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Debney Out at AOBC/Smith & Wesson On Eve Of SHOT Show

January 16, 2020 by 1 Comment

James Debney, CEO and President of American Outdoor Brands, was dismissed by the Board of Directors today. He had been slated to be the CEO of the American Outdoor Brands sporting goods segment when the company splits later this year.

From The Guardian

From the news release:

American Outdoor Brands Corporation, today announced that its Board of Directors has named Mark P. Smith and Brian D. Murphy as co-Presidents and co-Chief Executive Officers of American Outdoor Brands Corp., effective immediately.   Smith was most recently President of the Manufacturing Services Division of the company, while Murphy was most recently President of the Outdoor Products & Accessories Division.  In their co-leadership roles, Smith and Murphy succeed James Debney, who has separated as President and Chief Executive Officer and as a Director of the company, following the determination by the Board of Directors that he engaged in conduct inconsistent with a non-financial company policy.

The “inconsistent” conduct was not specified in the release.

Mark Smith was already slated to head the new Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. after the spin-off.

Brian Murphy is now going to become the CEO and President of American Outdoor Brands, Inc. after the company is split into a sporting goods segment and a firearms segment.

Coming just before SHOT Show starts in less than a week, this is an interesting development.

The new release goes on to quote the Chairman of the Board Barry Monheit as saying:

We appreciate James’ contributions toward the growth and development of our company and its infrastructure.  The Board believes the company is fortunate to have two highly capable and experienced leaders in Mark Smith and Brian Murphy.  Each has played a critical role in the development of our strategic plans, including our intention to establish each business as an independent, publicly traded company.  In addition, Mark and Brian have each demonstrated, through years of leadership and service, their extensive knowledge of and passion for our company, our customers, and our industries.  Their capabilities and objectives position them well to share the combined CEO role as the team completes the separation of our two businesses later in 2020.  The Board has every confidence that they will provide the vision and determination to lead each independent company and its highly respected brand portfolio toward a successful future.

The Wall Street Journal reports that the spokesperson for the company did not provide any details on why Debney was fired beyond what is contained in the news release. Their article also takes note that the firing occurred just days before the SHOT Show was to begin.

Debney earned $3.76 million in compensation for the last year. Most of that compensation was due to bonuses and stock awards on top of his $750,000 salary.

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Oh! The Horror!

January 15, 2020 by 2 Comments

Magpul donated 1,000 30-round PMags for the NRA to give out to those who attended the January 13th NRA rally at the Virginia State Capitol. Duane Liptak, Magpul’s Executive VP, is a member of the NRA Board of Directors. Bear in mind that a magazine ban is one of the agenda items for anti-gun Democrats in the Virginia General Assembly. A magazine ban, I should add, that has no grandfathering.

Giving out 30-round PMags was reminiscent of what Magpul did for rallies in Vermont in 2018 and in Colorado in 2013. In other words it was nothing new. Nonetheless, the gun prohibitionists at the Cult of Personality known as Giffords have their panties in a wad over this.

Gun rights advocates from around the country are urging armed protesters to descend on Virginia’s capital before the General Assembly’s first legislative session of 2020 to stop Democrats from passing gun-control bills.

The NRA is even getting involved by offering to hand out 30 round magazines to protesters for free if they show up.

Tweet from the NRA: EMERGENCY AIRLIFT: @Magpul_HQ sent us 1,000 30 Round PMAGs to hand out tomorrow in Richmond to NRA members who show up to fight Northam's extreme gun ban! We'll see everyone TOMORROW at the General Assembly Building in Senate Sub-Committee Room1 on the 5th Floor at 8am!

A 30 round magazine was used to shoot this organization’s co-founder, Gabby Giffords, kill six people and injure 12 others in Tucson.

First off no magazine of any size can be used “to shoot” anyone. A magazine is merely a container. It, more importantly, just like a firearm is an inanimate object that cannot do anything unless it is used by human being.

In Ms. Giffords’ case, the murderer in Tucson had a Glock pistol as his weapon of choice. He did have a Glock 18 knock-off magazine that jammed when he was reloading allowing heroic bystanders to end his rampage.

The killer bought it legally after passing a FBI NICS check. That he was able to pass such a check despite evidence of mental issues was due to the failure of school authorities to report his behavior and due to the Pima County Sheriff’s Department ignoring his actions. The latter was due to a friendly relationship between the killer’s mother and Sheriff Clarence Dupnik.

Giffords and other such organizations who send out these pleas for money rely on shock value and the decay of memory with regard to past events. That it is dishonest has never stopped them in the past and won’t stop them in the future. Fortunately, there are both the Internet and those of us with long memories to set the record straight.

