There Oughta Be A Law

The realists among us realize that no new law and no new prohibition will ever stop the evil, the criminal, and/or the deranged from perpetrating evil, criminal, or deranged acts. Laws only impact the law-abiding among us. Moreover, if you enact enough laws and criminalize enough things, we all become law breakers. Harvey Silverglate covered this in his book Three Felonies A Day: How the Feds Target the Innocent. Likewise, the Instapundit, Prof. Glenn Reynolds, wrote a paper on this called Ham Sandwich Nation which plays off the remark by Judge Sol Wachter that a grand jury could be convinced to indict a ham sandwich.

Examining this in the context of the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, we have seen innumerable calls for new gun control laws along with calls for destruction and confiscation of certain firearms. I wrote yesterday about the introduction of a bill by Sen. Richard "I served in Vietnam (not!) Blumenthal (D-CT) and Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz (D-FL) that would close the so-called ammo loophole. None of these proposed laws will or would have stopped a determined person intent on harming school children or anyone else. One need merely look to the recent spate of bombings in Austin wherein an individual using readily available ingredients and information gleaned from the Internet killed and maimed a number of people. Homemade explosive devices are already illegal as is murder.

Science fiction novelist and commentator Sarah Hoyt penned a very interesting piece on PJ Media yesterday entitled Of Laws And Men. She examined this whole notion that a new law will actually change behavior. It is part of the whole fanatical belief in a society organized by the numbers from the top-down. She points out that this is the way that society was organized in Communist countries but yet you still had black markets as people needed to survive.

Looking at all the new laws being proposed post-Parkland, she concluded:

They’re by and large decent people – the followers, not the leaders – who really want everyone to live in harmony, and since they wouldn’t dream of breaking laws, then it must be a matter of finding the right law to fix everything.

Only the world is not full of people who are terrified of breaking laws, and all their piling on of laws against gun owners does is leave the law-abiding defenseless before the lawless.

To have these people learn the error of their ways in a practical fashion will only destroy the world for the rest of us. And besides, judging from Europe, they’ll never learn. They’ll just refuse to admit their plan failed and pile on more laws and more regulatory bodies, till someone’s whole job is regulating the curvature of a banana. (You only wish that were euphemistic.)

So we need to educate them. We need to educate them better when they’re younger. We need to teach them history and psychology. Not the stuff edited by their own luminaries, who are as blinkered as they are, but real history and real psychology. And we need to teach them how humans are now and have always been lawless animals. We can’t be tamed, we can’t be domesticated, and even in the most oppressive regimes devised there will never be enough to make everyone obey. There are dissidents even in places where dissidence costs you your life. There are black markets where the regimes punish them and spend most of their time suppressing them. Because when the alternative is death, humans are really good at breaking the law.

So all laws passed, everywhere affect only the law-abiding. And even the law-abiding stop being so when life is at stake.

The answer to “Your gun is now illegal” is always, in practicality “Says you and whose army?” and “Come and get it!”

She's right. We need to educate them. I suggest it would be five minutes of your time well spent to read her entire essay.

SAAMI Approves .224 Valkyrie Specs

Vista Outdoor announced yesterday that their Federal Premium developed .224 Valkyrie cartridge specifications had been approved by the Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturer's Institute aka SAAMI. Standardization of both the cartridge and chamber specifications certainly will help push greater adoption of this new cartridge.

From Vista Outdoor's release:

Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers' Institute Publishes Approved 224 Valkyrie Cartridge Specifications

ANOKA, Minnesota – March 27, 2018 – The Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers' Institute (SAAMI) voted to approve the Federal Premium 224 Valkyrie as an official new cartridge during their committee meeting at the 2018 SHOT Show in Las Vegas, Nevada this past January. 224 Valkyrie’s SAAMI standards documents are now published and available to the industry as a whole, as well as to the public.

“It’s thrilling to have brought the world’s best MSR 15 cartridge to market. We’re proud and excited about our new cartridge, and we deeply appreciate SAAMI’s support with this launch,” said Federal Premium Ammunition President Jason Vanderbrink. “SAAMI’s approval of the cartridge was a crucial step in legitimizing it within the industry. Their work creates standards for the cartridge, increasing safety, interchangeability, reliability and quality for the dozens of firearm manufacturers currently building rifles in our 224 Valkyrie.”

SAAMI allows free access to technical data and drawings for the cartridge and chamber designs, which are posted in the Information and Specifications section of the organization’s website. All cartridge and chamber drawing documents are contained within the ANSI/SAAMI Standards and can be found on www.saami.org. The New SAAMI Cartridge Cartridge/Chamber Designs and Revisions for 224 Valkyrie can be viewed here: http://www.saami.org/PDF/224-Valkyrie-Introduction.pdf.

