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Another Win For Crimson Trace

July 24, 2011 by 3 Comments

Crimson Trace won a Shooting Industry Academy of Excellence Award for their Lightguard. I have a Laserguard on my Ruger SR9c and like it. It was very easy to install and turns on when you grip the pistol. Now to find a custom holster for it.

Crimson Trace Wins Seventh Consecutive Academy of Excellence Award

(Bowling Green, KY) Crimson Trace’s new Lightguard™ platform garnered the coveted Shooting Industry Academy of Excellence award on Friday, adding one more win to the company’s already impressive track record. In front of around 300 industry peers, Lew Danielson CEO of Crimson Trace accepted the accolade for Best Self Defense Product on behalf of the company he founded 15 years ago.

Academy of Excellence award nominees are selected on the basis of innovation and quality, with individual members of the shooting industry voting for the products they consider to be the best in their field. The Lightguard system of pistol-mounted lights allows the user to positively identify their target in a low-light environment and is sufficiently lightweight and compact to allow for concealed carry. “It’s a great honor to accept this award on behalf of the hard-working folks at Crimson Trace,” said Danielson. “We’ve introduced many new products this year, building on our previous successes, but we still design and manufacture everything right here in the USA.”

The Lightguard platform fits popular models of Glock, Smith & Wesson and Springfield handguns and the company plans to introduce more models in the coming months. With a profile no wider or longer than the pistol’s slide and an impressive 100 lumen output, the Lightguard fits comfortably into a concealment holster and will run for 2 hours on one CR2 battery.

CORRECTION: My discussion was on the Laserguard while Crimson Trace won for the Lightguard. I have made corrections above. I do like my Laserguard.

As to the Lightguard, it seems to be a much smaller and easier activated light than other alternatives.

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The Ultimate JMB Collector’s Item

July 23, 2011 by 2 Comments

While I might argue that you can’t have too many 1911s (or Browning Hi-Powers), this is a one of a kind collector’s item for the ultimate John Moses Browning fan.

The Browning Mansion in Ogden, Utah is now on the market again. The price for the 8 bedroom, 3 bath home which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places is a mere $350,000. It has updated heating and cooling system and new carpeting.

For all we know, the ghost of JMB inhabits the home and will share some of his gun-designing genius with the new owner.

Video Courtesy of KSL.com
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Interesting Connections

July 22, 2011 by 4 Comments

A post yesterday from “Noreaster” on the CleanUpATF.org forum pointed out that Acting Director Kenneth Melson may not have been as far out of the loop on Project Gunwalker as he is claiming in his testimony with the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. Read the post below regarding Mark and Vivian Michalic who are both officials with ATF. Mark Michalic is an ATF Agent seconded to Deputy Attorney General James Cole as his Special Assistant while his wife Vivian is Assistant Deputy Director for Management and the former Chief of Staff to Ken Melson. This points in my opinion to a direct up and down communication link between the highest levels of ATF and the highest levels of the Justice Department. This is definitely something that deserves more attention from the House Oversight Committee.

Interesting talk with a good source at 99 New York the other day made me particularly angry about Melson claiming that he had no idea what was going on in F & F, which most of us think is a lie or cleaver lawyer-speak about what “know” or “learned” means.

1. Did you know ATF has had an ATF agent at DOJ HQ for 2 years working at the Special Assistant to the Deputy Attorney General? I didn’t, but his name is Mark Michalic, formerly of the Intel directorate (OSII). My source tells me this was a hook up from Jim McDermond, the former Secret Service guy and head of ATF Intel who got sent to be the assistant director of Public and Government Affairs last year. Michalic (my source said he is a good guy and a Waco vet) has been there so long he has worked for or with most of the people on Issa/Grassley’s latest demand memo for DOJ emails.

2. Michalic reports to and talks to Melson, Hoover, Sarnacki and Pelletiere as the official and unofficial link to senior management at DOJ and there are LOTS of emails between them.

3. Michalic’s wife is Vivian Michalic, the current assistant director for ATF’s Office of Management but also Melson’s former chief of staff. That directorate controls all of the money, personnel (until recently) and administrative things inside ATF.

So it looks like acting director Melson, breeder of Portuguese water dogs and Captain Crunch stunt double – a guy more in the weeds than any other director we have ever had wants us to believe that even though he had the IP address of surveillance cameras, demanded briefings for he and Hoover weekly, had an AD and former chief of staff feeding him information from AND TO his connection in the DAG’s office, that he didn’t know what was going on? I think that is bull s###.

