A Better Question To Ask

The Brady Campaign to Stop Gun Violence (sic) has started a campaign called "Asking Saves Kids". They are encouraging parents to ask other parents if there is an unlocked firearm in their house. The Brady Campaign alleges that thousands of children are killed annually.

From their web text that they are suggesting supporters use:

In America, one out of three homes with children has a gun, many kept unlocked or loaded. Every year thousands of kids are killed and injured as a result.

When one examines the CDC's National Vital Statistics Report - Deaths: Final Data for 2010, which tracks mortality and the cause of it, we see that 62 children under the age of 15 died as a result of an accidental (negligent) discharge of a firearm. Thus, the Brady's claim that "every year thousands of kids are killed" is an outright lie. See Table 10 on Page 40 for the confirmation of this.

As part of their campaign, the Brady Campaign has been releasing a series of YouTube videos and PSA videos. The one below is called "Conversations" and talks about awkward conversations. It tells parents to ask if there is an unlocked gun before letting their children go over to play.




I can suggest a better question to ask before letting little Jimmy go over to play with little Billy and Bobby.

Have your children been through the Eddie Eagle Program? If not, why not? Unlike anything put out by the so-called "gun safety" (sic) groups, it is a proven, award-winning program that has been shown to be effective in reducing accidental deaths of children with a firearm.

The bottom line is that locks can be defeated. Proper training like the Eddie Eagle program will help protect kids, locks or no locks.

ATK To Merge With Orbital Sciences And Spin Off Sporting Group

ATK, formerly Alliant Techsystems, Inc., announced today that they plan to merge with Orbital Sciences in a $5 billion deal. The new company will be called Orbital ATK. As part of the merger, ATK will spin off their sporting group to shareholders as a new company.

From the Wall Street Journal:

ATK valued the all-stock combination with Orbital at $5 billion and its shareholders would retain 53.8% of the aerospace and defense business, to be known as Orbital ATK.

The proposed deal, which is expected to close by the end of 2014, would match the total level of defense M&A over the past three years combined, and puts 2014 within reach of the $9 billion in deals reached in 2008. Executives had shied away from transactions before securing more visibility of business trends from the fiscal 2014 and 2015 Pentagon budgets.

Mark DeYoung, ATK's chief executive, would run the separated operation business which, with 2013 revenue of $2.2 billion, is less than half the size of the $4.5 billion aerospace and defense business.

Excerpts from ATK's press release on the merger:

The company's Sporting and A&D (aerospace and defense)businesses operate in two fundamentally different markets with very different operating dynamics, compliance requirements, customer sets and growth opportunities. As standalone companies, they will be more focused businesses, with clear and distinct strategic visions and objectives, additional operational flexibility and the financial strength to make the most of their unique opportunities in their respective industries.

Since entering the commercial ammunition and sporting accessories space in 2001, ATK has built a leading position in the shooting sports for hunters, shooting enthusiasts and law enforcement professionals. The acquisitions of Savage and Bushnell in 2013 enabled ATK to expand its core competencies while creating opportunities to enter into new, adjacent markets in the outdoor recreation industry.

In today's growing market, the Sporting Group enjoys expanded distribution for some of the most widely known and respected brands in the industry: Federal Premium, Bushnell, Savage Arms, BLACKHAWK!, Primos, Final Approach, Uncle Mike's, Hoppe's, RCBS, Alliant Powder, CCI, Speer, Champion Targets, Gold Tip Arrows, Weaver Optics, Outers, Bolle, Cebe, and Serengeti.

"Sporting continues to deliver excellent performance," said DeYoung. "Results from our recently completed fourth quarter demonstrated continued revenue and earnings growth, and margin expansion. Full details on our fourth quarter results will be discussed on our May 15 earnings call."

ATK believes that separating Sporting into a standalone entity will facilitate opportunities to further drive growth and marshal resources to broaden and deepen its market leadership. ATK believes that a more focused corporate leadership team, operating within a clearly defined commercial market with a competitive business model, will contribute to unlocking significant value for ATK shareholders. Following the completion of the transaction, Sporting will also enjoy a strong balance sheet that will provide the ability to fund its growth strategy. Over the past 10 years, ATK's Sporting Group has delivered annual sales growth of approximately 16 percent (14 percent organic growth).

And on the new management and location:

Upon completion of the transaction, Mr. DeYoung will serve as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Sporting. Mr. DeYoung is working with ATK's Board of Directors to develop detailed plans for an efficient and capable corporate structure with experienced management and strong governance policies and practices, as well as to establish the name and branding of Sporting. Sporting will be headquartered in Utah and is expected to employ nearly 5,800 workers in 11 states and worldwide.

And the details of the transaction which will be tax-free:

Under the terms of the transaction agreement, ATK will distribute ownership of Sporting to ATK shareholders in a spin-off transaction, following which, ATK shareholders will own 100 percent of Sporting. The spin-off will be immediately followed by a merger of Orbital with a subsidiary of ATK, with Orbital surviving the merger and becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of ATK. In connection with the merger, Orbital shareholders will receive 0.449 shares of ATK common stock for each share of Orbital common stock that they hold. Upon the closing of the merger, ATK shareholders will own approximately 53.8 percent of the combined company on a fully diluted basis and Orbital shareholders will own the remaining approximately 46.2 percent of the combined company on a fully diluted basis. As part of the transaction, Sporting has secured a $750 million senior secured financing commitment from BofA Merrill Lynch and will dividend $300-350 million of the proceeds of such new indebtedness to ATK immediately prior to the closing, which will be used by ATK to repay existing debt. Post issuing dividend to Orbital ATK, Sporting's net debt and total debt will be equal to the dividend. At the closing, Orbital ATK is expected to have a total of approximately $1.7 billion in gross debt and $1.4 billion of net debt. The transaction is expected to be tax-free to both companies as well as to ATK and Orbital shareholders.

The transaction is expected to close by the end of calendar year 2014, and is subject to customary closing conditions including regulatory approvals and the approval of each of ATK's and Orbital's shareholders. ATK and Orbital will continue to operate separately until the transaction closes.

The two most interesting aspects of this whole merger is that the sporting group will be spun off and that the current ATK CEO Mark DeYoung has cast his lot with the sporting group and not the aerospace/defense groups. It says a lot for the strength of the shooting sports industry that a CEO sees his future prospects as being better there than in the defense industry.

Comment Of The Day

In response to an announcement on Facebook by Cam Edwards that 75,267 people attended the NRA Annual Meeting in Indianapolis, Bob Owens (Editor of BearingArms.com) had this to say:

That's only 75,167 more than attended the Moms Demand Illegal Attention rally.