SAAMI was founded in 1926 at the request of the federal government and tasked with creating and publishing industry standards for safety, interchangeability, reliability and quality, as well as coordinating technical data. SAAMI’s Technical Committee, which consists of firearm and ammunition industry experts, reviewed the 224 Valkyrie submission over a period of about six months. The official cartridge name, maximum cartridge and minimum chamber dimensions, pressure limits, test equipment, and other characteristics are all considered and scrutinized during the process. 

Federal Premium’s 224 Valkyrie is based on a 6.8 SPC case necked down to 22 caliber. It offers dramatically improved trajectories over all other MSR 15 cartridges, including the 22 Nosler, 223 Rem. and 6.5 Grendel—with roughly half the recoil of larger cartridges offering comparable ballistics, such as the 6.5 Creedmoor. Shooters can expect best-in-class ballistics, supersonic flight past 1,300 yards and extreme long-range accuracy from this exciting new cartridge.

The 224 Valkyrie is initially available in four loads: 90-grain Gold Medal Sierra MatchKing, 60-grain Nosler Ballistic Tip Varmint, 90-grain Fusion MSR and 75-grain American Eagle TMJ. These proven Federal Premium offerings provide options for long-range competitors, target shooters and hunters pursuing game from varmints up to deer-sized animals.

Loophole Here, Loophole There, Everything's A Freaking Loophole

When dealing with the enemies of freedom everything they don't approve of is a loophole.

Internet loophole? Check.

Gun show loophole? Check.

Background check loophole? Check.

Sen. Richard "I served in Vietnam (not!)" Blumenthal (D-CT) and Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz (D-FL) have come up with a new loophole that MUST be closed. That is the ammunition sale loophole. To that end, they have introduced the Ammunition Background Check Act (S.2627 / HR 5383) The bill would require instant background checks for the purchase of ammunition.

Excerpts from their joint press release:

“Ammunition sales should be subject to the same legal requirements as firearm sales, and that includes instant background checks. The same laws that prevent dangerous individuals from purchasing firearms also prohibit them from amassing arsenals of ammunition, with one major loophole: there are no background checks for ammunition sales to enforce the law. Closing this ludicrous loophole is a common sense component of a comprehensive strategy to reduce gun violence,” said Blumenthal.

“This common-sense legislation simply enforces existing federal law, and will make it harder for criminals to amass hundreds of rounds of ammunition without so much as sharing their first name with a gun store clerk,” Wasserman Schultz said. “Closing this absurd loophole will not by itself stop the next mass shooting tragedy. But this popular approach must be part of our larger strategy for ending gun violence. Studies show it can help keep ‘bad guys with guns’ from perpetrating another mass slaughter like the one we witnessed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in my Broward County community, or the thousands of other acts of gun violence that devastate communities across the country. It takes more than just a gun to take an innocent life. It also takes bullets. We need to do all we can to make sure neither of them ends up in the wrong hands.”

There are enough gun control buzzwords in those two paragraphs that you would be an automatic winner in buzzword bingo!

While the bill text is not yet available, their release indicates that the purchase of ammo would be through a FFL who would be required to do a NICS check or, if the seller was not licensed, then the seller would have to have a FFL conduct the NICS check. Since I don't have the bill text yet, there is no word whether or not components would be require background checks.

If components are not regulated (and they should not be), then the enemies of freedom will have multiple new loopholes to rail about: the smokeless powder loophole, the brass loophole, the primer loophole, etc., etc.

For those not old enough to remember, after the passage of the Gun Control Act of 1968 all ammunition sales including .22 rimfire ammo were required to be logged into a bound book. The requirement for .22 rimfire ammo sale logging was repealed in 1982. Finally, the Firearms Owner Protection Act of 1986 finally repealed the requirement that ammo sales be logged in a bound book. The repeal of that requirement was supported by the ATF as they said it had little law enforcement value. While Bluementhal and Wasserman-Schultz quote a number of academics in support of their bill, they don't quote anyone in law enforcement which is telling.

This is a ridiculous bill brought by two ridiculous legislators. It should be relegated to the scrapheap of history just like they should.


H/T  The Captain's Journal

Lyman Issues Voluntary Recall On Black Powder Rifles And Pistols

This safety notice arrived in my mailbox this morning and I thought it wise to pass it on. It concerns the potential for separation of the breech plug on Lyman black powder firearms.