If the tactic is for Melson and Hoover to blame everyone above and below and try to claim they were poor misled executives, I pray Sen. Grassley and Rep. Issa will not be fooled. If you want to use Melson to beat the hell out of DOJ that is your political business, but 5000 employees in ATF deserve better than just that. Act with honor. Act with speed. Act with courage or go down in history as letting 10-15 lousy ATF employees destroy an important government agency and damage ATF’s fight against violent crime, a fight we do better than any other agency, even as screwed up as were are right now.

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Issa Gives FoxNews A Preview Of Next Week’s Gunwalker Hearings

July 22, 2011 by 1 Comment

In an interview with FoxNews, Rep. Darrell Issa gives a preview of next week’s hearing on Project Gunwalker. Among the things Issa says is that if all the facts had been known, ATF would not have needed to even engage in Operation Fast and Furious. He made that point that there were people in DOJ who did have knowledge of all the various operations and still let ATF blunder along with Operation Fast and Furious.

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She Needs To Call Breda For That Answer

July 22, 2011 by 7 Comments

A number of Wisconsin municipalities are debating what restrictions, if any, they will place on concealed carry in city buildings now that concealed carry is the law in that state. The guidance from the League of Wisconsin Municipalities states:

According to a legislative bulletin from the League of Wisconsin Municipalities, the concealed carry law that Gov. Scott Walker signed into law July 8 prohibits carrying firearms into police stations and municipal courtrooms if court is in session.

Local governments also may ban firearms from municipal buildings if a proper sign is posted, but they can not prohibit them from municipal parks and open spaces, according to the League analysis.

In Whitewater, the City Council was presented a proposal from the Parks and Recreation Director to ban firearms in “the municipal building, library, White Building, armory, Starin Park Community Building, Cravath Lake Community Center and Train Depot building.”

Some members of the council seem a little bewildered by it all. For example, Marilyn Kienbaum had this to say:

“I can’t imagine why anyone would be carrying a gun into those places to begin with,” Councilwoman Marilyn Kienbaum said.

Perhaps, Councilwoman Kienbaum, pictured below, needs to speak with Breda – gun blogger, reference librarian, and Bersa-toter – for an answer to that question.

   
Whitewater Councilwoman Marilyn Kienbaum – Janesville Gazette
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The First Chicago Civilian Certified To Teach Chicago Firearm Permit Class

July 21, 2011 by 6 Comments

Colleen Lawson, one of the plaintiffs in McDonald et al v. Chicago et al, is now officially the first civilian from Chicago to be state-certified to teach the Chicago Firearm Permit class.

Colleen announced the good news on her Facebook page.

Congratulations to Colleen who is a wonderful person and who is dedicated to advancing gun rights in the face of huge obstacles. It is a designation that took a lot of hard work and dedication to attain.

UPDATE: Colleen emailed with a correction to this story. I had Colleen as the first civilian certified to teach the Chicago Firearm Permit class. She corrects this to be the first civilian living in Chicago – in other words a Chicagoan – to be certified. Colleen notes that ISRA instructors Richard Pearson, Doug Mayhall, and Lee Goharing are all civilians but live outside the City of Chicago.

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The Straw Buyers In Fast And Furious

July 21, 2011 by

Back in January, the BATFE announced with great fanfare that they had broken up a large straw purchasing and smuggling operation. The U.S. Attorney indicted 20 straw buyers. As William LaJeunesse of FoxNews reports, only one of those charged with straw purchases – a felony which carries a 10-year sentence – is still in prison. The rest were let out on bail within 24 hours of their indictment.

Watch the latest video at <a href=”http://video.foxnews.com”>video.foxnews.com</a>

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Next Round Of Gunwalker Hearings Announced

July 20, 2011 by 3 Comments

The House Oversight Committee has announced that the next round of hearings on Operation Fast and Furious (aka Project Gunwalker) will be held next Tuesday at 10am. The announcement is below.

Looking at the witness list, this one should be very interesting. Darren Gil, former ATF Attache to Mexico, was forced into retirement when he objected to the project. He was interviewed by Sharyl Attkisson of CBS News a few months ago.

It will be very interesting to hear what Bill Newell and William McMahon have to say. Given that Ken Melson has already met with the committee, they have to know that they will need to come clean. As I said a while back, having Newell spilling his guts has got to put fear into the higher ups in ATF and the DOJ.

I do have to wonder what sort of inane nonsense that Ranking Minority Member Elijah Cummings will come up with when questioning these witnesses given his performance last time.