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Northam Issues Temporary Ban On Firearms On VA Capitol Grounds

January 15, 2020 by 4 Comments

One of the first acts of the new Democrat-controlled Virginia General Assembly was to ban firearms in the State Capitol and the adjacent office building. The new rule went into effect as of 11:59pm Friday, January 10th. This was done on a straight party line vote.

Gov. Ralph Northam (D-VA) has gone the General Assembly one better – or worse.

AP File Photo

From the Associated Press:

Fearing a repeat of the deadly violence that engulfed Charlottesville more than two years ago, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam plans to declare a temporary emergency Wednesday banning all weapons, including guns, from Capitol Square ahead of a massive rally planned next week over gun rights.

That’s according to two state officials who were briefed on the plans but not authorized to speak publicly about them. The governor, a Democrat, plans to announce the plans at a news conference Wednesday afternoon because of credible threats of potential violence and extremism, one official said.

Supposedly, there were “inflammatory” postings by out-of-state pro-gun groups. I don’t suppose they are talking about the NC House Republican Caucus who will be sending representatives to Lobby Day.

They also managed to throw the words “militia” and “Charlottesville” into the conversation. Unless there is an Antifa-wing of the Demanding Mommies that I don’t know about, this is just so much hyperbole.

Northam’s declaration will also ban helmets and shields. I guess any Viking Norsemen will have to leave them at home.

Northam and his backers attempts to portray honest gun owners seeking to petition their own legislature for redress is nothing short of an attempt to delegitimize them. It is an “othering”. It is straight out of Rule 13 of Alinsky’s Rules for Radicals.

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Pre-SHOT Show Releases, Part 2

January 15, 2020 by

The FN Mk20 SSR and the civilian variant FN SCAR 20S have been out since 2016. They are the long range precision version of the SCAR-17 aka SCAR Heavy. They traditionally have been chambered in 7.62×51 NATO.

FN America has now released the FN SCAR 20S in 6.5 Creedmoor.

For 2020, FN announces new advancements in the legendary FN SCAR® 20S – now chambered in the superb long range cartridge: 6.5 Creedmoor. Perfectly calibrated for long-range precision fire, the FN SCAR® 20S in 6.5 Creedmoor gives you the ability to engage targets exceeding 1,000 yards with ease. The chrome lined barrel of new FN SCAR® 20S  will deliver precision accuracy with improved barrel life. The gas-operated piston design and Surefire ProComp 762 muzzle device manage recoil efficiently to improve follow-up shots and maintain target acquisition. Lending further aid is the match-grade, two-stage trigger that breaks crisply at 3.5-4.5 pounds, full-length MIL-STD 1913 rail at 12 o’clock position, and fixed buttstock providing adaptability to fit to each user’s needs through adjustable length of pull and cheek rest height.

The rifle will be available in both flat dark earth (FDE) and black.

The trigger is a Geissele 2-stage match trigger (Geissele Super SCAR). The 20 inch barrel is cold hammer-forged and chrome lined. The weight of the 6.5 CM SCAR 20S will come in at 11.6 pounds.

The price? MSRP is $4,499.

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Davidson County Becomes 10th NC County To Adopt 2A Resolution (Update)

January 15, 2020 by

The Davidson County Board of Commissioners voted 7-0 tonight to adopt a resolution declaring the county a “Second Amendment Protected County”. Davidson thus become the tenth county in the state to adopt a Second Amendment Sanctuary resolution or the equivalent.

Resolution – Second Amendment Protection 1-14-20 v3 by jpr9954 on Scribd

In similar news, the North Carolina House Republican Caucus have adopted a letter stating that they support the cities and counties in Virginia that have declared themselves Second Amendment Sanctuaries. By extension, that would also include these NC counties that have done likewise.

From Freshman Majority Leader Steve Jarvis (R-Davidson) on Facebook:

The signers of the letter include Speaker Tim Moore and Majority Leader John Bell Freshman Majority Leader Steve Jarvis as well as 47 other members. Representative Kidwell will attend a rally on January 20th where he and several other members of the North Carolina House of Representatives including Rep Michael Speciale (Craven) and Rep Bobby Hanig (Currituck) will present the letter to the members of the Virginia legislature. “It is our hope that we can impress upon the Virginia legislature the importance of protecting the rights of the people they represent”. Said Rep. Kidwell. As stated in the letter, North Carolina and Virginia have stood together beginning with the revolution, and it is the hope of the signers of this letter of support that we will continue to stand with the citizens as their rights are being attacked in much the same way they were under colonial rule.