From Lyman:

Lyman® Products Voluntarily Issues Recall on Black Powder Rifles and Pistols

The discovery of a potential for separation in the breech plug has spurred the recall program.

Middletown, Conn. (March 2018) - Lyman® Products has voluntarily announced a product safety warning and recall notice on their black powder rifles and pistols due to the potential of separation in the breech plug. Lyman maintains a safety-first approach, so despite finding only a few firearms affected and no reported injuries, Lyman is offering a recall program to have the issue corrected. Lyman regrets the inconvenience but remains committed to the safety of their customers. The recall includes black powder rifles and pistols regardless of caliber including the following brands manufactured between March 1, 2017 to Dec. 22, 2017. Barrels with the serial number in the range of A595960 - A599025 are subject to this recall: Deerstalker Great Plains Great Plains Hunter Trade Rifle Plains Pistol Black Powder Kits and replacement barrels This recall excludes Percussion Left-Hand Great Plains and Left-Hand Great Plains Hunter models. If a customer finds his/her product falls within the recall range, a customer service representative is standing by Monday through Friday from 9 am to 4:15 pm EST at 800-225-9626. Upon receipt of the serial number, and either the part number or model, Lyman will provide further instructions and packaging to ship the product to Lyman for replacement at NO COST to the customer. Lyman will provide a replacement barrel and tang with instructions or will replace the barrel and tang at Lyman and return the firearm. Please follow all Lyman recall instructions to ensure timely processing and return. Visit Lyman at https://www.lymanproducts.com/recall/ for more information on the Black Powder Rifles and Pistols Recall program.

Remington Files Bankruptcy On Sunday

Remington Outdoor Company filed its long awaited bankruptcy petition with the US Bankruptcy Court for Delaware on Sunday. The agreement to do the pre-packaged Chapter 11 filing was reached with creditors in February. In the time following that agreement, Remington entered into a number of "material definitive agreements" with the various creditors.

According to Reuters, Cerberus will lose all their ownership rights in the bankruptcy. The equity in the company will now go to the creditors.

The creditors inked the debt-cutting deal prior to the Parkland shooting, and it is unclear if any have exited. The restructuring support agreement allows creditors to sell their holdings, but the buyer is bound by the deal.

One investor told IFR, a Thomson Reuters news provider, that his firm had contemplated buying the Remington loans that will be exchanged into equity, which were offered at as low as 25 cents on the dollar.

“We bowed out because we were uncomfortable,” he said.

After a Remington Bushmaster rifle was used in the Sandy Hook elementary school shooting in Connecticut in 2012 that killed 20 children and six adults, Cerberus tried unsuccessfully to sell Remington, then known as Freedom Group.

Katie-Mesner Hage, an attorney representing Sandy Hook families in a lawsuit against Remington, said in a prepared statement that she did not expect the gunmaker’s bankruptcy would affect their case.

The lawsuit referred to in the last paragraph is now before the Connecticut Supreme Court on appeal. The case was dismissed in state superior court as the judge decided that Bushmaster was protected by the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act as it was not a case of negligent entrustment which is an exception to the PLCAA.

Here is the bankrupt petition listing creditors and the CFO's statement. Reuters notes that the court action is expected to go quickly and the restructured company could be out of bankruptcy by May.

Ian Of Forgotten Weapons Responds To The New YouTube Policy

Ian McCollum of Forgotten Weapons posted a video on Full30 this afternoon. In it, he discusses the implications of the new YouTube policy regarding firearms and firearms-related videos. As he notes, YouTube is somewhat of a black hole and no clarification is forthcoming.

He addresses the publicity that he's gotten for his InRange TV videos going up on PornHub. Ian has no intention of putting Forgotten Weapons videos up on PornHub but hinted he has other plans in the works. The PornHub gambit was to bring attention to YouTube's change in policy and hopefully force them to reconsider it.

#OneMore

Those guys in South Carolina really know how to stick it in the face of the gun prohibitionists. Palmetto State Armory is selling AR lowers with the logo #ONEMORE engraved on it. They are even on sale this weekend.

If I needed another AR lower, I'd certainly consider it. As it is, I have too many builds planned with the parts bought and not enough time.

There Is Neutral And Then There Is Delta Neutral

Back in February, Delta Airlines discontinued the airfare discount for NRA members. They did this in the face of a campaign by gun control groups to get corporations to end any and all discounts for NRA members.

Here is what they said at the time on their website in the way of explanation:

Delta’s decision reflects the airline’s neutral status in the current national debate over gun control amid recent school shootings. Out of respect for our customers and employees on both sides, Delta has taken this action to refrain from entering this debate and focus on its business. Delta continues to support the 2nd Amendment.