Not to mention that nearly all of those 75,267 who attended the NRA Annual Meeting paid their own way unlike those from Moms Demand Illegal Attention whose travel and lodging was paid for with Bloomberg's money.

No Word Yet On Drake v. Jerejian (Updated)

Examining the list of orders from the US Supreme Court issued this morning, the one obvious omission on the list was Drake et al v. Jerejian et al. This is the New Jersey case that challenges that state's requirement for the showing of justifiable need in order to obtain a carry permit.

The case was up for discussion as to whether to take it or not on Friday. As it hasn't been denied, I guess this means no news is good news.

UPDATE: Dirk Diggler reports in the comments that the SCOTUS has passed this case to this coming Friday's conference. Keep your fingers crossed.

UPDATE II: The SCOTUS passed on this again. It wasn't denied nor was it granted certiorari. Thus, for now, no news remains good news.

From Lyle Denniston at the SCOTUS Blog:

The Court also took no action on the latest attempt to get the Court to expand the Second Amendment right to possess a gun so that it applies outside the home. The case is Drake v. Jerejian, seeking to challenge a New Jersey law that requires an individual to obtain a permit to carry a handgun in public. The law requires proof that an individual has a “justifiable need” to carry a gun in public for purposes of self-defense.

Here is the link to the SCOTUS Blog's Relist Watch for this week which does mention Drake. It also notes that many of the more recent grants of certiorari have come from the relisted cases.

Stag Arms May Not Be Leaving Connecticut

I stopped by the Stag Arms booth at the NRA Annual Meeting on Friday. Given that their CEO, Mark Malkowski, had previously said they were leaving Connecticut and that the choice had come down to either the Houston area or Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, I wanted to find out if there had been any movement on that. Of course, I was hoping to hear Myrtle Beach.

If the company representative with whom I spoke is correct, there won't be any movement. As in, they have decided to stay in Connecticut. He said they have four facilities in the New Britain area and they have decided it will be too expensive to move. The irony of this situation is that the firearms they manufacture can't be sold in that state.

I should caution that this didn't come from Mark Malkowski but rather from a representative at their booth. I will be following up with an email to the company to get confirmation.

A Company That Doesn't Get It

While roaming the floor today at the NRA Annual Meeting, I happened to pass by the H-S Precision booth. They manufacture both precision tactical rifles and high end stocks.

You may remember that H-S Precison ran afoul of the gun community by publishing an endorsement of their products by the infamous FBI sniper Lon Horiuchi. Horiuchi, to remind everyone, was the sniper who shot and killed Vicki Weaver at Ruby Ridge while she was holding an infant in her arms.

After criticism from the gun community, H-S Precision took down the endorsement but dissembled about the reason.

Fast forward to this afternoon. I overheard one of H-S Precison's reps telling a potential customer that the rifle he was showing him was an actual ATF sniper rifle. He then went on to say that they try to get either a rifle from the FBI or the ATF for these shows.

I said to myself, WTF? I probably should have gone back to the booth to ask the rep to repeat himself but I didn't.

He could have said it was a sniper rifle from the Marines or a special Army unit or even the sniper rifle used by the Sheriff's Department SWAT Team in Upper Podunk County and it wouldn't have mattered. However, saying it was an ATF sniper rifle at the NRA Annual Meeting is like waving a red flag in front of a bull. In other words, sheer and utter stupidity mixed with a strong dose of contempt for the setting.

This is a company that just doesn't get it. Why would anyone in the gun culture want to deal with them when there are plenty of others that make both top-notch tactical rifles and stocks and that respect both gun and civil rights.

The Alt History Question Of The Day

Alt History asks the question what-if. Such as what if the Confederacy was given AK-47s by time-traveling South Africans as in Harry Turtledove's The Guns of the South or what if the Japanese had conducted a third strike on the morning of December 7th as in the Gingrich-Forstchen novel Pearl Harbor: A Novel of December 8th.

So here is my alt history question of the day:  what if upon graduating from the University of Missouri Shannon Watts (or whatever her maiden name was back then) had taken a job with local firm Midway USA instead of going to work as a communications staffer for then Missouri Gov. Mel Carnahan (D-MO)?

That question leads to a whole host of other questions such as:

Would she have still ended up working for Monsanto, GE Healthcare, and Wellpoint as a PR flack?

Would she have more readily identified with down home Americans like Larry and Brenda Potterfield rather than being billionaire Mike Bloomberg's BFF?

Would she have respected gun owners and their rights or would she still have used a Connecticut tragedy to reestablish her moribund PR career?

Would we see her inside the Indiana Convention Center during the NRA Annual Meeting or outside of it protesting?

I'm sure you can come up with your own series of follow-on what-if questions to my alt history question of the day.

Indy, I Have Arrived!

I made it to Indianapolis and to the Indiana Convention Center. Safely and without too many delays due to road construction.

I've already run into Sebastian and Bitter and I've gone big time as I'm sitting with Jim Shepherd and Tom Gresham chatting about this and that.

The only problem with the location is that close-up parking pretty much sucks. With my ankle, this isn't going to be fun.

So now, my only question is when will I see Shannon and her Demanding Mommies of Everytown.

800% More Bullet!

I first saw this on Tumblr and thought it was some sort of parody of Bloomberg's Everytown group. It turns out it wasn't.

The post above was on our good friends Facebook page. It just goes to prove that $50 million can't buy you real gun sense.


UPDATE: Erika Soto Lamb who is the Communications Directors of Everytown for Gun Safety (sic) is asserting that this is a parody put up by "cybersquatters".  Going through the photos on that page, she may be correct. That said, her organization(s) have put out stupid ads about guns in the past.

Early Voting Opens April 24th In North Carolina

Early voting opens April 24th in North Carolina for our May primaries. In anticipation of this, Grass Roots North Carolina-Political Victory Fund has released their candidate evaluations. They have also released their candidate recommendations in contested primaries.

In the Republican primary to face the vulnerable Sen. Kay Hagan (D-NC), they have a difference of opinion with the NRA-PVF. They have endorsed Dr. Greg Bannon of Cary while the NRA-PVF has endorsed NC House Speaker Thom Tillis of Charlotte. It is a Tea Party v. GOP establishment, an outsider v. an insider sort of thing. I think either man would be good for the Second Amendment with Brannon saying he's looking for laws to repeal while major gun rights bills including the castle doctrine have passed the NC General Assembly since Tills became the Speaker.

While GRNC-PVF has traditionally only concerned themselves with either statewide or legislative offices, this year they have made recommendations in a handful of sheriffs' races. It looks to me like they are looking for strong opposite party pro-gun candidates to oppose those sheriffs who killed the scrapping of the pistol purchase permits. I think it is high time that some of these sheriffs learn that actions have (electoral) consequences.

