Uncategorized

Every Picture Tells A Story, Part V

April 7, 2016 by 10 Comments

Idaho Gov. Butch Otter (R-ID) signed “permitless” concealed carry (aka constitutional carry) into law on March 27th. It allows Idaho citizens age 21 and over to carry concealed without a permit within city limits. They already had this right outside city limits. This made Idaho the ninth state to have constitutional carry.

On Tuesday, the Mississippi House of Representatives concurred with the Mississippi Senate on amendments to HB 786. The Senate amendments expanded what was originally just a church carry bill into one that included that and constitutional carry. The amended bill passed both houses with veto proof majorities. The bill now goes to Gov. Phil Bryant (R-MS) who is expected to sign the bill. That would make Mississippi the tenth state to have constitutional carry and the third to pass it this year. Some have criticized the bill as also including “nullification”.  Actually the bill doesn’t include nullification as it merely states that Mississippi officials and law enforcement don’t have an obligation to enforce Federal gun control laws which is in line with existing Supreme Court precedent.

Given that the number of states with constitutional carry has increased to 10, Rob Vance and I concluded it was time to update the graphic showing the spread of freedom. The graphic below shows how the United States has moved from no carry to shall-issue and permitless carry over the last 30 years. As I said a few years ago, shall-issue is the new norm. Maybe one day I’ll be able to change this to constitutional carry is the new norm.

Here are the population statistics that accompany the above graphic:

0.4% No Issue, HI
27.0% May Issue, CA,DC,MD,MA,NJ,NY,RI
65.4% Shall Issue
7.2% Unrestricted, AK,AR,AZ,ID,KS,ME,MS,VT,WV,WY

At the same time that shall-issue and permitless or constitutional carry have expanded, violent crime has decreased. While correlation isn’t causation, I do think this is significant. When this graphic was first developed, Rob noted that there was no positive correlation between carry and violent crime. Unfortunately, he also noted that a negative correlation has not yet been proved. Linoge at Walls of the City has been studying gun ownership and the incidence of violent crime for a number of years. His latest is posted here. He has a similar result. Thus, neither more guns or less restrictive carry means more crime.

Uncategorized

Useful Map If You Are Attending The NRA Annual Meeting

April 7, 2016 by 3 Comments

I came across this US Whiskey Map today. With the growth of small craft distillers, it is not a complete map. For example, here in Asheville, we have the Asheville Distilling Company which produces Blonde Whiskey which is a mix of Turkey Red Wheat and White Corn.

Nonetheless, if you are attending the NRA Annual Meeting in Louisville next month, it lists the major Kentucky bourbon distilleries. Many of these distilleries have tours that include a sample or two at the end. The Complementary Spouse and I are making the trip to the Annual Meeting a vacation which will include visits to a number of these distilleries. We plan to hit the Louisville area ones before the Annual Meeting and a number of the other ones afterwards.

Who knows? We may just run into you at one of these bourbon distilleries!

US Whiskey Map

From Visually.

Uncategorized

In Honor Of FireClean’s Lawsuit Against Bloggers

April 5, 2016 by 6 Comments

I present without comment – so I don’t get sued or something – a YouTube video that trainer Paul Carlson of Safety Solutions Academy (and the Gun Nation Podcast!) posted today.

If you liked this video, may I suggest you go to the GoFundMe page set up to support bloggers Andrew Tuohy and Everett Baker’s legal defense against the Federal lawsuit brought by FireClean LLC. I have donated a few bucks to them and would urge you to do so as well. If a company feels so threatened by bloggers especially one who is an undergraduate chemistry student like Baker that they file a Federal SLAPP lawsuit, well I just don’t think much of them regardless of the quality of their product.

Uncategorized

April Gun Contests

April 5, 2016 by 1 Comment

Aaron at the Weapon-Blog.Com has released his monthly list of contests where you can win a firearm or firearm accessory.

This month’s list includes 14 pistols, 15 rifles, and a ton of other stuff. If you enter one or more of these contests, please go over to Aaron’s blog and thank him. Also if you know of a gun giveaway not on this list, please let him know.

I have made the links hot for your convenience.