This is not the first time Delta has withdrawn support over a politically and emotionally charged issue. Last year, Delta withdrew its sponsorship of a theater that staged a graphic interpretation of “Julius Caesar” depicting the assassination of President Trump. Delta supports all of its customers but will not support organizations on any side of any highly charged political issue that divides our nation.

Delta CEO Ed Bastian went a bit further the next week in a memo to Delta employees as reported by the Washington Post.

Caught in a maelstrom over his company’s decision to cut ties with the National Rifle Association, Delta Air Lines chief executive Ed Bastian said Friday that his intention had been to “remain neutral” and “remove Delta from this [gun control] debate.” Delta, he said, is now planning to end discounts “for any group of a politically divisive nature.”

He went on to say:

“Our people and our customers have a wide range of views on how to increase safety in our schools and public places, and we are not taking sides,” he wrote. “Our objective in removing any implied affiliation with the NRA was to remove Delta from this debate.”

The key words you keep hearing from Delta are "neutral status", "not taking sides", and "refrain from entering this debate". That was what Ed Bastian and Delta were saying at the beginning of the month.

So what did they do in light of today's gun control march?

Delta Air Lines has donated three round-trip charter flights that allowed hundreds of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School students to participate in the "March for Our Lives" protest against gun violence in Washington.

Delta said the donation is "part of our commitment to supporting the communities we serve."

 Ed Bastian and Delta Air Lines must be suffering a bout of cognitive dissonance if they think ending a discount for NRA members and then giving three round-trip charter flights to students advocating gun control is neutrality. These actions are about the furthest thing from neutrality that I could imagine.

My last flight with Delta will be in May to attend the NRA Annual Meeting. That ticket was paid for before the change in Delta policy and it is non-refundable. Over the last 20 or so years, 90% or more of my air travel has been on Delta. No more.

Jim Scoutten's Editorial On Social Media

Jim Scoutten is the host and producer of Shooting USA. He's been doing this for 25 years and his shows have been on everything from ESPN to the Outdoor Channel. Each time he has moved it has been because of pressure from anti-gun executives.

The major broadcast and cable channels have prohibited any form of firearm advertising for years. 25 years ago we struggled with ESPN in the first year of our gun show series when Colt was a sponsor, but couldn’t advertise their guns. Since then we’ve moved three times to new networks as each was taken over by anti-gun New York City-based owners. We’re pleased to make our television home now on the pro-second amendment Outdoor Channel.

 He has a very interesting editorial up at the Outdoor Wire and the Shooting Wire today which is where the above quote comes from. It is entitled "The Incredible Shrinking World of Social Media". In it, he describes how the algorithms of YouTube and Facebook limit who sees videos. Moreover, age restrictions are often put on conservative videos to prevent them from influencing young minds. Another factor Jim describes is how poor internet service in rural areas limits the access of those who would be most interested in watching streaming video.

I would urge you to read the whole thing.

Quote Of The Day

The quote of the day comes from Miguel Gonzalez of Gun Free Zone blog fame. It was in response to a post on Facebook noting that Kroger grocery stores were removing gun magazines that have "assault weapons" (sic) in the stories.

Miguel's comment from Facebook is brutal but spot on:

Standard version:
Good German businessmen who pride themselves in the righteousness of the Reich, should not have these unclean Zionist publications for sale in their places of business. Removal is a must alongside anything else related to it.

Palatable version: Good American businessmen who pride themselves in the righteousness of "Do It For The Children", should not have these unclean gun publications for sale in their places of business. Removal is a must alongside anything else related to it.

The Gun Collective Responds To YouTube

The Gun Collective is a YouTube channel devoted to all things firearms including firearms law. Adam Kraut, whom I have endorsed for the NRA Board of Directors, is part of The Gun Collective. I ran into these guys at Industry Day at the Range while at the SHOT Show. They were creating video content for their YouTube channel.

As you might expect, they will be massively impacted by the new YouTube policy singling out firearms for special rules. In response, they made this video which has been viewed over 255,000 times on Facebook and over 58,000 times on YouTube. Their YouTube channel has over 125,000 subscribers.




One thing I've started doing is reporting pro-gun control videos as offensive. For example, Everytown had a video pushing North Carolina's pistol purchase permit system. I reported it as supporting Jim Crow laws conceived by white surpremacist Democrats which is totally correct. You might find other videos from Brady, Giffords, the Demanding Mommies, or Everytown which you find incorrect or offensive. Report them. It may seem trite but it is time we went on the offensive and started calling them on their lies. Their goal is nothing less than the destruction of the gun culture and I'm not going to stand by and do nothing.

