Month: February 2011

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Time To Pass CCW In Wisconsin Is Now

February 21, 2011 by

I thought you needed 20 Senators to make a quorum in the Wisconsin State Senate. You do but only for fiscal bills. According to the National Review Online, a simple majority is all that is needed for other bills.

Bringing up hot-button legislation while the Democrats are gone is another arrow in Walker’s quiver. Though the Wisconsin constitution requires three-fifths of the senate to be present to pass fiscal legislation, a simple majority of 17 members constitutes a quorum for other bills in the 33-seat state senate. So the 19 GOP senators who remain in Madison can pass any number of bills while their Democratic colleagues are on the lam, and Republicans are a majority in the assembly, too. “They can hold off, but there is a whole legislative agenda that Republicans in the senate and assembly can start acting on that only requires simple majorities,” Walker warns.“If they want to do their jobs, and have a say, they better show up.”

Non-spending bills and government appointments could see action early Tuesday. Walker says he will not yield as the standoff unfolds, especially since Wisconsin is facing a projected $3.6 billion budget shortfall over the next two years.

Gov. Scott Walker indicated during his campaign for Governor that he would sign a concealed carry bill if it were presented to him.

If you are a gun rights supporter who lives in Wisconsin, call your legislators and urge them to get to work on CCW. I doubt you could get constitutional carry to pass but you just never know. At the very least, make Wisconsin a “shall-issue” state.

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Ruger SP101 As A Newbie Handgun

February 21, 2011 by 3 Comments

The Truth About Guns blog has a review today of the Ruger SP101 3″ .357 Magnum. They are looking for a revolver that can be concealed that would be ideal for the new shooter.

As the Complementary Spouse and I were thinking of this same revolver as her “first” gun, I found this review very helpful. I really can’t find anything that I really disagree with in the review. While a semi-auto may in fact be the better beginner gun, Robert makes some good points about why a revolver instead of a semi-auto pistol.

There’s too much that can go wrong: loading the magazine, loading the magazine into the gun, racking the slide, remembering to rack the slide, remembering if you’ve racked the slide, remembering to deactivate a safety (where applicable), knowing when the gun is empty and knowing how to release the magazine.

And knowing how to clear the chamber, remembering to clear the chamber, keeping track of the muzzle while you reload a new magazine, remembering to reactivate the safety (where applicable), etc. Not to mention limp wristing.

The one thing I’d add to this list is that some women have a hard time racking the slide.

Now if Ruger would just do something about the rear sights… You can get rear sights installed as part of the Perfected SP101 package from revolver-smith Hamiltion Bowen. It will cost you $495 which is about what you’d pay, give or take, for the SP101.

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The Battle For Concealed Carry In Illinois Heats Up

February 21, 2011 by

The Illinois State Rifle Association (ISRA) posted this message earlier this morning on Facebook:

It’s been a busy week at the capitol. There have been a lot of bills filed and the gun hating antis seem to be distracted as to which way to go.

The week led off with published reports that there is major movement in the senate with the Senate President realizing the votes exists to pass RTC. Almost immediately the gun hating crowd went into a tizzy. For some time the anti-gunners have claimed very low support for RTC regardless of the fact that it failed by only two votes.

Now things are taking shape. The fact that we are just one of two states that have no opportunity for average citizens to exercise the right to self defense in public is sinking in. The fact that if nothing is done, we will be the only one, is sinking in.

The other political calculus is that downstate democrats are feeling a lot of heat over several issues and they think the only way to get a chance at re-election is to bring home RTC. This is causing them to apply pressure to their leadership. Their feeling is that many of the conservative democrats that are their base are bent out of shape and they will lose the edge if they can’t deliver Right To Carry. Those pleas are being noticed by leadership such as Senate President Cullerton.

While we fight the right to carry battle, we have introduced a number of other bills to strengthen the right to keep and bear arms and protect it further. At the same time, the City of Chicago and the gun hating crowd have re-introduced their stale package of bills to ban semi-autos, stop private sales of firearms, ban standard magazines, limit you to one gun per month, tax your ammunition and run gun dealers out of business. Mind you, some of these could pose real threats. Ending private sales, banning standard magazines and modern semi-autos are at the top of their wish list.

With the shooting in Arizona still fresh in people’s mind, they are once again trying to dance in the blood of the victims to try and move their political agenda. The problem they are having is that not many politicians are paying attention to them, and the Supreme Court has placed handcuffs on what they want to do.

Three things showed us this week what kind of a panic the other side is in;

1. A Board member for the Brady campaign barged into a conversation to make unfounded aspersions and tell us that the coming debate would be about dead children. They are just seething to have a verbal assault because the rest of their little tantrum is falling on deaf ears. So they lash out at us personally.

2. Another anti-gun Brady supporter activist came up and stated a willingness to trade away a may issue RTC for a proposal they want. Why would they offer to trade away RTC? They reached too far and are now losing their last stronghold. The fact that they are willing to deal, shows that even they see the writing on the wall — they are losing Illinois.