Handguns

Rifles

Shotguns

  • None this month

Air Rifles

  • None this month

Ammunition

Knives

Constitution

Gun Rights Organizations

  • None this month

Accessories

Raffles

Training

Hunting

  • None this month
Uncategorized

Haywood County Commissioners Blink

April 5, 2016 by

Last week I did a post advising readers in Haywood County that the commissioners were considering three new gun ordinances ranging from prohibition of firearms in all county buildings to an ordinance regulating shooting ranges. I’m pleased to say that thanks to the efforts of Grass Roots North Carolina and others there was a very large turnout at the County Commission meeting last Monday. Not one person who spoke did so in favor of these ordinances.

As I heard unofficially on Friday, the Haywood County commissioners have tabled these proposals. Now, as the alert below from GRNC makes clear, they have officially tabled them for the time being.

The new proposed outdoor shooting range ordinance would have exempted police ranges from the restrictions of the ordinance. While a private shooting range would have had to have a 300 foot property line buffer, no such buffer was required of police ranges. This is probably because they would have failed to meet that standard.

My friend Tim Glance of Old Grouch Military Surplus pointed out another interesting wrinkle. The range that the Waynesville PD uses for training and qualification is not owned by the town. It is owned by a private association of police officers. By the standards of the county’s ordinance, it would not have been in compliance though it would have been grandfathered in.

I salute those who could attend the meeting, those like Paul Valone that spoke, and those that wrote in to the commissioners. During this election year, your voices were heard. We need to keep up the pressure on the commissioners to scrap these ordinances.

The alert from GRNC is below:

ARE HAYWOOD COUNTY COMMISSIONERS HAVING SECOND
THOUGHTS ABOUT SNUBBING THE LAW-ABIDING?
What started as a proposed ordinance to ban ALL open and conceal carry
has resulted in some potential backpedalling by Haywood County’s commissioners.
Last
week’s county commission
meeting to discuss this proposed ordinance was a HUGE victory for gun
owners like yourselves. Not only did nearly 400 gun rights activists
pack the
meeting and let themselves be heard, but the county has now announced
that “The Haywood County Board of Commissioners will not take any action at their regularly scheduled meeting of
Monday, April 4, 2016 on the proposed ordinances for Carrying of Concealed Weapons and Displaying of Firearms …”


 
Scorched by hundreds of angry voter contacts, the Haywood
County manager last week attempted to justify the commission’s actions
as
an attempt to bring the county’s 1995 ban on concealed carry in parks
into compliance with changes in the law. In reality, the commission
attempted to manipulate statutory definitions to continue gun bands
which are no longer legal.
In addition to banning open carry and
concealed carry in all county buildings, their proposed changes would
reclassify
Allen’s Creek Park as a “recreational facility” and ban guns throughout
the park in violation of recent changes which GRNC made that
more narrowly define recreational facility to only athletic fields
during scheduled events, swimming pools, and gymnasiums.
GRNC president Paul Valone was the first
to address the commission. In addition to noting that their parks
restrictions were illegal and would result in a lawsuit which they could
not
win, he pointed out that just because they had had restrictions since
1995 in other county facilities didn’t mean they should continue those
restrictions.
Haywood
County is slow to learn what twelve other North Carolina counties
have discovered: that reducing restriction on the lawful concealed carry
of firearms helps save lives and keep citizens safe. Despite what the
naysayers would have us believe (more on them in a minute), county
governments like that in Haywood County are being put on notice that
law-abiding
citizens will not tolerate being disarmed for their so-called
protection.

 

The next meeting of the Haywood County
Commissioners is tomorrow (Monday) evening, and we strongly encourage
our members
to remain vocal about their opposition to this proposed ordinance. These
politicians need to be told, in no uncertain terms, that enacting these
sorts of restrictive ordinances (especially ones that may put them in
violation of state law) will have consequences at the polls and in
the courts.

 

And speaking of the naysayers
… we thought you should also know that the astroturf group North Carolinians Against Gun Violence (a wholly owned subsidiary of
Michael Bloomberg) had
the
audacity to plagiarize GRNC’s March 26 alert and calling for its members
to attend the meeting. The evidence of this group’s ineptitude was
clear:
when asked by one of the speakers addressing the commission for a show
of hands of all who supported the proposed gun ban, none of the
attendees at
last week’s meeting identified themselves as a member of this shady
organization. We know that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery,
but this
simply proves that astroturf will never equate to real grass roots support.


IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED!
  • EMAIL THE HAYWOOD COUNTY COMMISSIONERS.
    Urge them to scrap
    the gun-ban ordinance altogether. Below, find a copy/paste email list,
    and under ‘Deliver This Message,’ you’ll find a copy/paste email message
    to
    send.

    Contact list: markswanger@bellsouth.net; kirk@jwklaw.net; lkensley@bellsouth.net; sorrells@cbvnol.com; billupton@bellsouth.net

     

  • Let North Carolinians Against Gun Violence know that plagiarism is
    stooping to a new low, even for them. We suggest leaving them a polite note on their Facebook page encouraging
    them
    to come up with their own material for alerts to their “supporters.”
    Something short and sweet like “Hey gun grabbers, can you please
    stop plagiarizing Grass Roots North Carolina when you send alerts to
    your “supporters?”

DELIVER THIS MESSAGE

Suggested Subject: “Scrap the Gun Ban in Haywood
County”  

Dear Commissioners:
I have recently been informed of the gun ban that is being considered by the Haywood County
Commission, and I am writing to urge you to scrap bans on open and concealed carry on county property entirely.

As
the nearly 400 gun supporters in attendance at last week’s meeting
made abundantly clear, a patchwork of “gun-free” zones serve only to
make accidental criminals out of otherwise peaceful, law-abiding
citizens, while doing nothing to ensure anyone’s safety. A vote to close
all county facilities to the lawful carry of handguns will only convey
a disrespect for civil rights as they relate to the Second Amendment,
and will ultimately endanger both the citizens and employees of Haywood
County.


You
may be unaware of the new trend that is currently
sweeping our state. In recent months, county after county, after
recognizing the fallacy of “gun free” zones, has moved in the direction
of
more gun-freedom rather than less: Alamance, Ashe, Cabarrus, Cherokee,
Craven, Forsyth, Lenoir, Pitt, Person, Rowan, Union, and Wilkes
ounties, and the list continues to lengthen. This is a positive trend,
and I would strongly recommend that Haywood County consider this course,
rather
than a sure-to-be fruitless and disrespectful gun ban.

I
will continue to monitor this issue through alerts from Grass Roots North Carolina. 
Respectfully,
Uncategorized

The Other Felons Just Did It More Illegally

April 5, 2016 by 1 Comment

Gabby Giffords and her Americans for Responsible Solutions are touting the success of Washington State’s I-594 in stopping felons from purchasing firearms. The 50 felons were attempting to purchase a firearm through a private sale and not through a FFL.

Given the Tweet was published on April 1, I don’t know if this is an April Fools joke on their part or not.

Doing the math which I hope that even Gabby could do, 50 felons divided by 14 months equals 3.57 attempted purchases per month or less than one per week. If that is a measure of success, it is a dumbing down of the meaning of success. All this proves is that 50 felons were stupid enough to try and purchase a firearm from someone who submitted the sale to a background check. No word on how many sales were made on street corners of stolen guns being sold by criminal gangs.

According to the story that accompanies her Tweet, not one felon was prosecuted for attempting to purchase a firearm.

2015 violent crime statistics for Washington State have not been released by the FBI and should not be expected until mid-year or later.

Uncategorized

Ford Tough!

April 4, 2016 by 2 Comments

The slogan for Ford pickup trucks is “Ford Tough!” As the video below shows, Ford F-150s may be tough but they aren’t tougher than a 7.62×39 round.

This video is also a good demonstration of the principle of sight offset. It is one of those principles that just can’t be violated without consequences.

Sorry for the light blogging last week. Work was busy and I was trying to finish up our taxes.

 H/T Peter B.

Uncategorized

Interesting Japanese Conversion Of A M1 Garand

March 29, 2016 by 4 Comments

Ian McCollum of Forgotten Weapons Blog always comes up with the most interesting old guns. In the video below, he discusses the Japanese Type 4 Garand.

Garand? Japanese Garand? Yep!

Partway through 1944, the Japanese Imperial Navy began a program to provide their infantry units with better firepower than was afforded by the bolt action Arisaka rifles. The initial experimentation was based on rechambering captured US M1 Garand rifles for the 7.7 Japanese cartridge, but an incompatibility of American en bloc clips with the Japanese cartridge hamstrung the project. In response, the M1 was reverse engineered, and the Yokosuka Naval Arsenal began to manufacture a copy of the rifle which would use a 10-round fixed magazine fed by two standard stripper clips.