It's Not Just YouTube As Reddit Goes Full Gun Control

One of the more popular sub-reddits on Reddit.com was r/gundeals.  It was one of the first places I went to see if a dealer was having a sale.As of today, it is gone thanks to a new Reddit policy.

From Bloomberg Technology on Reddit's response to criticism:

Subreddits banned from the site under the new policy include r/GunDeals, r/GunsForSale and r/AKMarketplace.

The policy change invoked a lively discussion on the platform. A number of Reddit users specifically expressed frustration about the loss of r/GunDeals, arguing that the group does not actually conduct sales but links to deals offered elsewhere. The company responded: “Because this policy forbids facilitating the transactions, it impacts communities that are dedicated to connecting buyers and sellers. We want to emphasize, though that communities dedicated solely to discussion about guns and gun ownership are not impacted by this change.”

I never once saw an individual selling a firearm or accessory on /r/gundeals. Rather it was always a post with a link to a company's website. It also have a feature where you could say you were looking for a deal on X and people would respond if they knew of such a deal.

Other gun related subreddits banned include /r/brassswap, /r/airsoftmarket, and /r/airsoftmarketcanada.

Here is the full statement from Reddit's administrators:

Hello All—

We want to let you know that we have made a new addition to our content policy forbidding transactions for certain goods and services. As of today, users may not use Reddit to solicit or facilitate any transaction or gift involving certain goods and services, including:

• Firearms, ammunition, or explosives;
• Drugs, including alcohol and tobacco, or any controlled substances (except advertisements placed in accordance with our advertising policy);
• Paid services involving physical sexual contact;
• Stolen goods;
• Personal information;
• Falsified official documents or currency

When considering a gift or transaction of goods or services not prohibited by this policy, keep in mind that Reddit is not intended to be used as a marketplace and takes no responsibility for any transactions individual users might decide to undertake in spite of this. Always remember: you are dealing with strangers on the internet.

EDIT: Thanks for the questions everyone. We're signing off for now but may drop back in later. We know this represents a change and we're going to do our best to help folks understand what this means. You can always feel free to send any specific questions to the admins here.

What this is saying is that guns should be treated just the same as hookers, blow, and fake IDs. Gee thanks, Reddit. Ooops, I see that hookers still have their own subreddit. There is also a subreddit for selling used panties. Go figure.

However, there is another option. The website Voat, kind of an alternative Reddit, now has a gundeals subforum. I believe those that started the subforum were the administrators of the /r/gundeals subreddit. The number of users is going up by the minute.

NSSF Comment On New YouTube Policy

The National Shooting Sports Foundation has weighed in on YouTube's new policy regarding firearms-related videos. NSSF also notes that they themselves have over 500 videos uploaded to YouTube.

The NSSF statement:

YOUTUBE’S NEW POLICY PROVIDES CAUSE FOR CONCERN

YouTube’s announcement this week of a new firearms content policy is troubling. We suspect it will be interpreted to block much more content than the stated goal of firearms and certain accessory sales. Especially worrisome is the potential for blocking educational content that serves an instructional and skill-building purpose. YouTube’s policy announcement has also served to invite political activists to flood their review staff with complaints about any video to which they may proffer manufactured outrage.

Much like Facebook, YouTube now acts as a virtual public square. The exercise of what amounts to censorship, then, can legitimately be viewed as the stifling of commercial free speech, which has constitutional protection. Such actions also impinge on the Second Amendment.

Facebook Precedent

In what we see as a parallel situation, Facebook has repeatedly shut down the pages of legitimate and reputable firearms retailers that were following Facebook’s own rules. The interpretation depended on the reviewers, the vast majority of whom have little familiarity with our business practices, let alone our products, and many of whom do not even do their work from American soil.

Both First and Second Amendment rights are essential to the liberty we enjoy as American citizens. In a very real sense, the de facto curtailment of First Amendment right of its firearm related business users, YouTube is edging toward simultaneously infringing upon the Second Amendment rights of the customers of these affected businesses.

Commerce in Firearms is Essential

As Circuit Judge Diarmuid O’Scannlain wrote in his 36-page opinion, “Our forefathers recognized that the prohibition of commerce in firearms worked to undermine the right to keep and bear arms.”

This argument can be logically extended to social media platforms. It is time that social media platform management realizes its broader collective responsibility since it commands so much of today’s virtual public square. Suppressing the expression of First Amendment protected political speech and of commercial speech is wrong, even if they think they are acting in the public interest. The resulting impingement of lawful commerce in firearms that brings with it the infringement of Second Amendment rights is equally wrong and it should stop.