According to their alert, they have made recommendations in 40 contested races and will be spending approximately $100,000 in their primary efforts. These efforts include:

* Mailing GRNC-PVF Gun Rights Voter Guides to nearly 17,000 GRNC members;
* Mailing nearly 50,000 postcard election alerts to gun voters in races across the state;
* Running radio spots in several key races; and
* Conducting tens of thousands of automated phone calls in key races; and
* Sending email alerts to over 100,000 gun-owning NC voters!

GRNC is an all volunteer organization as is the GRNC-PVF. If you'd like to donate to help with these expenses, go here.

April 19, 1775

Two hundred thirty-nine years ago today, an effort at gun confiscation by General Thomas Gage was the spark that started a revolution.

Sylvanus Wood was a Minuteman from Woburn, Massachusetts who responded to the call of the Lexington bell. Later in that fateful day, he is credited with being the first man to capture a British Regular during the American Revolution. Below is his sworn recollection of the battle on Lexington Green.

"I, Sylvanus Wood, of Woburn, in the county of Middlesex, and commonwealth of Massachusetts, aged seventy-four years, do testify and say that on the morning of the 19th of April, 1775, I was an inhabitant of Woburn, living with Deacon Obadiah Kendall; that about an hour before the break of day on said morning, I heard the Lexington bell ring, and fearing there was difficulty there, I immediately arose, took my gun and, with Robert Douglass, went in haste to Lexington, which was about three miles distant.

When I arrived there, I inquired of Captain Parker, the commander of the Lexington company, what was the news. Parker told me he did not know what to believe, for a man had come up about half an hour before and informed him that the British troops were not on the road. But while we were talking, a messenger came up and told the captain that the British troops were within half a mile. Parker immediately turned to his drummer, William Diman, and ordered him to beat to arms, which was done. Captain Parker then asked me if I would parade with his company. I told him I would. Parker then asked me if the young man with me would parade. I spoke to Douglass, and he said he would follow the captain and me.

By this time many of the company had gathered around the captain at the hearing of the drum, where we stood, which was about half way between the meetinghouse and Buckman's tavern. Parker says to his men, 'Every man of you, who is equipped, follow me; and those of you who are not equipped, go into the meeting-house and furnish yourselves from the magazine, and immediately join the company.' Parker led those of us who were equipped to the north end of Lexington Common, near the Bedford Road, and formed us in single file. I was stationed about in the centre of the company. While we were standing, I left my place and went from one end of the company to the other and counted every man who was paraded, and the whole number was thirty-eight, and no more.

Just as I had finished and got back to my place, I perceived the British troops had arrived on the spot between the meeting-house and Bucknian's, near where Captain Parker stood when he first led off his men. The British troops immediately wheeled so as to cut off those who had gone into the meeting-house. The British troops approached us rapidly in platoons, with a general officer on horseback at their head. The officer came up to within about two rods of the centre of the company, where I stood, the first platoon being about three rods distant. They there halted. The officer then swung his sword, and said, 'Lay down your arms, you damned rebels, or you are all dead men. Fire!' Some guns were fired by the British at us from the first platoon, but no person was killed or hurt, being probably charged only with powder.

Just at this time, Captain Parker ordered every man to take care of himself. The company immediately dispersed; and while the company was dispersing and leaping over the wall, the second platoon of the British fired and killed some of our men. There was not a gun fired by any of Captain Parker's company, within my knowledge. I was so situated that I must have known it, had any thing of the kind taken place before a total dispersion of our company. I have been intimately acquainted with the inhabitants of Lexington, and particularly with those of Captain Parker's company, and, with one exception, I have never heard any of them say or pretend that there was any firing at the British from Parker's company, or any individual in it until within a year or two. One member of the company told me, many years since, that, after Parker's company had dispersed, and he was at some distance, he gave them 'the guts of his gun.'"

Behind The Times

Virtually everyone knows by now that the renamed combo of the Illegal Mayors and Demanding Mommies didn't secure the Everytown for Gun Safety Facebook page before their big announcement. Rather, it went to a pro-gun rights grassroots activist who was quicker on the uptake than they were. This happened despite their supposed expertise in social media as evidenced by their presentation called "Disrupting the Gun Lobby with Digital Organizing" at Austin's South by Southwest Festival. The SXSW presenters included both Shannon Watts and Mark Glaze.

So when did EGS get their act together and establish their Facebook presence? On April 17th, two days after their big announcement.

And how are they doing in terms of likes? They have 9 likes versus 26,183 likes for the pro-gun Everytown for Gun Safety Facebook page.

Guerrilla tactics do work, and work well, when used against a larger, wealthier opponent who has no real idea what action at the grassroots level really means. Just like in Colorado where four pissed off guys successfully took on both Bloomberg and the Democratic Establishment to recall Sen. President John Morse and Sen. Angela Giron, Everytown for Gun Safety and its over 100 local Facebook pages will cause Bloomberg to have to devote resources in order to get them taken down from Facebook. That is money that won't be spent on ad campaigns or donated to gun prohibitionist candidates. We may lose the battle but we will win the war.

Too Good To Not Share

This YouTube video takes the "Hitler bunker" video and subtitles it to reflect the scooping of Bloomberg's new "Everytown" organization on Facebook. It was sent to me in the comments of my post about the homes of Bloomberg and Watts.

If you want to see the real grassroots at work, here it is.

The Houses Of "Everytown"

The world looks differently to you and me than it does to Michael Bloomberg and Shannon Watts.

Unless you live in an exclusive suburb with armed guards at the gate, I doubt your home looks like the array of homes below. It should be noted that I don't begrudge Mr. Bloomberg his money as he earned it by taking an idea for providing financial data and ran with it. That is the American Way and I applaud his entrepreneurship. Shannon Watts took the more old fashioned way and (re)married well to the former CEO of a Wellpoint subsidiary.That, too, is OK...I guess.

Bloomberg's Upper East Side Townhouse

Bloomberg's Long Island Estate

Bloomberg's Bermuda vacation residence

Bloomberg's London apartment in Cadogan Square

Bloomberg's North Salem, NY Farm

Bloomberg's Vail, Co "Mountain Haus" condo

Aerial view of Bloomberg's Wellington, FL horse farm & estate

Watt's Indiana home - street view

When you live in a million dollar plus home in a plush neighborhood, your view of the world is just different. You don't have crime at your doorstep and you really don't have to worry about home invasions. And if you are Mr. Bloomberg, you have your own private armed security detail made up of ex-NYPD cops. I don't know if Mr. Bloomberg provides armed security personnel to Mrs. Watts when she travels around the US on behalf of the Demanding Mommies but I wouldn't be surprised if he did.

