the history of civil rights in this country, it hasn’t been unheard of for the Supreme Court to expand a right more than they had initially been willing to because of the intransigence of government officials who tried to navigate around Supreme Court rulings. So in the end, the game playing could benefit us.

Too Many Windows

Clearly we need to do more to restrict access to windows:

New research finds that nearly 5,200 kids are treated in an emergency department each year after falling from a window. That’s 14 kids a day, according to a study published Monday in the journalÂ Pediatrics.

We’ve allowed these dangerous devices to infect society for entirely too long. They must be restricted. It’s common sense. For the children.

Surprised It Took Him This Long

Rahm follows in the footsteps of Daley, and joins MAIG.

Lemonade Freedom Day

Uncle has been touting Lemonade freedom. It seems a lot of people who don’t know how to mind their own business have been arresting and/or fining kids for selling lemonade. Glad to see we’ve solved all the big problems.