Sebastian – Page 1477 – Shall Not Be Questioned

Hutchinson’s S.1001 – Repeal the Ban

I noticed that neither of my senators have signed on to this bill. I will have to write both of them to make sure it stays that way. In the mean time, I’ve sent this to Senator Hutchinson:

Dear Senator Hutchinson,

I am not a resident of Texas, but I believe your introduction of S.1001, to repeal the Washington D.C. gun ban, raises some issues of national impact with respect to the effect it could have on the Parker vs. DC case, that will likely come before the Supreme Court of the United States.

I do want to thank you for your support of our second amendment rights, and I appreciate the sentiment that went into your introduction of this bill, but I don’t want Congress’ repealing of the Washington DC gun ban to remove standing for the Parker plaintiffs, and render the case moot.

The time has come for the Supreme Court to speak on the second amendment. Many of us who are advocates for gun rights and the second amendment believe Parker is the case that has the best change of favorable review from The Court. While I appreciate the sentiment displayed in S.1001, I sincerely hope this bill will not advance until Supreme Court has had a chance to make a definitive ruling on the Washington D.C. gun ban.

Sincerely,

[Sebastian]
Langhorne, PA

I will e-mail something along those lines to my senators before the end of the day. I will also go bark up the NRA’s tree a bit to make sure they know I don’t want them screwing up the Parker case either. A lot of noise about getting rid of the D.C. gun ban coming from Congress will do us a huge favor when it comes time for court review, but in no way do we actually want anything like this to pass.

Time to get a Viriginia CHP

It’s relatively easy for me to get a Virginia Concealed Handgun Permit, especially since I’m spending a lot more time down there now.Â I was thinking it would be good to have, so I’m good to carry in West Virginia, but I noticed they take resident licenses only.Â Â How is it that states like West Virginia, Oregon, and Nevada lack good reciprocity?Â Â It would seem to would be relatively easy to pass something there.

Casino Shenanigans

While I favor the legalization of slots within The Commonwealth, commonly referred to Act 71, I don’t really appreciate the fact that Ed Rendell seems to be using the act to pay off political favors:

Boyd Gaming Corp and its partners submitted an application to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board late December 2005 to open a Slots Parlor and high-rise hotel on a 125 acre plot in Limerick, PA, just off the Sanatoga exit of Rte. 422 and adjacent to an outlet mall proposed by Chelsea Property Groups. A major partner to Boyd in this proposal is David Sweet, the former campaign manager for Gov. Rendell. The site for the proposed casino is not currently zoned for such a use.

Now, I don’t agree with the folks I linked to that Act 71 ought to be repealed. I think it needs some reform, but I do favor gambling being generally legal, so I think it’s a step in the right direction. The problem with the act is, there’s not enough protection to keep politicians like Governor Rendell from milking the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board for their own benefit.

My proposal would be getting the gaming control board out of the business of approving casinos. They should be licensed the same way liquor establishments are, and whether they ought to be approved for zoning left up to the local communities. I’d like to see the GLCB merely implementing regulations and taxes on gambling establishments as authorized by the state legislature. Anything more is going to invite cronyism.

Because I Don’t Already Pay Too Much

From Captain Ed, we learn the Democrats want to enact the largest tax increase in US history:

The bill set to reach the House floor today (resembling the Senate version) would raise taxes an average of $1,795 on 115 million taxpayers in 2011. Some 26 million small-business owners would pay an average of $3,960 more. The decreased number of Americans subject to income taxes would all pay higher taxes, and 5 million low-income Americans would be returned to the rolls.

But it’s going to go to balancing the budget right?

The House version would increase non-defense, non-emergency spending by $22.5 billion for next fiscal year, with such spending to rise 2.4 percent in each of the next three years. To pay for these increases, the resolution would raise taxes by close to $400 billion over five years — about $100 billion more than what was passed in the Senate.

The Democrats are just as bad or worse than the boneheads they replaced.Â I already pay way too much in taxes to the federal government, upward is really not the direction I want to see my tax bill going.Â Apparently the Republicans have decided that they need to give more than lip service to cutting government and fiscal responsibility:

Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, the fifth-termer who is the House Budget Committee’s new ranking Republican, has proposed an alternative resolution. It not only retains Bush tax cuts but also proposes deep reductions in spending, protects Social Security payments and runs down the national debt.

Heh.Â The authors closing statement sums up my feelings exactly: “Why was no such resolution advanced during the 12 years the GOP was in the majority?”Â Good question!

I’m partial to Austrian tupperware…

… but Austin Bay reminds us why gun snobbery is for the birds:

I do take exception to the gun snob comments about the Beretta 92. Thatâ€™s the civilian version of the M9. I could not hit squat with the service .45 I carried in the 1970s while on duty in Germany. The weapon was a rattle trap, which was no doubt part of the problem. However, a couple of the NCOs told me my accuracy problem â€œisnâ€™t entirely the weaponâ€™s fault.â€ Hah. Well, I agreed. I was adequate with a rifle, but the pistol? Yes, I can see the barnâ€™s broadside. No, I cannot hit the barnâ€™s broadside â€” not with my service .45.

But the Beretta I had in Iraq was something else entirely â€” I managed to qualify sharpshooter with it. I know, the superior gunfighters out there will dismiss that as the sorry effort of a chronic poor shot. However, I came within two rounds of qualifying expert. Thatâ€™s a huge change. I had confidence I could hit a target.