However, the populist streak in me is offended about being told that I should support gun control for my own good by people who live in a well-protected environment. Moreover, my liberal arts education makes me cringe at the perversion of the word "safety" by those who really mean prohibition and control by it. If you are going to be for gun control, at least be honest about it, like it was when the Brady Campaign was called Handgun Control, Inc.

When it comes to real gun safety, it is the NRA, the National Shooting Sports Foundation, and other gun rights organizations AND their members who do the grunt work of promoting gun safety. We are the ones running the Eddie Eagle classes, we are the ones teaching kids how to handle a firearm safely at home and at camp, we are the ones who invest our hard-earned money into safes, locks, and other security devices, and we are the ones providing classes to abused spouses so that they can learn how to protect themselves. And we are doing it every day in everytown at the grassroots level.

So my advice for Mr. Bloomberg and Mrs. Watts is that they should stay in their palatial homes and worry more about the next gallery opening, the next society event, or the next cocktail party than how the rest of us in Everytown America provide for our own self-defense. In other words, they should mind their own damn business and leave us in the real grassroots the hell alone.

UPDATE:  Little did I realize when I wrote that Bloomberg and Watts should worry about the "next gallery opening" that Shannon Watts and her husband John actually owned an art gallery. Thanks to "Dirk Diggler" for pointing it out. The gallery, Watts Fine Arts, was located in Zionsville, Indiana. They said their goal is to be a destination for art collectors around the Midwest. The Watts wanted to bring contemporary masters to the Midwest saying in the press release, "Watts Fine Art represents living American artists who create exceptional paintings, sculpture and photography previously only available on the East and West Coasts and in the American Southwest."

The funniest thing about all of this is not the pretentiousness of it but that I found the press release on bloomberg.com. Go figure.

UPDATE II: After I wrote about the Watts' gallery, I find that it closed its doors in October 2012.

John Watts, owner of Watts Fine Art, said despite several marketing efforts, the store will close in October because business has been slow and the shop isn’t getting enough foot traffic and sales.

“After over three years in business, it became clear to us that our strategy of bringing museum quality national artists to Indianapolis was not a fit for the local market and especially Zionsville,” he said. “We don’t see this changing for a variety of reasons and did not want to compromise on the type of art we sell or the artists we represent.

Obviously, their heathen neighbors in flyover country just didn't appreciate the efforts of the Watts to bring them culture. 

Supreme Court Considers Whether To Accept The NJ Carry Case

Today is the day for the US Supreme Court to consider whether they will grant certiorari in the case of Drake v. Jerejian. This case, originally named Muller v. Maenza, challenges the state of New Jersey's requirement for the showing of "justifiable need" in order to obtain a carry permit.

From the petition for a writ of certiorari as filed with the Supreme Court:

QUESTIONS PRESENTED

The Second Amendment “guarantee[s] the individual right to possess and carry weapons in case of confrontation.” District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570, 592 (2008). But in accordance with “the overriding philosophy of [New Jersey’s] Legislature . . . to limit the use of guns as much as possible,” State v. Valentine, 124 N.J. Super. 425, 427, 307 A.2d 617, 619 (N.J. Super. Ct. App. Div. 1973), New Jersey law bars all but a small handful of individuals showing “justifiable need” from carrying a handgun for self-defense, N.J. Stat. Ann. § 2C:58-4(c).

The federal appellate courts, and state courts of last resort, are split on the question of whether the Second Amendment secures a right to carry handguns outside the home for self-defense. The Second, Fourth, Fifth and Seventh Circuits, and the supreme courts of Illinois, Idaho, Oregon and Georgia have held or assumed that the Second Amendment encompasses the right to carry handguns outside the home for self-defense. But along with the highest courts of Massachusetts, Maryland, and the District of Columbia, which have refused to recognize this right, a divided Third Circuit panel below held that carrying handguns outside the home for self-defense falls outside the scope of the Second Amendment’s protection. It thus upheld New Jersey’s “justifiable need” prerequisite for carrying defensive handguns.

The federal appellate courts are also split 8-1 on the question of whether the government must provide evidence to meet its burden in Second Amendment cases. The First, Second, Fourth, Fifth, Seventh, Ninth, Tenth and District of Columbia Circuits require the government to produce legislative findings or other evidence to sustain a law burdening the right to bear arms. But the majority below held that the legislature’s policy decisions need not be supported by any findings or evidence to survive a Second Amendment challenge, if the law strikes the court as reasonable. Accordingly, the majority upheld New Jersey’s “justifiable need” law despite the state’s concession that it lacked legislative findings or evidence of the law’s public safety benefits, let alone the degree of fit between the regulation and the interests it allegedly secures.

The questions presented are:

1. Whether the Second Amendment secures a right to carry handguns outside the home for selfdefense.

2. Whether state officials violate the Second Amendment by requiring that individuals wishing to exercise their right to carry a handgun for selfdefense first prove a “justifiable need” for doing so.

The attorneys for the plaintiffs appealing this case are David Jensen and Alan Gura. Amicus briefs in favor of the plaintiffs have been filed by the NRA, Gun Owners of America, 24 Members of Congress, the Cato Institute, 19 states, the Judicial Education Project, and the Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence at Chapman University School of Law.

Attorney David Jensen said he is "cautiously optimistic" that the Supreme Court will accept the case.

"The issue has percolated in the appeals courts for the last year and a half," Jensen said. "It would be well-timed."

This echoes the sentiments of Frank Fiamingo of the NJ Second Amendment Society expressed in an interview Wednesday on the Polite Society Podcast. He noted the split between the Federal Circuits on this issue. The recent rulings by the 9th Circuit in Peruta and the associated cases adds weight to this argument.

It will take four Justices voting to accept the case for it to be granted certiorari. We didn't get that in the petitions for the Kachalsky and Woollard cases. We should know by the end of the day whether the Supreme Court will consider the third major Second Amendment case in the last decade.

The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight

When you are a billionaire rolling out a new so-called grassroots organization funded with $50 million of your own money, you expect your underlings to have taken care of all the details.

Splashy story in the New York Times? Check.

Fancy new website? Check.

New YouTube video to get the message out? Check.

Facebook page for the new organization? Uhh....

It seems that if you go to Facebook and look for Everytown for Gun Safety you will go to a page actually devoted to gun safety and not gun control. The page lists the Four Rules in its header and it includes links to the real grassroots gun safety organization: the National Rifle Association and its Gun Safety 101 page.

Buzzfeed even did an article on this move. And how did Mark Glaze, former Executive Director of Bloomberg's Illegal Mayors and current Executive Director of Everytown for Gun Safety react? With the predictable violent rhetoric of the gun prohibitionists:

When alerted to the presence of the page, a representative at Everytown for Gun Safety said that it wouldn’t be long before it disappeared from Facebook.