YouTube's New Policy Is Aimed At The Gun Culture

A day or so ago YouTube changed their policies regarding firearms. This is in addition to earlier changes to policy that banned the showing of bump fire stocks as well as the demonetization of many firearms-related YouTube channels.

Here is the new official policy:

Policies on content featuring firearms

YouTube prohibits certain kinds of content featuring firearms. Specifically, we don’t allow content that:

• Intends to sell firearms or certain firearms accessories through direct sales (e.g., private sales by individuals) or links to sites that sell these items. These accessories include but may not be limited to accessories that enable a firearm to simulate automatic fire or convert a firearm to automatic fire (e.g., bump stocks, gatling triggers, drop-in auto sears, conversion kits), and high capacity magazines (i.e., magazines or belts carrying more than 30 rounds).
• Provides instructions on manufacturing a firearm, ammunition, high capacity magazine, homemade silencers/suppressors, or certain firearms accessories such as those listed above. This also includes instructions on how to convert a firearm to automatic or simulated automatic firing capabilities.
• Shows users how to install the above-mentioned accessories or modifications.

Report content that violates this policy
You can report videos that you believe violate this policy by flagging the video.

Instructions on manufacturing ammunition? That is called reloading and has been a part of the shooting sports since time immemorial.

Instruction on manufacturing homemade silencers/suppressors? Those would be legally called Form 1 suppressors or silencers and are perfectly legal provided the $200 tax is paid along with the requisite background check. I currently have two Form 1's approved and am deciding on how I want to proceed.

Insofar as reporting inappropriate videos, the gun prohibitionists have been trying to sabotage some of the more successful firearms-related YouTube channels. It has happened to Hickok45 and to others.

YouTube is a subsidiary of Google. Both are private companies entitled to set their own policies and discriminate against the gun culture if they so wish. This is not a constitutional issue as the First Amendment concerns only governmental abridgement of free speech. In the days of bulletin board systems (BBS) and private forums, this was not a real major issue. However, as social media has been increasingly aggregated into a few major corporate players - Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Google - their censorship is a problem. Unfortunately, there are not currently many viable alternatives. Full30 is great but it is limited. MeWe hasn't really taken off as a Facebook alternative. The list goes on.

I suggest downloading those YouTube instructional videos that you like. There are plenty of ways to do it and I'm sure you can find them on the Internet. Content creators would be advised to back up their channels.

Probably the best comment on backing up a channel was this by Othais of C&R Arsenal.

Or you can go full bore like Ian and Karl.

UPDATE: Bloomberg Technology is covering this and included this comment from InRange TV aka Ian and Karl.

InRange TV, another channel devoted to firearms, wrote on its Facebook page that it would begin uploading videos to PornHub, an adult content website.

“YouTube’s newly released released vague and one-sided firearms policy makes it abundantly clear that YouTube cannot be counted upon to be a safe harbor for a wide variety of views and subject matter,” InRange TV wrote. “PornHub has a history of being a proactive voice in the online community, as well as operating a resilient and robust video streaming platform.”

If anyone knows about streaming video it is the porn industry!

Reminder - NC School Safety Committee Meets In Raleigh On Wednesday

Just as a reminder that the NC Joint Legislative Committee on School Safety meets tomorrow in Raleigh. I've posted a couple of appeals for people to attend at least part of the day. Here is the latest one from GRNC.

If you can be there, be there!

LIBERTY NEEDS YOUR VOICE IN DEVELOPING NC’S SCHOOL SAFETY PLAN

They Urgently Need YOU. Attend the Meeting For School Children's Safety. MEETING DETAILS: WHAT: House Select Committee on School Safety WHEN: Wednesday, March 21, 9:00 AM (arrive an hour early if possible) WHERE: Legislative Office Building, Rm. 643 300 N. Salisbury Street Raleigh, NC (directions: https://www.ncleg.net/help/directions.html) NOTES: Dress for the press. Please dress professionally with no inflammatory slogans or the like on clothing. Arrive early. To deal with any parking issues, and to make sure you get a seat. Arriving at least one hour early is recommended. Here is a link for posting this to social media:  https://www.grnc.org/defend-your-rights/recent-grnc-alerts/996-grnc-alert-03-18-18-help-develop-nc-s-school-safety-plan Wednesday, state legislators are hearing arguments that will inform life-and-death decisions regarding school security.  This Meeting Needs Your Voice - Please be there At the state legislature, the House Select Committee on School Safety will be meeting on Wednesday at 9:00 AM. There may be opportunities for public comments, and it is critical that this not be a one-sided discussion. You Need to be there, or the anti-gun left is going to run the show with your children's lives at stake.  Due to the deadly serious nature of this topic, if you've never been to a committee meeting before, now is the time!  Below, find details on the upcoming meetings. Gun-free Zones: the Psychotic-Killer Loophole The most effective way to reduce mass public shootings is for our elected officials to wise up and eliminate dangerous gun-free zones (GFZs).  Along with improved security provisions, such as fewer unlocked entrances and generally beefed up security, the most effective way to protect school children is to proclaim that any attack will likely be met with rapid armed resistance from an unpredictable source; that source would be teachers and other school personnel.  Remove the ShacklesOf course, teachers who do not want to carry defensive weapons should not be required to. However, the SHACKLES MUST BE removed from those willing to mount effective resistance should the worst occur.

IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED!
EMAIL THE REPUBLICAN COMMITTEE MEMBERS: CLICK HERE to generate one of two email messages, and then CLICK HERE to send an email to the other half of the committee Republicans. After each click, check your email program. An email should have been generated for you. Simply add you name to the bottom and hit ‘send.’  (This 'click' method likely won't work with gmail. Please use the delivery method/information listed under 'Deliver This Message' if using gmail).  If an email was not generated automatically, or wasn’t generated properly, send the email using the copy/paste email list and the copy/paste text provided below, under ‘Deliver This Message.’ ATTEND THE SCHOOL SAFETY COMMITTEE MEETING: It’s critical that the public be involved in these meetings, especially because it’s the safety of the citizenry’s own children that is being debated. Practical and effective solutions from concerned citizens like you must be discussed, and ought to dominate the conversation. But without you there to speak, or at least to support the speakers by your presence, that may not happen. Please attend. Find the meeting details below.
DELIVER THIS MESSAGE
Copy/Paste email List(s):  Allen.McNeill@ncleg.net, Bill.Brawley@ncleg.net, Brenden.Jones@ncleg.net, Chris.Malone@ncleg.net, Cody.Henson@ncleg.net, Craig.Horn@ncleg.net, Dana.Bumgardner@ncleg.net, David.Lewis@ncleg.net, Donna.White@ncleg.net, Donny.Lambeth@ncleg.net, Harry.Warren@ncleg.net, Holly.Grange@ncleg.net, Jamie.Boles@ncleg.net, Jason.Saine@ncleg.net, Jeffrey.Elmore@ncleg.net, Jimmy.Dixon@ncleg.net, John.Bell@ncleg.net, John.Faircloth@ncleg.net, John.Torbett@ncleg.net, Josh.Dobson@ncleg.net, Justin.Burr@ncleg.net, Kelly.Hastings@ncleg.net, Larry.Strickland@ncleg.net, Linda.Johnson2@ncleg.net, Nelson.Dollar@ncleg.net, Pat.Hurley@ncleg.net, Sarah.Stevens@ncleg.net, Stephen.Ross@ncleg.net, Ted.Davis@ncleg.net *Due to the limitations of some email programs and some spam filtering systems, it may be best to send this email in multiple groups. Use the copy/paste emails above, as separated into groups, to send the message to the respective set of recipients. Suggested Subject:  "For School Safety: End Gun-Free Zones"   Dear Committee Member: I am writing today in reference to your service on the House Select Committee on School Safety. Since the recent disturbing events in Florida, all the usual gun-control voices have called for all the usual ineffective and unconstitutional schemes. None of these useless and ominous notions are acceptable, and I insist that you not lend them credence during your upcoming committee meetings. I do expect you to discuss school security concepts that are actually effective and will truly result in the protection of school children. Removing the shackles from school employees who have concealed handgun permits would be the simplest and most effective solution. The legislature could do this almost immediately by removing the dangerous gun-free zone (GFZ) status from school buildings and grounds. Teachers and other school staff are no danger to students. If they were, we wouldn’t allow them unfettered, daily access to our children. Yet, the threat of swift armed resistance from an unpredictable source is a highly effective deterrent. This is why a full 98% of all mass public shooting since 1950 have occurred in so-called “gun-free” zones. Should the worst occur, teachers defending their students with deadly force is not such a terrible thing when you imagine the alternative. Indeed, no imagination is necessary, as recent events have shown us exactly what the alternative looks like. A large number of teachers are already willing and ready for classroom carry. A recent Elon University Poll of North Carolina teachers (which skewed heavily Democrat) revealed that roughly 20% of teachers are open to the idea of concealed handguns in the classroom. Consider that the number of every day citizens who legally carry a gun in our state is something less than 10%. This means the number of teachers willing to consider classroom carry is at least twice the number in the general population who already carry a handgun. This is great news, and further evidence that dangerous GFZs have run their course.  Our children’s very lives are at stake. I demand that your time on the School Safety committee be used to consider and implement only practical and effective policies. I will be monitoring your actions on this matter through Grass Roots North Carolina legislative alerts. Respectfully,