This rifle was designated the Type 4 (2604/1944), although it is often referred to today as the Type 5. In total, parts for 200 rifles were manufactured, but only about 125 had been actually assembled into functional guns by the time the war ended.

Uncategorized

Anti-Gun County Commissioners In Haywood County?

March 28, 2016 by 2 Comments

I lived in Haywood County, North Carolina for 32 years and still have property there. Thus, when I got the alert below from Grass Roots North Carolina about the intended anti-gun actions of the Haywood County Board of Commissioners I began to get angry.

Then I read the three proposed ordinances and became really angry. There are parts of the first two ordinances that are direct violation of state law regarding carry in state, county, and municipal parks and that is just the beginning.

 Moreover, the outdoor range ordinance requires more of private ranges than it does of the county’s own sheriff’s department. The proposed ordinance §161.07(B)(1) states, “All shooting stations and targets on a range shall be located a minimum of three hundred feet (300’) from any property line.” The backstop of the range that they share with the Maggie Valley Police Department is a mere 90 feet from the nearest property line. §161.07(D) of the ordinance requires that ” All shooting stations, targets, and firing lines” be more than 1/4 mile or 1,320 feet from any occupied building. There are two retail stores at about 1,100 feet from the backstop and a handful of residences that are within the 1/4 mile radius of the target range. You can see this in the screen cap from the Haywood County GIS map. The HCSD/MVPD range is adjacent to the Town of Maggie Valley water and sewer plant. I have labeled the firing line, backstop, and distances to the property line and buildings.

Click to enlarge

If you are a Haywood County resident, taxpayer, or just someone who visits the county, I would urge you to either attend the meeting on Monday or email the commissioners. I most certainly intend to do so.

Here is the complete alert from GRNC:

COUNTY MULLS GUN BAN

FOR THE LAW-ABIDING
A special meeting will be held regarding a gun-ban
ordinance this Monday, at 5:30 PM, in the Haywood County Courtroom of the Historic Courthouse (more meeting details below).

Please join GRNC President F. Paul Valone at this meeting,
where the Haywood County Commissioners will be discussing  an ordinance to
BAN ALL OPEN AND CONCEALED CARRY in and on any county owned or controlled property. This ordinance
would reverse regulations dating back to 1995, which recognize the citizens’ civil rights in this area. (Click here to read a copy of the proposed new
ordinance).

Some commissioners have claimed
that the increase in gun ownership has created an unsafe atmosphere.
Yet,
statistics show that more crime happens in so-called “gun-free” zones.
Gun owners must inform the commissioners that we know the facts, and
we won’t be fooled by false arguments, and emotional appeals.

Below, find out how you can
contact the county commissioners and let them know that what they’re
considering is
wrong, and not at all acceptable. Also, get details on the meeting so
you can attend and help to put a stop to this effort to disarm good
people like
you, “put you in your place,” and make you easy prey for the bad guys.

IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED!
  • EMAIL THE HAYWOOD COUNTY
    COMMISSIONERS    . Urge them to vote against the gun-ban ordinance. Below, find a copy/paste email
    list, and under ‘Deliver This Message,’ you’ll find a copy/paste email message to send.
CONTACT INFO
County
Commissioners copy/paste email list: 
markswanger@bellsouth.net; kirk@jwklaw.net; lkensley@bellsouth.net; sorrells@cbvnol.com;
billupton@bellsouth.net

  • ATTEND THE COUNTY COMMISSION’S SPECIAL MEETING THIS MONDAY, MARCH
    28    . Join
    GRNC President F. Paul Valone at this critical event. See details below:

WHEN:
 Monday,
March 28, 2016 5:30 PM
WHERE: Historic Courthouse

Haywood County Courtroom

215 N. Main St.
Waynesville, NC
HINTS: Dress for the press! Please no offensive signs,
slogans or clothing.
Be sure to arrive early, as seating may be limited.

DELIVER THIS MESSAGE

Suggested Subject: “Vote No on Gun Ban in Haywood
County”  

Dear Commissioner:
I have recently been informed of the gun ban that is being considered by the Haywood County
Commission, and I am writing to urge you to vote against any such gun ban.