“Maybe they’d like to duel for it,” said Mark Glaze, the executive director of Everytown for Gun Safety. “I hear every person on our staff of 85 is a better shot than Wayne LaPierre. Or maybe a bidding war!”

We’re going through the proper process for transitioning our Demand Action page to ‘Everytown,’ which takes a few weeks, and acquiring trademark protection for both Everytown and Everytown for Gun Safety. Once that happens, we expect Facebook to shoo these cybersquattters politely off this name/page.”

Staff of 85? Shoo these (peon) cybersquatters? So much for their image of being a grassroots organization even though the mainstream media will try to push it for them.

So how do you fight a billionaire who wants to be king and impose his rules? If you are part of a grassroots movement that is willing to fight for its rights you use guerrilla tactics just like these guys did.  Kudos to them on their preemptive strike against the Bloomberg Death Star.

UPDATE: Sebastian has more on this here. There are now many state specific sites dealing with real gun safety.

In addition, let me point you to two new blogs. The first is by Rob Morse and is called Everytown for Gun Safety. The second is by yours truly and is named Everytown for (Real) Gun Safety. They were there for the taking. As that famous Tammany Hall politician George Washington Plunkett said, "He seen his opportunities and he took 'em." It works for me.

They Only Donated To Recruit Your Children

The lunatic fringe of the gun prohibitionist crowd insists that the only reason the NRA and the firearms industry wants to build ranges, organize shooting events for women and children, and the like is because it is a dying culture. We in the gun culture need to suck them in to replace all of the old, gray-haired European-descent males of the shooting patriarchy who are dying off.

The announcement below from the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission acknowledging a substantial donation from the NRA for a new shooting range will certainly set their teeth on edge. The new range is also an example of what Pittman-Robertson money could be used for if the US Senate would get their act together.

I'm actually excited by this range as it will be little more than an hour's drive away and you don't have to be a member to use it.

RALEIGH, N.C. - The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission recently accepted a $25,000 check from the National Rifle Association of America to help fund the construction of a public shooting range in Cleveland County.

Brian Hyder, director of the NRA's General Operations, Program Development Education and Training division, presented the check to Gordon Myers, the Commission's executive director, at the Commission's headquarters on Centennial Campus in Raleigh.

The state-of-the-art shooting range will be available to the general public, shooting sports teams and law enforcement personnel for practice, training and recreational use for pistol, skeet and trap, rifle and archery. It will feature a 200-yard rifle range, five 50-yard pistol ranges, two skeet and trap shotgun ranges and a 3-D archery course. The Commission will begin construction in late summer.

"The Wildlife Commission is grateful to have the National Rifle Association as a partner to help us increase shooting range opportunities in North Carolina," Myers said. "Through this partnership, the WRC is working hand in hand with the NRA to develop and enhance public shooting facilities across our state."

The $25,000 donation was a grant from the NRA's Public Range Fund, which was established in 2009 to provide funding for the construction of public ranges across the country.

The need for public shooting ranges nationally is huge, according to Hyder, so the program focuses on creating partnerships at the city, county, state and federal level, with a special emphasis on wildlife agencies in all 50 states. Since the start of the program, the NRA has given more than $1 million to fund public shooting ranges from Florida to Alaska.

"Public shooting ranges are critically important to hunter recruitment and retention - providing ranges is important in hunter education, training and especially recruiting of young hunters and shooters," Hyder said. "The NRA is proud to be able to work with the Wildlife Resources Commission in its desire to expand recreational shooting opportunities for the citizens of North Carolina statewide."

The Wildlife Commission and the Cleveland County Board of Commissioners signed a memorandum of agreement in November to build and maintain the public shooting range, which will be located at 250 Fielding Road, outside of Shelby. The Wildlife Commission will build the range site and perform all grading work as well as construction of berms, roads and parking lots. Cleveland County is providing the property and will build a training facility and a separate building with restrooms and concessions. The county also will handle all routine maintenance and will be responsible for day-to-day operations.

For more information on public and private shooting ranges in North Carolina, visit the Commission's website, www.ncwildlife.org/hunting. Click on the "Before the Hunt" link.

Sorry For Lack Of Posting

I apologize for the lack of posts since Friday. We spent the weekend at the Mother Earth News Expo held at the WNC Ag Center and I was exhausted by it. However, all the walking was good preparation for next week's NRA Annual Meeting.

Our attendance wasn't because we are going full granola or anything like that. The Complementary Spouse's brother and sister-in-law had a booth for her Usborne book business and we helped them out.

Unlike what I would have thought it wasn't just a bunch of back to nature hippies with dreadlocks. They were there but so were a lot of preppers, homesteaders, farmers, and just everyday people. I even saw a guy with a Sons of Liberty T-shirt who was probably a Threeper.

Larry and I spent a lot of time at the workshops on butchering and sausage making. It is amazing how fast you can cut up a sheep carcass with only a knife and food-grade hacksaw when you know what you are doing. The workshop on butchering a sheep impressed me so much that I bought the book. Of course, the skills translate into butchering deer or other large game animals.

Life has gotten back to normal and I will be co-hosting the Polite Society Podcast tonight. You can listen live, warts and all, by going to the Polite Society Podcast's YouTube channel.

Taking No Prisoners

You may have read that the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence (sic) objected to attorney Andrew Branca's lecture at Campbell University's School of Law. He was speaking about the law of self-defense and how it has become a hot-button issue. CSGV has now started a campaign to protest everywhere Branca speaks because he doesn't parrot their party line about little Trayvon being a martyred saint. Indeed, as Branca has said, the only one responsible for Trayvon's death is Trayvon himself.

In response to CSGV's totalitarian attempt to silence him at Campbell University, Branca has this wonderful tweet.

My reserved parking spot at Campbell Law School for SYG talk (@CSGV did not get a reserved parking spot) :-) pic.twitter.com/HkJDhPpe04
— Andrew Branca, LOSD (@LawSelfDefense) April 11, 2014

And in response to CSGV's continuing efforts to silence him, he has put his excellent book, The Law of Self-Defense, 2nd Edition, on sale. To get the 25% off discount, you have to use the special code. You can see it in the tweet below.

SALE! 25% off "Law of Self Defense, 2nd Edition," use discount code "@CSGV". No joke. :-) http://t.co/5aigFi9OCA
— Andrew Branca, LOSD (@LawSelfDefense) April 11, 2014

You have to admire someone who takes it to the self-appointed thought police like CSGV. By the way, if you haven't read Branca's book, you should. It is a good read and a valuable resource to anyone who is a gun owner.

Which To Attend? Decisions, decisions, decisions.

My Mom got an email today from the Brady Campaign. I guess at this point I should mention that she passed away almost six years ago, but I digress.