3. Anti-gun groups are trying to rally the troops and are bringing in outside help. The nationals are banging the gong with the revelations about Illinois. If their last hope for anti-gun-topia, the Kalifornia of the Midwest is going down like the Titanic, what do they have left?

Their future is bleak! How can they sell their gun hating ideas around the country if they lose Illinois?

What to expect;

Look for the national anti-gun groups to circle the wagons around Illinois. Look for more national figures or representatives from their groups to show up here over the next few weeks, and look for them to say or do almost anything to save face.

So what can you do?

1. Start calling your legislators and politely tell them, you oppose the Chicago gun control plan to punish law abiding citizens. A list of those bills can be found on the ISRA website

( http://www.isra.org/legislation/ ) or the Illinois Carry website (illinoiscarry.com) in their forums section.

2. Tell your legislators that you support Right To Carry and other pro-2A reforms proposed by ISRA, and NRA.

3. Attend IGOLD on March 10th so you can tell your legislators in person and those legislative leaders that it’s time to pass Right To Carry, 48 and soon to be 49 states can’t be wrong.

This will be a marathon fight this year, but one with great potential for protecting and expanding the codification of those rights that Dick Heller and Otis McDonald fought so hard for. Please do your part, call, write, and show up to be counted.

If Illinois adopts concealed carry – even a may-issue concealed carry – it would be a huge step towards re-normalizing guns in America.

I fully expect Wisconsin to pass a concealed carry law if they can ever find their missing Democrat State Senators reputed to be hiding in Illinois. As an aside, I wonder if we could commission Dog the Bounty Hunter to drag at least one of them back so they can have a quorum in the Wisconsin Senate.

Back to Illinois, one must wonder how much the end of the “reign” of Mayor Daley plays into all of this. With Daley gone or soon to be gone, how much power does he continue to wield over the Illinois General Assembly? Would we even be talking about concealed carry passing with a veto-proof majority if Daley wasn’t a lame duck? I don’t think so..

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Senate Judiciary Committee Posts Material On Andrew Traver

February 21, 2011 by

The Senate Judiciary Committee has posted the material they have received in support of Andrew Traver’s nomination to be the Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. The materials include answers to the Committee Questionnaire, press releases involving Traver, speeches and appearances made by Traver, and finally interviews with the press by Traver while he has been serving as SAC of the Chicago Field Division.

Included are the official letters of support on the nomination from the following law enforcement groups:

* February 8, 2011 – Major Cities Chiefs Association
* January 24, 2011 – Major County Sheriffs’ Association
* January 18, 2011 – National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives
* January 12, 2011 – National Sheriffs’ Association
* December 9, 2010 – National Narcotic Officers’ Associations’ Coalition
* December 9, 2010 – International Association of Chiefs of Police
* December 7, 2010 – Women in Federal Law Enforcement

Most of the law enforcement groups have a record of being anti-gun rights. For example, National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) passed a resolution in support of the Brady Campaign. The IACP, Major Cities Chiefs Association, and the National Sheriffs Association all are on record as opposing the Tiarht Amendment.

There are no major surprises in the material submitted. One does get a sense of Traver’s willingness to demonize certain firearms as seen in this from a 2006 press conference announcing prosecutions of gang members:

THESE FIREARMS ARE REPRESENTATIVE OF THE FIREARMS SEIZED DURING THIS INVESTIGATION. THE AK-47 TYPE ASSAULT RIFLES ARE DEVASTATING, HIGH-CAPACITY WEAPONS THAT FIRE A ROUND EASILY CAPABLE OF PENETRATING POLICE BODY ARMOR. WE CONDUCTED A TEST WHERE WE PLACED A BALLISTIC VEST IDENTICAL TO THOSE WORN BY ATF AGENTS ON THE STREET ON A TARGET ST AND AND SHOT IT WITH A .40 CALIBER HANDGUN. THE VEST EASILY STOPPED THE BULLET. THEN WE SHOT THE VEST WITH AN AK-47 – THE BULLET COMPLETELY PENETRATED THE VEST AND EXITED THROUGH THE BACK LEAVING A GAPING EXIT WOUND THE SIZE OF TWO CLENCHED FISTS.

The same could have been said about a Winchester Model 94 lever action carbine in .30-30. The average bulletproof vests worn by law enforcement are rarely capable of stopping any centerfire rifle bullet.

I did get one question answered. I had wondered in the past why Traver’s Navy career appeared to be so short. According to the answers he submitted to the Committee’s Questionnaire, Traver received a hardship discharge/resignation and left the Navy as an Ensign (O-1) in May 1987. He had only been assigned to his first duty assignment, USS Benjamin Stoddart, for approximately 9 months. The next month he started working in law enforcement for the Crystal Lake, IL Police Department and for ATF a few months later. I don’t know enough about Navy Bureau of Personnel (BUPERS) operations to know whether his hardship discharge was unusual or not. (If anyone does know about BUPERS hardship discharges for officers, I’d be interested.)