A patchwork of “gun-free” zones
serve only to make accidental criminals out of otherwise peaceful,
law-abiding citizens, while doing nothing to ensure anyone’s safety. A
vote to close all county facilities to the lawful carry of handguns will
only convey a disrespect for civil rights as they relate to the Second
Amendment, and will ultimately endanger both the citizens and employees
of
Haywood County.

You may be unaware of the new trend
that is currently sweeping our state. In recent months, county after
county,
after recognizing the fallacy of “gun free” zones, has moved in the
direction of more gun-freedom rather than less: Pitt, Person, Wilkes,
Rockingham, Cherokee, and Alamance counties—just to name a few. There
are more, and the list continues to lengthen. This is a positive trend,
and I
would strongly recommend that Haywood County consider this course,
rather than a sure-to-be fruitless and disrespectful gun ban.

Keep
Haywood County free and safe for law-abiding voters and
their families. Vote ‘no’ on any sort of gun ban. I will continue to
monitor this issue through alerts from Grass Roots North Carolina. 
Respectfully,




UPDATE: I received an email last night from Commissioner Kevin Ensley (R-Haywood) who said he would be voting in favor of concealed carry on county premises. Kudos to Mr. Ensley to listening to the people of Haywood County. I fear that some of the other commissioners are not so willing to listen to their constituents. 


Jerrika Insco of WLOS has a report on the Monday evening meeting here. I sense a lot of backpedaling on the part of the Haywood County Manager Ira Dove. He is trying to portray the moves by the county as being misunderstood by residents. He’s trying to say it has always been banned and all the county is doing is updating their ordinances to comply with state law. That is only partially true. Including the county-owned Allen’s Creek Park in the list of places that ALL carry is prohibited flies in the face of NCGS Sec. 14-415.23 which specifies where and where not carry can be prohibited in county, municipal, and state parks.
Uncategorized

Tone Deaf Politicians

March 24, 2016 by 4 Comments

If there is one thing that this political season has shown is that people are sick and tired of business as usual. How else do you explain the rise of a reality-TV star and billionaire businessman on the Republican side and an obscure, not even elected as a Democrat, self-avowed socialist on the Democratic side of the ticket. Both Trump and Sanders would be long gone in years gone by.

In the midst of all of this comes a proposal from New Jersey State Senator Gerald Cardinale (R-Bergen, Passaic) that would allow legislators and municipal and superior court judges to obtain carry permits to protect themselves. Nevermind that it takes an Act of God and then some for ordinary New Jerseyans to get carry permits or even a pistol purchase permit. Witness the death of Carol Bowne who was still waiting for her permit when her stalker killed her.

From the Bergen Dispatch:

Senator Gerald Cardinale (R-Bergen, Passaic) introduced a bill that would allow legislators, as well as judges at the superior and municipal court levels, to obtain permits to carry handguns provided they complete at least eight hours of firearm safety training.

“Judges and legislators face a greater risk of falling victim to violent attacks, simply because of their easily identifiable position in public life,” Senator Cardinale said. “This measure will ensure that public servants have the means to protect themselves from those who might violently disagree with their viewpoints or decisions. A judge should feel safe returning home each night no matter how they ruled or what they ruled on that day.”

The bill (S-1982) was inspired by attacks, such as the 2011 shooting of Arizona Congresswoman Gabby Giffords. Giffords was shot in an assassination attempt during a meeting with constituents at an Arizona supermarket. More recently, a Texas judge was wounded in a shooting outside of her home in Austin.

Judges and legislators would be exempt from New Jersey’s requirement to show “justifiable need”. They would merely have to show that they took an 8-hour class.

Alexander Roubian of the NJ Second Amendment Society is correct when he calls Cardinale’s proposal completely hypocritical.

Judges and politicians are generally well-guarded by security and they have easy access to police, Roubian noted. And, he argued, they’re already more likely than average citizens to pass the “justifiable need” test because they’re friends with the judges who issue the permits.


“Basically, this is a clear-cut example of how New Jersey operates as a fiefdom. The politicians’ and the judges’ lives, they truly believe, are more valuable than those of average citizens like you and I,” Roubian said.

I would add that Sen. Cardinale, in this of all years, just doesn’t get it. Given that he has been in one house or the other of the New Jersey legislature since 1980, maybe it is time for the 82-year old dentist to go home.