The Brady Campaign is having their very own Brady National Summit in Washington, DC in June. The announcement and details are below:

The Brady National Summit will take place June 9-10, 2014, at the Washington Marriott at Metro Center, with a cocktail reception on the evening of June 8. This year’s theme is “Bring It Home!”

The summit will feature experts, thought leaders, key advocates from across the country, and fellow Americans who have been personally impacted by gun violence. Participants will hone the skills needed to effectively engage friends, neighbors, media and elected officials in our national conversation about gun violence, and learn about what they can do in their community to help reduce gun violence.

The summit will close with a powerful day of citizen lobbying, as we join together to spread our message throughout the halls of Congress!

Join us for three days of education, inspiration & empowerment on reducing gun violence in our country.

The cost to attend this soiree is a mere $50. And more importantly, it will feature thought leaders! I guess these are the people who tell the thought police how to prosecute thoughtcrime.

And speaking of thoughtcrime, my alternative to the Brady National Summit is the NRA Annual Meeting which is free, is not in DC, and not full of Debby Downers.

Which to attend? Such a hard decision. Or not.

Screw it! I'm going to ignore the thought leaders and chance the thought police to indulge in thoughtcrime in Indy and I going to have a helluva time doing it.

People Violence

I guess I could have titled this "Comment of the Day" but the above title more accurately describes this. It is a Facebook post by Sheriff Jim Wilson regarding the knife attack by a student on his fellow students in western Pennsylvania yesterday.

THE RECENT SCHOOL KNIFING TRAGEDY is just a reminder that we are not faced with GUN VIOLENCE in our society. It is PEOPLE VIOLENCE that is causing all the trouble.

The kid could have used a machete, a baseball bat, a firearm, or even a weed whacker to cause harm. Violence is violence regardless of the adjective that precedes it.

UPDATE: I would also point readers to a post by Jim Shepherd at The Outdoor Wire who notes that the usual groups calling for something to be done (e.g. CSGV, Brady, MAIG, Demanding Mommies) are strangely absent from the media after this knife attack.

Turns Out The Rumors Were True

When the rumor first started that Russian-made 5.45x39 ammunition with steel cores (7n6) was about to be banned, there was a bit of discussion and it seemed that the rumor was just that. Given that it started with the somewhat infamous James Yeager that made some sense.

Well, it turns out the rumor is now reality thanks to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. They issued a special advisory yesterday (April 7th) saying that it was prohibited from importation into the United States because they found a "pistol" chambered in that round. They deemed the steel core made this ammunition "armor piercing" which is prohibited from importation under the Gun Control Act of 1968 (unless for government use).

I remember buying two more spam cans of this ammo for about $159 per can plus shipping on Election Day 2012. Checking the Internet, the cheapest to be found is going for $209 a can with most other places selling it for $260 to $270 per can of 1,080 rounds. I'm glad I laid in what for me will be a lifetime supply for my AK-74.

To paraphrase that old saying about the blind pig and acorns, even James Yeager can be right...sometimes.

The BATFE special advisory is below:

Test, Examination and Classification of 7N6 5.45x39 Ammunition

On March 5, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) received a request from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency (CBP) to conduct a test, examination and classification of Russian-made 7N6 5.45x39 ammunition for purposes of determining whether it is considered “armor piercing ammunition” as defined by the Gun Control Act (GCA), as amended. Since 1986, the GCA has prohibited the importation of armor piercing ammunition unless it is destined for government use or testing. The imported ammunition about which CBP was inquiring was not destined for either excepted purpose.

The Gun Control Act of 1968 (GCA), as amended, defines the term “armor piercing ammunition” as:

“(i) a projectile or projectile core which may be used in a handgun and which is constructed entirely (excluding the presence of traces of other substances) from one or a combination of tungsten alloys, steel, iron, brass, bronze, beryllium copper, or depleted uranium; or

(ii) a full jacketed projectile larger than .22 caliber designed and intended for use in a handgun and whose jacket has a weight of more than 25 percent of the total weight of the projectile.” (emphasis added)

When ATF tested the 7N6 samples provided by CBP, they were found to contain a steel core. ATF’s analysis also concluded that the ammunition could be used in a commercially available handgun, the Fabryka Bronie Radom, Model Onyks 89S, 5.45x39 caliber semi-automatic pistol, which was approved for importation into the United States in November 2011. Accordingly, the ammunition is “armor piercing” under the section 921(a)(17)(B)(i) and is therefore not importable. ATF’s determination applies only to the Russian-made 7N6 ammunition analyzed, not to all 5.45x39 ammunition. Ammunition of that caliber using projectiles without a steel core would have to be independently examined to determine their importability.

H/T SayUncle

For Chicago-Area Gun Right Activists

The Illinois State Rifle Association has released an urgent alert regarding a public meeting held by the anti-concealed carry forces including the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence (sic) and anti-gun State Rep. Elaine Nekritz. They are trying to build support for more restrictions on concealed carry in Illinois. After fighting so hard for so many years, it would suck to see all that hard work go to waste through overbearing regulations.

From ISRA:

URGENT ALERT - YOUR IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED

GUN GRABBERS PLAN ANTI-CONCEALED CARRY MEETING

The Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence along with Anti-Gun State Representative Elaine Nekritz are planning a public meeting to build support for legislative restrictions on Illinois new concealed carry law.

IT IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT THAT LAW-ABIDING GUN OWNERS SHOW UP FOR THIS MEETING!

Anti-gun forces in the Illinois House are attempting to pass legislation that would make it nearly impossible for law-abiding citizens to get concealed carry permits. They even want to force the removal of firearms from American Legion and VFW halls. Imagine that. Our vets serve their country with honor and the gun grabbers want to thank them by denying them their Second Amendment Rights.

HERE'S HOW YOU CAN STOP THIS NONSENSE!

1. IMMEDIATELY call (847) 229-5499 and politely tell the person that you would like to RSVP for the April 16th public meeting. Call and RSVP even if you cannot make it to the meeting. DO NOT say anything to the person on the phone about your position on guns. If asked, just say that you are interested in learning about the impact of the concealed carry law on you and your family. Again, DO NOT say anything to the person about being pro-gun...they do not need to know where you stand...they only need to know that you are RSVPing for the public meeting. It's important that you make their phones ring off the hook! Keep them busy!

2. Attend the public meeting - even if organizers tell you that there is no space available:

a. Indian Trails Library, 355 Schoenbeck Road, Wheeling, IL
b. The meeting will be held Wednesday, April 16, 2014 and begins at 6:00 PM. Be sure to show up by 5:15 or so to be sure that you get a seat. This meeting will be very crowded so plan ahead and get their early.
c. The antigunners who will be there will certainly attack your right to keep and bear arms and your right to defend yourself and your family from dangerous criminals. Be prepared to vigorously defend your rights! Do not let these people trample on the rights that so many brave Americans fought and died for.
d. If you see members of the media there, approach them. Tell them that you are a law abiding citizen and that you do not appreciate having your rights challenged. Tell the media that you fully support the right to self defense that you will not allow your right to defend yourself to be diminished.