UPDATE: Allison Lee Isley of the Winston-Salem Journal has posted a series of photos from the Davidson County commissioners meeting. It looks like there was a good crowd there supporting the Second Amendment Protected County resolution.

The photos can be seen here.

The Dispatch of Davidson County had this comment at the hearing from a social studies teacher. It is not what one might expect to hear in other parts of the country.

Daniel Watson, a social studies teacher with the Davidson County School System, said there did not need to be a discussion on whether to pass the resolution.

“We just went through the Bill of Rights and if my kids can understand it, I expect this board could understand it,” Watson said. “If they come for the Second Amendment, the First Amendment is right behind it. It is what gives the First Amendment its teeth. If they take our guns, they take our freedom and you better believe your Bible is next. … The founding fathers are rolling over in their grave because we have to have a discussion about this.”

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Three More North Carolina Counties Adopt 2A Resolutions (Updated)

January 14, 2020 by 1 Comment

County Commissioners in three more North Carolina counties have adopted Second Amendment Sanctuary resolutions. Adding Beaufort, McDowell, and Stokes counties to the list now makes nine counties that have adopted some form of a Second Amendment resolution.

My friend Andy Stevens who resides in Stokes County reports that it was standing room only there with over 200 people attending the commissioners’ meeting. It was a 5-0 vote in favor of the resolution. As you can see below, the resolution declares Stokes to be a “Constitutional Rights Protection County for Second Amendment Rights”.

2nd Amendment PDF by jpr9954 on Scribd

McDowell County called their resolution a “Second Amendment Endorsement”. Also on their agenda was an agreement to open a public shooting range. Unfortunately, I don’t have a copy of their “endorsement” as it isn’t on their website. I have requested a copy of it from the McDowell County Clerk’s Office.

Beaufort County became the first eastern North Carolina county to adopt a Second Amendment Sanctuary resolution. The Beaufort County Second Amendment Sanctuary resolution passed 5-2. As a historical aside, Beaufort County is the sixth oldest existing county in North Carolina and was founded in 1705.

Old Beaufort County Courthouse, Built 1786

In addition to adopting this resolution, they also considered a resolution allowing county employees with concealed handgun permits to carry in most county buildings. The resolution stated they wanted their county employees to be able to protect themselves from “the wrongful, purposeful evil intent of the deranged individual.” The author of this resolution, Commissioner Stan Deatherage, pulled his resolution and will resubmit it after some tweaks.

2020 01 13 Regular Meeting Agenda by jpr9954 on Scribd

UPDATE: Thanks to the very quick response from McDowell County County Clerk Cheryl Mitchell, I now have the resolutions adopted by the Board of Commissioners yesterday. It actually goes beyond merely “endorsing” the Second Amendment to actually declaring that McDowell County is a Second Amendment Sanctuary.

McDowell 2nd Amendment by jpr9954 on Scribd

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Demanding Moms Channel CSGV In Comments About Lobby Day

January 13, 2020 by 3 Comments

When Ladd Everitt was the communications director for the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence (sic), it was a favorite tactic to characterize Second Amendment supporters as “gun extremists”. CSGV’s Executive Director Josh Horwitz took it a step further by calling those who opposed the Obama Administration‘s efforts “insurrectionists“. I was one of those called a “gun extremist” when I challenged the sainted Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY) over some of her comments.

In a news release about the VCDL’s Lobby Day next Monday, Moms Demand Action channels CSGV and calls it a “gun extremist rally”.

On January 20th, gun extremists – including out-of-state militia groups – will descend on the Virginia General Assembly, hoping to intimidate lawmakers into rejecting the democratic will of the people who, by wide margins, want (and voted for champions of) common-sense gun safety laws.

The Democrats won control due to court-ordered redistricting. The plan was devised by California-based special master Bernard Grofman of U. California – Irvine and intended to be most favorable to Democrats. It was approved in a 2-1 decision with Obama-appointed Judges Barbara Keenan and Arenda Allen in the majority. Republicans who opposed the new districts called it “legal indefensible” because it was so slanted towards the Democrats.

They portray Second Amendment Sanctuary resolutions as “lawless county resolutions”.

Lawless County resolutions, or as gun extremists call them, ‘Second Amendment Sanctuary’ resolutions, which threaten that officials will  disregard their duty to enforce duly enacted and constitutional laws, have no legal force. The resolutions also threaten the safety of communities nationwide by fostering distrust in law enforcement and may deter people from reporting individuals that may hurt themselves or others.

Since when did promoting respect for God-given, Constitutionally-protected rights become a threat to the safety of communities? That is the kind of argument one would have expected from racial segregationists who opposed school integration in the face of Brown v. Board of Education.