It all comes down to what works for you. I’ve always been able to shoot well with a Glock, and struggle a lot more with Bitter’s single stack SIG. Ahab of WWJWD likes to carry a Walther P22, which most people would deride. Shot placement is key, and a pistol chambered in .22LR that you hit your target consistently with will do a lot more than one in .50 AE that you can’t hit shit with. While there are certain firearms that shouldn’t be carried for safety reasons, I’ve always been of the opinion that you should carry what you’re comfortable with, and enjoy shooting enough to practice a lot, so your shot placement is good.

Women & Carry

I noticed something in one of Glenn’s updates on the post I linked to previously, from one of his readers:

Isnâ€™t part of this story irresponsibility? As a former Boy Scout Marksman, I was drilled on not only the proper shooting of a firearm, but itâ€™s handling, transportation and storage. A loaded handgun has only two places to be. On your person under immediate control, or in a locked case. Some would argue the locked case should never contain a loaded weapon. Carrying a loaded weapon in a shopping bag, backpack or briefcase is, to me, the height of irresponsibility on the part of the owner.

Last weekend I was trying out some of my carry holsters out with Bitter, in an effort to find a carry method that worked better for her. I am not a big fan of the holster she uses, and wanted to get her something more practical for concealment, but I was surprised by how enormously difficult carry is for women when we were trying out my in-waist-band holsters. Women wear their pants higher on their bodies than men do, and my Glock was sticking into her ribs, which was uncomfortable for her. I don’t have that problem on me.

Purse carry is really the only option that’s going to work for a woman carrier consistently, and there are purses out there made specifically for this purpose. I don’t know if the commenter above would consider that irresponsible, but to suggest that purse carry is irresponsible is to condemn many women to being unarmed most of the time.

I don’t think purse carry or briefcase carry is really irresponsible, provided one takes precautions, and is aware of where the purse/briefcase/gun is at all times. I don’t carry a traditional briefcase, but a laptop bag that slings over the shoulder. I do not carry a gun in it, but this would be the type of bag you’d want to carry a firearm in. The chief thing you want to prevent is a snatch and run operation, so a shoulder strap, along with carrying the purse/case close to the body and firmly in your control is a must.

I understand the sentiment that the best place for a carry piece is on your immediate person, but that’s not possible for everyone, especially women. With proper care, there’s no reason for off body carry to be considered irresponsible. The problem with the whole Webb incident is that he seems to have overlooked the proper care part, not necessarily how he may or may not have been carrying.

Never Say When You’re Carrying

Insty points to a blurb in regards to the Webb gun incident:

The reporter therefore asked, “Do you, senator, feel that you are above Washington, D.C.’s gun law?” Webb replied: “I’m not going to comment in any level in terms of how I provide for my own security.”

Truth be told, I wouldn’t answer this question either, and I don’t blame Webb for not answering it. Â You never tell people when you are or aren’t carrying.Â An appropriate response to a question along those lines is “None of your damned business,” so I think Webb’s comment in this regard is fine by me.Â I would like him to be more forthcoming about how his aide ended up with the gun and whether it was his gun.Â But I don’t believe he needs to answer questions about where and when he may or may not carry his side arm.Â That’s his business, and he has good reasons for keeping it that way.

The .577 Tyrannosaur

I ran across this video of some folks, at what appears to be a range outside the US, shooting the .577 Tyrannosaur:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQJSZs-euZU[/youtube]

You can find some background on the round here:

As A-Square loads the cartridge, it fires a 750-grain bullet at 2,460 feet per second, for muzzle energy of more than 10,000 foot-pounds. For the record, the case will hold 180 grains of H4831! No other company loads the cartridge or makes the brass, but since brass, bullets, and loaded ammunition are once again readily available from A-Square, securing a supply is less difficult than for many other big cartridges.

Jim Smith, the new owner of A-Square, says the first question anyone asks about the Tyrannosaur is â€œWhatâ€™s the recoil like?â€ Since there are a couple of videos floating around the internet showing several people being thrown across a room when firing it, your long-suffering correspondent would like to assure you that it simply is not like that.

The Hannibal rifle employs Art Alphinâ€™s â€œCoil-Chekâ€ stock, which minimizes recoil in heavy cartridges through proper stock design rather than gadgets like muzzle brakes and recoil reducers. However, Art conceded the Tyrannosaur needed something more and put three reducers in the stock. So equipped, it weighs about 13 pounds.

10,000 ft-lbs of muzzle energy? Â Holy recoil batman!Â But hey, if your goal is a last ditch defense against a charging elephant, I’d wager you’d need every bit of it.Â Now I really want to shoot one.

Create a Commie

My friend Joy brought something back from Portland that I thought was really amusing. It’s called “Create a Commie”:

A pinko variation on Wooly Willy. Create your very own commie rat bastard, then shoot him. Well, OK, I haven’t done the last part yet. Don’t want to damage my pink carpet… or is that pinko carpet?

UPDATE: This company needs to get with the times. Â I noticed they are missing Hugo Chavez. Â For that matter Chavez needs to get some trademark hair style or facial hair so he can distinguish himself from his other role models.

We already knew she was a hypocrite…

… for having a concealed weapons permit when Diane Feinstein herself is a huge advocate of taking guns away from ordinary Americans. She’s apparently used her power in congress to make millions for her husband’s firm too.

Feinstein is and always has been a piece of garbage, and ought to do the honorable thing and resign. I don’t think she has an ounce of honor in her though, so I’m not expecting much.

I’m really glad the Democrats took over from those corrupt money grubbing Republicans, let me tell you. Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.