Remember - only you can preserve and protect your rights. If you leave that job up to the "other guy," you will see your rights evaporate.

DO NOT FORGET TO RSVP (847) 229-5499 WHETHER YOU PLAN TO ATTEND OR NOT!

CALL NOW!

Memorial Services For Otis McDonald Set For Friday

Funeral services for civil rights champion Otis McDonald who passed away last week will be held this coming Friday. The services will be at 11am at the Bethlehem Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Harvey, Illinois with interment to follow at the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery in Elwood.

The Second Amendment Foundation posted an obituary this afternoon with remembrances of Mr. McDonald from Alan Gottlieb and Alan Gura. They will be having a remembrance of his life at the Gun Rights Policy Conference held in Chicago this coming September.

From SAF:

SERVICES FOR OTIS McDONALD SET FOR FRIDAY;
SAF REMEMBERS GUN RIGHTS HERO

BELLEVUE, WA – Funeral services for gun rights champion Otis McDonald will be held this Friday at the Bethlehem Missionary Baptist Church in Harvey, Ill., the Second Amendment Foundation has learned, with interment to follow at Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery in Elwood.

A pre-pass celebration of Mr. McDonald’s life will be held from 10 to 11 a.m., and the service begins at 11 o'clock. Mr. McDonald passed away April 4 following a long illness, leaving behind his wife, Laura and five children. His nephew, the Rev. Dr. Fred Jones, will officiate, and host pastor is the Rev. Dr. J.C. Smith.

“Otis will continue to live in the hearts and minds of freedom-living Americans who will long remember his important contribution to the gun rights movement,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “We were honored to know him, and we are heartbroken at his loss.”

“Otis truly loved people,” attorney Alan Gura, who argued the SAF-funded case of McDonald v. City of Chicago before the Supreme Court. “He was universally kind, patient, and positive, and wanted very much to see his neighbors enjoying their freedom to which they are entitled. We all owe Otis a debt of gratitude that he could fulfill that wish.”

Born in Fort Necessity, La., Mr. McDonald moved north to Chicago after serving in the U.S. Army. He arrived with $7 in his pocket that he had been given by his mother, and for a time he stayed with a friend while searching for and finally landing a job. He worked in several jobs before finding is career as an engineer at the University of Chicago, where he worked as a journeyman engineer. He also worked his way through college, earning a degree in engineering from Kennedy-King College in Chicago. He later served as president of his local trade union.

Mr. McDonald was 80, and in his final years he became the champion of gun rights for which people will remember him. The case that bears his name, filed on his behalf by the Second Amendment Foundation, incorporated the Second Amendment to the states through the 14th Amendment. The victory forced Chicago to get rid of its handgun ban, and paved the way for the courts to force Illinois to adopt a concealed carry statute, which was another SAF case.

The family suggests that remembrances be made to the Second Amendment Foundation and Illinois State Rifle Association.

SAF will hold a remembrance of Otis McDonald’s life and his contribution to the Second Amendment at the Gun Rights Policy Conference, to be held in his home city of Chicago Sept. 26-28.

Just In Time For The NRA Annual Meeting

The 5.11 Tactical Duty Kilt or TDK is released on a sporadic basis and soon sells out. I saw quite a few gun bloggers wearing them at last year's NRA Annual Meeting in Houston especially at gun blogger get-togethers. Just in time for this year's Annual Meeting, 5.11 Tactical is releasing the TDK again on April 15th. If you have any money left over after paying taxes, now might be the time to grab one.

According to Guns.com, the kilts will retail for $69 in solid colors and $79 in camo. What would be even cooler is if you could get a tactical kilt like this in your own family tartan (assuming you are of Scottish descent).

Surprising Numbers From IWI About Tavor Sales

I will admit that I was more than a little surprised when I read the following press release announcing that IWI US (Israel Weapons Industries' US subsidiary) had shipped their 20,000th Tavor SAR bullpup carbine. The market for a bullpup like the Tavor SAR or the Steyr Aug would seem a bit limited given the design and the price but obviously I'm wrong in my estimation. And reading their press release below, it seems I'm not the only one wrong in my estimation. Sales were three times greater than IWI US projected themselves.

The press release announcing this milestone:

Harrisburg, PA (March 2014) - IWI US, Inc. a subsidiary of Israel Weapon Industries (IWI) Ltd., proudly announces the 20,000th TAVOR® SAR has been shipped. The IWI US facility was officially opened in December of 2012 and began shipments to distributors of the highly anticipated; Israeli designed and built rifle in late March of 2013.

2013 became the year of the TAVOR® SAR, with unexpected demand that tripled projected sales and garnered the receipt of two coveted awards: American Rifleman’s Golden Bullseye Award for Rifle of the Year and the popular blog, TheTruthAboutGuns.com, Rifle of the Year. IWI US doubled their employee base to meet the demand for the TAVOR® SAR, as well as hired additional management as the product found a receptive audience in the law enforcement community.

IWI US expects to expand its facility in 2014 to accommodate continued growth. Additionally, IWI US will launch an online store with a variety of IWI US approved accessories for the TAVOR® SAR in the coming weeks.

“This is a watershed moment for IWI US and our employees,” Michael Kassnar, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for IWI US commented. “We could not have met our goals without the enthusiasm, dedication and the Pennsylvania work ethic of the IWI US team.”

NSSF Defensive Pistol Tip - Drawing Your Pistol In A Car

In one of the latest training tips videos from the National Shooting Sports Foundation, Adam Painchaud, Director of the Sig Sauer Academy, discusses drawing your pistol from concealment while in the driver's seat of a car.

For the majority of us who are right-handed and carry on the strong side, the seat belt can be problematic. Adam shows a way of using the steering wheel to give yourself enough leverage to draw your pistol without interference from the seat belt. He also discusses alternate methods of carry including shoulder holsters, cross-draw, and the ankle holster. Personally, I drive a lot and the idea of using an ankle holster is getting more and more appealing.

Episode 225, Polite Society Podcast Posted

Episode 225 of the Polite Society Podcast has been posted. You can find it here.

In this episode, we interviewed John Willett and Rich Petkevis of the Citizens for a Safer New Jersey. Their goal is to advance gun rights in the Garden State by educating people about firearms and self-defense especially in those communities where firearms are rare. They are in the process of applying for their 503(c)3 non-profit status from the IRS.

You can access their Facebook page here.