There is no hearing date set for Traver. There is some speculation that the delay is due to Project Gunwalker and the fear of the questions that Sen. Charles Grassley would ask of Traver. As David Codrea notes in his Gun Rights Examiner column:

The only question seems to be is the decision to hold off on what the anti-gun choice lobby deems a “crucial position” was initiated by Chairman Leahy, by the nominee himself, or by his Justice Department handlers.

The answer to David’s question would be interesting.

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Nickels

February 20, 2011 by 6 Comments

Frankly, this isn’t new financial advice. James Wesley, Rawles, author of Patriots who blogs at SurvivalBlog.com, has been urging people to accumulate nickels for years. There are two reasons behind it. First, the raw metals that make up a nickel – copper and nickel – are worth 7.3 cents as of the close of business on February 18th. So for 5 cents you get something worth more if it is melted down. If commodity prices decline to zero, the coin will still return 5 cents. In other words, it is an investment that only has an upside.

Second, Gresham’s Law says good money drives out bad. In other words, money who’s nominal value and commodity value are close will be worth more than those where the commodity value is virtually nil when compared to the nominal value. To put this in perspective, a dime whose nominal value is 10 cents has a commodity value of 2.6 cents. An even greater disparity is found in the golden Presidential Dollar coins. Their face value is $1 but their melt value is only 7.7 cents.

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Update On Castle Doctrine Hearings In North Carolina

February 20, 2011 by

Grass Roots North Carolina released this alert today on the Castle Doctrine bill hearing in the State Senate:

Senate Bill 34: “Castle Doctrine” received its first hearing in the NC Senate Judiciary II Committee yesterday, and thanks to your input and the efforts of two pro-gun Senators, it is likely to be passed out of the committee far stronger than it its original version.

In the days leading up to the meeting, members of the GRNC Legislative Team worked the committee, handing out comparisons between current NC law, the three Castle Doctrine bills thus far introduced, and other states which have adopted similar laws. Chaired by longtime GRNC supporter Sen. Austin Allran (R-Catawba, GRNC ****), the first meeting was intended to give all parties their say on the bill.

Although SB 34 is presently a weak bill based on a compromise made in the previous legislative session, Judiciary II co-chair Buck Newton (R-Nash/Wilson, ****) and SB 34 sponsor Andrew Brock (R-Davie/Rowan) are preparing amendment language to address weaknesses in the bill, potentially bringing it to a version similar to GRNC’s preferred version, HB 74.

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The Rich And Famous

February 19, 2011 by

Fitzgerald: The rich are different than you and me.

Hemingway: Yes, they have more money.

While this is actually a misquotation of a conversation between F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway, when applied to New York City’s pistol permits system, the rich (and famous) are different than you and me. They can get their pistol permit applications approved.

In an article published today entitled The Rich, the Famous, the Armed, the New York Times examined New York City public records to see who had a pistol permit. In a city of 8.3 million residents, only 37,000 people have pistol permits.

Among the more than 37,000 people licensed to have a handgun in the city are dozens of boldface names and public figures: prominent business leaders, elected officials, celebrities, journalists, judges and lawyers.

Some expressed pride in their gun ownership, like the renowned divorce lawyer Raoul Felder, who readily posed with his .38-caliber Smith & Wesson. Others, including David Breitbart, Yetta Kurland and Walter Mack, all well-known lawyers, were irked to learn they would be included in an article based on the public records. And there were a few conflicted souls, like Alexis Stewart, co-host of “Whatever With Alexis and Jennifer” on SiriusXM radio and the Hallmark Channel.

“I don’t believe people should be allowed to have guns in America,” Ms. Stewart, daughter of Martha, said in an interview, explaining that she bought a .357 Magnum after 9/11 — but would be happy to give it up if handguns were banned. “Having a swimming pool is way more dangerous than having a gun,” she added.

While I would agree with Alexis Stewart that a swimming pool is more dangerous than a firearm in the house, her hypocrisy irks me. Because she is part of NYC’s privileged class, she can get a pistol permit and did. However, she doesn’t believe that people (other than her) should have guns in America. She, of course, would “give it up if handguns were banned”. Of course she would – because she’d would then just hire a bodyguard to protect her from the riff-raff.

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Debit-Card Fraud

February 19, 2011 by 1 Comment

This is a good video about banks and your protection against debit-card fraud. Given that only 44% of banks will make you whole on your losses, it is a good idea to check with your bank to see if they are part of that 44%.

Since I have been the target of identity theft in the past, one tip I would suggest is to make use of your bank’s email notification services. For example, I get an email every morning from my bank telling me what my balance is from the previous day. When I was responsible for my late mother’s accounts, I had it set up so that I got a low balance notification and a notification for any transaction over a certain dollar amount. This last one would be very useful in providing alerts of unauthorized transactions.