Overflow crowd at the Amelia County hearing

The news release continues and throws in “militia”, “white supremacist”, “Charlottesville”, and “Civil War” for good measure. I’m surprised they didn’t include “Boogaloo” as well. Remembering that Everytown and Moms Demand have the best PR flacks that money can buy, it is obvious that they want to scare both African-Americans and suburban “soccer moms” with this rhetoric. This is the sort of thing that Matt Bracken warned about in his comments on Lobby Day characterizing it as a Charlottesville-style setup.

They end this screed with a few words about their ultimate boogeyman – the NRA.

The NRA has yet to make any public statement disavowing the January 20th event or the various militia groups planning on attending. However, the NRA’s people and rhetoric are intertwined with the January 20th rally. The NRA put out a formal statement supporting the Lawless County resolutions, and former NRA TV personalities like Cam Edwards and Antonia Okafor are listed as speakers at the rally. The NRA has taken out billboards throughout Virginia ominously and baselessly warning of coming “confiscation” of firearms.

While the NRA hasn’t “disavowed” the VCDL’s Lobby Day, they haven’t supported it either. Instead, they came up with their own rally being held today. As to “baselessly warning” about confiscation, a magazine ban without grandfathering certainly meets the standard for confiscation.

We know the Demanding Moms don’t respect the Second Amendment. It is increasingly clear that they don’t support the First Amendment rights of their opponents. The First Amendment ends ” the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” That is exactly what the many thousands of Virginians and their supporters from other states will be doing on January 20th.

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This Is My Kind Of Sheriff

January 12, 2020 by

Greg Seabolt is the Sheriff of Randolph County, North Carolina. His recent statements regarding Second Amendment Sanctuaries make me proud to say I was born in Randolph County though I haven’t lived there for over 53 years.

From Sheriff Greg Seabolt’s Facebook Page

The Asheboro Courier-Tribune reports that Sheriff Seabolt will be bringing a Second Amendment resolution to the County Commissioners at their meeting on February 3rd.

Seabolt announced his intentions on his Facebook page saying:

My job as the Sheriff of Randolph County is to protect and serve the nearly 145,000 citizens. The laws of this great state are very important and must be enforced to insure the safety of our citizens. The rights of each individual in this country are also very important and must never be modified, misinterpreted or overlooked. These are the rights of our constitution that applies to all citizens of this great nation. We have many people attempting to intrude on those rights and that will not be tolerated. That is the reason I stand firm alongside other Sheriffs across this state to draft a proclamation which will be presented to the county commissioners. This resolution will indicate our intentions of preserving our 2nd amendment right so that all citizens can defend themselves against enemies foreign and domestic and never question their authority to bear arms.

My staff and I have been working diligently to prepare this resolution and our hope is deliver it to the commissioners next month. While the subject of the 2nd Amendment can often divide, we must stand firm and hold true that once our rights are infringed upon, we lose the ability to govern ourselves as our founding fathers imagined.

North Carolina needs more sheriffs like Sheriff Seabolt and fewer like some of the sheriffs in the larger counties.

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When You Have No Grass Roots, This Is How You See It

January 11, 2020 by

When your organization has no real grass roots, you tend to see all real grass roots activities as being directed from above. That’s how you do it so you assume that is how the opposition does it.

This is how Brady United (aka the Brady Campaign) is choosing to portray the Second Amendment Sanctuary movement.

Disturbing so-called “Second Amendment sanctuaries” are a coordinated effort supported by politically motivated, national groups. Since 2018, more than 270 counties have passed resolutions declaring themselves as “Second Amendment sanctuaries,” and this number continues to rise. 

Christian Heyne, the Brady VP for Policy, said, ” We are not talking about a grassroots movement. We are talking about a dangerous push from the gun lobby to remain relevant.”

This, of course, is pure, unadulterated bullshit.

What you are seeing in Virginia as in North Carolina is not being directed from Fairfax. If anything, the NRA is late to the game here.

What you are seeing is an organic effort by state and local groups to assert their God-given, Constitutionally-protected rights. This would include state-level groups like the Virginia Citizens Defense League and the Illinois State Rifle Association.

From VCDL in Prince William County, VA

You see Facebook groups springing up like with Rowan County pushing the movement. You see local citizens like in Kenton County, Kentucky recognizing that what is happening in the Virginia General Assembly could happen to them and taking action.

Unlike Brady United who is telling people how to fight Second Amendment Sanctuaries using FOIA requests, no one told my friend and fellow blogger Dave Cole to speak up in Kentucky. And no one has told the thousands and thousands of people who have shown up across Virgina to show up. They were asked and they responded.