Using Sen. "Gun Runner" Yee's Arrest To Call For More Gun Control

Let me see if I have this straight. Federal law requires a license to deal in firearms. Federal law also requires both a license and permits to import firearms into the United States. Leland Yee was arrested and indicted on charges that he conspired to violate both these Federal laws. Therefore, we need an executive order banning the import of "lethal assault weapons" so says Yee's Congresswoman Jackie Speier (D-CA).

From an email response Speier sent to Guns.com:

“This FBI investigation of Leland Yee reveals how easy it is to import lethal assault weapons that were previously banned,” said Speier in an emailed statement from the Representative’s office to Guns.com.

“This case should be a warning to us all that even the most trusted appearing among us are ready to do real harm,” she said.

Her solution to fix future instances of potential gun running such as in the Yee case? Call on the White House to ban the import of “assault weapons.”

“Since Congress can pass no meaningful gun-control laws, even after the mass killing in Newtown, President Obama should use his pen to slow the import of these weapons, which have no place in our homes,” wrote Speier.

Just when you think you've heard everything...

Strong State Preemption Bill Passes In Kansas

The Kansas State House of Representatives gave their approval on Saturday to HB 2578 which provides for state preemption of local ordinances and regulations regarding both knives and firearms. It also overturns restrictions on open carry by the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City (KS).

The vote in favor of passage of the conference committee substitute was 102 in favor with only 19 opposed. On Friday, the Kansas State Senate approved the bill 37-2. The bill now goes to Gov. Sam Brownback (R-KS) who has traditionally been a strong supporter of Second Amendment rights.

From the Topeka Capital-Journal:

Kansas law doesn’t expressly forbid the open carrying of firearms, and the attorney general’s office has in the past told local officials that some restrictions are allowed. The Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kan., has prohibited the practice, but the bill would sweep any such ban away, except to allow cities and counties to prevent openly carried weapons inside public buildings.

The measure also would prevent cities and counties from enacting restrictions on the sale of firearms and ammunition, or imposing rules on how guns must be stored and transported. Existing ordinances would be void, and local governments couldn’t use tax dollars for gun buy-back programs.

According to a summary of the conference committee report, the bill would also remove the arbitrary discretion from chief law enforcement officers to deny NFA transfers, it would forbid municipal governments from requiring disclosure of carry permits by their employees, and it extends the prohibition about carrying under the influence to all methods of carry.

The bill was strongly supported by the Kansas State Rifle Association, the NRA, and the American Silencer Association. As you can imagine, the gun prohibitionists are full of sour grapes over the passage of a strong bill that could be a model for other states.

But Jonathan Lowry, director of the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence’s efforts to defend gun control policies in court and oppose the lessening of existing regulations, called the Kansas measure “undemocratic.”

“The gun lobby likes to prevent people who believe in sensible gun laws from having a say in protecting their own communities,” Lowry said. “It’s cynical, and it’s dangerous public policy.”

No word on any organized opposition to the bill from (former) Mayor Bloomberg's Illegal Mayors or the Kansas Chapter of the Demanding Mommies.

Kudos to the Kansas State Legislature for passing such a strong bill that includes both firearms and knives under its preemption requirements.

Rest In Peace, Mr. McDonald

Otis McDonald passed away today at the age of 79. He was the lead plaintiff in the case of  McDonald et al v. City of Chicago who confirmed that the Second Amendment applies to the states as an individual right.

Dave Workman has more details at his Examiner.com column.

May his soul rest in peace. 

Time To Win Some Guns

It's that time of the month again. Aaron at the Weapon-Blog has released his list of gun contests and giveaways for April.

The pistol category is a mixed bag with Kahrs, Berettas, Rugers, and a Sig P226 *with* a silencer.

There are 8 AR-15s, a couple of Tavors, and a couple of Ruger 10/22s among the offerings. Shotguns are a bit sparse with a Remington 870 and a Mossberg 930.

If you come across a contest not listed, help out Aaron and everyone else by letting him know the details.

NRA News On Gun Runner Yee

You have to wonder if Sen. Leland Yee has a cool tong/triad nickname like Raymond Chow has in "Shrimp Boy". My suggestion is that he should now be know as Gun Runner Yee. That has a strong masculine ring to it and should fit in with his activities on behalf of Wo Hop To and the Hop Sing Boys.

Ginny Simone of NRA News takes a more serious approach to Gun Runner Yee than I do and interviews the NRA's longtime attorney in California, Chuck Michel, regarding his arrest.

Chicken Boxing?

When you read a story about "chicken boxing", you immediately check the date to make sure it wasn't April 1st. At least, that is what I did. Turns out it was a legitimate story about a bill going through the Louisiana State Senate that would ban possession of cockfighting paraphernalia such as razor spurs and leather spur covers. Louisiana was the last state in the union to ban cockfighting which it did in 2008.

Opponents of the bill such as State Sen. Elbert Guillory (R-Opelousas) said the bill would shut down the sport of chicken boxing, a non-fatal version of cockfighting minus the razor spurs. Guillory's opposition to the bill at a hearing before the Senate Committee for Judiciary C took its chairman State Sen. J. P. Morrell (D-New Orleans) by surprise as he was as ignorant of chicken boxing as the rest of us.

“Wait, wait, wait ... chicken boxing?” Morrell said.

“Yes, chicken boxing,” Guillory replied.

At that point, it took Morrell a few stops and starts before he could articulate his point. A moment later, he was able to muster: “I appreciate your passion for your constituents, (but) I have no knowledge whatsoever on chicken boxing, so I cannot speak to that.”

Morrell continued, “If chicken boxing ... I can’t even speak on chicken boxing. Honestly, I have never heard of that. It sounds like something to circumvent cockfighting.”

It was at that point that Guillory explained chicken boxing.

“No, no. Let me explain to you, senator,” Guillory said. “Just as dueling is a blood sport, two men fighting each other with swords is a blood sport that is illegal. Similarly, two men with boxing gloves on can box each other as a sport that is legal. This is the same distinction between chicken boxing and cockfighting.”

Sen. Robert Adley, R-Benton, was perplexed over the mechanics of chicken boxing.

“I would be very interested to find out how some chicken stands on two legs while it boxes,” Adley said. “I understand how humans do it, but I’m trying to figure out how it happens with a chicken. That would be interesting to determine.”

Chicken boxing notwithstanding the bill advanced to the full Senate on a 4-2 vote. I guess the majority just didn't have an appreciation for the intricacies of chicken boxing.

In Honor Of The Day

From Facebook by Closet Conservative

I wonder if her invitation to stay at her house in the Indy suburbs while I attend the NRA Annual Meeting is still open. Maybe it is the day but I think she might have been putting me on just like she has been putting on the media about being a stay-at-home mom from suburbia.