“Operation Fast and Furious: The Other Side of the Border” will examine accounts of agents based in Mexico

Washington DC– On Tuesday, July 26th, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee will convene a hearing as part of the ongoing investigation into the Department of Justice’s Operation Fast and Furious, a tragically flawed effort that is connected to deaths on both sides of the U.S./Mexico border.

The Committee’s previous hearing, Operation Fast and Furious: Reckless Decisions, Tragic Outcomes, featured ATF agents who testified they were ordered to let guns destined for Mexican drug cartels walk and heartbreaking testimony from the family of a U.S. Border Patrol agent whose murder is linked to guns that law enforcement chose not to interdict.

This Tuesday’s hearing, Operation Fast and Furious: The Other Side of the Border, will feature the testimony of U.S. law enforcement officials who witnessed a different side of the controversial operation. These officials saw the steady stream of Operation Fast and Furious guns recovered at crime scenes in Mexico and were given orders from superiors not to alert Mexican authorities. Members of the Committee will also have their first opportunity to question ATF supervisors who have defended Operation Fast and Furious and the Justice Department’s decisions to committee investigators.

“The Acting Director of the ATF has told congressional investigators that the Justice Department is attempting to shift blame in Operation Fast and Furious away from its political appointees,” said Chairman Darrell Issa. “Examining the accounts of witnesses who did not participate in Operation Fast and Furious, but were nonetheless disturbed as they watched it unfold is critical to understanding the scope of this flawed program. This testimony is especially important in light of the Justice Department’s willful efforts to withhold key evidence from investigators about what occurred, who knew and who authorized this reckless operation.”

Operation Fast and Furious: The Other Side of the Border
Full Committee, Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif.

10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, July 26th in 2154 Rayburn House Office Building.

Witnesses

Mr. Carlos Canino – ATF Acting Attaché to Mexico
Mr. Darren Gil – Former ATF Attaché to Mexico
Mr. Jose Wall – ATF Senior Special Agent, Tijuana, Mexico
Mr. Lorren Leadmon – ATF Intelligence Operations Specialist
Mr. William Newell – Former ATF Special Agent in Charge, Phoenix Field Division
Mr. William McMahon – ATF Deputy Assistant Director for Field Operations (West, including Phoenix and Mexico)

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How To Say Nothing In Five Paragraphs

July 20, 2011 by 1 Comment

I got the following email today from Sen. Kay Hagan (D-NC) regarding efforts in Congress to remove the authority of the Environmental Protection Agency under the Toxic Substances Act to manage lead in ammunition, bullets, and fishing tackle. While I don’t actually remember writing her on this subject, I must have done so.

If you read the entire letter, nowhere in it does she say where she stands on the subject at hand. She’s happy to hear from me and wants me to continue to share my opinions with her. She says she is moderate and bipartisan. She says she supports the military and has military ties in her family. Blah, blah, blah.

What makes this banal email from her even more frustrating is that she is a co-sponsor of the bill in question. You would think if she got an email or letter asking her to support the bill, she would tout the fact that she not only supports the bill but is a co-sponsor.

This letter should be used in training classes for PR hacks as example of how to use spin on your constituents.

All I can say is that 2014 can’t get here soon enough.

July 19, 2011

Dear Friend,

Thank you so much for contacting my office in regards to the Hunting, Fishing, and Recreational Shooting Protection Act (S.838). I greatly appreciate hearing from you, and I hope you continue to share your opinions and ideas with me. I am honored to represent North Carolina in the United States Senate, and it is important to me that my office is open and accessible.

Whenever I am asked to evaluate an issue, I look at all perspectives and interests so I can make the most informed decisions possible. I have always felt that elected officials should do more to work across the aisle to pass legislation that benefits all Americans. I have strived to promote bipartisanship among my colleagues in the Senate, and I pledge to continue working with individuals from all political backgrounds as I champion the interests of North Carolina.

I take great pride in my moderate record, both in the United States Senate and the North Carolina Senate. Throughout my career in public service, I have been particularly dedicated to advocating for middle-class families, making sure our children have access to quality education and promoting fiscal responsibility. North Carolina is the most military-friendly state in the nation, and I will work to continue this tradition. My own family has a strong military background, and I am so proud of our brave men and women serving in the armed forces.

As legislation comes before Congress, please feel free to contact me with your concerns, questions, and ideas. I have always said that constituent service comes first. As I tackle issues in the Senate that are important to our state, I want as much input as possible from the citizens of North Carolina.

Again, thank you for contacting my office. It is truly an honor to represent North Carolina in the United States Senate, and I hope you will not hesitate to contact me in the future should you have any further questions or concerns.

Sincerely,

Signature

Kay R. Hagan