For Those In Florida

Last year, Florida Carry got some grief from Marion Hammer and the NRA due to their stance on some bills in the Florida legislature. Notwithstanding that - and showing that they are united in their support of gun rights - they have passed on the following alert from the NRA and Marion Hammer. I think it shows class on their part.

The alert concerns a move by the anti-gun forces to diminish gun rights in Florida through putting constitutional amendments on the ballot. One need only looks at the moves by Bloomberg and Everytown to force so-called universal background checks through referenda. They succeeded in Washington and Nevada but failed in Maine.

From Florida Carry:

ALERT: Anti-gun CRC Members Want Gun Bans in the Florida Constitution DATE: March 19, 2018 TO:      USF & NRA Member and Friends FROM: Marion P. Hammer             USF Executive Director             NRA Past President ACTION NEEDED NOW Some of the members of the Florida Constitution Revision Commission (CRC) are very anti-gun and they are proposing and pushing gun ban and gun control amendments to put in the Florida Constitution. Commissioners will be voting on these amendment soon. Links to these amendments are listed at the bottom. Among these amendments are: *An "assault weapons" ban which bans the distribution, sale, transfer, and possession of so-called assault weapons and any detachable magazine that has a capacity of more than 9 rounds.  (Makes possession illegal with no compensation provided for those already possessed that must be surrendered)  *A ban on any semi-automatic rifle that is able to accept a detachable magazine or has a fixed magazine capable of holding more than10 rounds. (that means almost all semi-automatic rifles) *A ban on the sale and transfer of "assault weapons" and defines "transfer" as the conveyance "from a person or entity to another person or entity WITHOUT any conveyance of money or other valuable consideration."  (Note: to "convey" between persons without compensation could mean the simple act of handing the firearm to another person while hunting, on the range, or anywhere) *A 10 day waiting period (excluding weekends and legal holidays) on all firearms to facilitate a background check. *A ban on the purchase of any firearm by a person under 21 years of age.  *A ban on the sale, transfer and possession of bump stocks and other devises, tools, kits, etc.  Please email CRC Commissioners and tell them to OPPOSE gun control amendments! PLEASE DO IT NOW !!! They could be voting on these amendments at anytime IN THE SUBJECT LINE PUT:   VOTE AGAINST GUN CONTROL AMENDMENTS (To send your message to all just Block and Copy All email addresses into the "Send To" box) (Depending on you email program you may need to add commas or semicolons between each email)  jose.armas@flcrc.gov pam.bondi@flcrc.gov lisa.carlton@flcrc.gov timothy.cerio@flcrc.gov hank.coxe@flcrc.gov jose.diaz@flcrc.gov erika.donalds@flcrc.gov don.gaetz@flcrc.gov emery.gainey@flcrc.gov anna.gamez@flcrc.gov brecht.heuchan@flcrc.gov marva.johnson@flcrc.gov darlene.jordan@flcrc.gov arthenia.joyner@flcrc.gov fred.karlinsky@flcrc.gov belinda.keiser@flcrc.gov frank.kruppenbacher@flcrc.gov tom.lee@flcrc.gov gary.lester@flcrc.gov patricia.levesque@flcrc.gov roberto.martinez@flcrc.gov rich.newsome@flcrc.gov chris.nocco@flcrc.gov jeanette.nunez@flcrc.gov jimmy.patronis@flcrc.gov sherry.plymale@flcrc.gov darryl.rouson@flcrc.gov william.schifino@flcrc.gov chris.smith@flcrc.gov bob.solari@flcrc.gov chris.sprowls@flcrc.gov john.stemberger@flcrc.gov pam.stewart@flcrc.gov jacqui.lippisch@flcrc.gov carolyn.timmann@flcrc.gov nicole.washington@flcrc.gov PROPOSED AMENDMENTS: https://www.flcrc.gov/Proposals/Commissioner/2017/0003/Amendment/682026/PDF https://www.flcrc.gov/Proposals/Commissioner/2017/0003/Amendment/545572/PDF https://www.flcrc.gov/Proposals/Commissioner/2017/0003/Amendment/290732/HTML https://www.flcrc.gov/Proposals/Commissioner/2017/0003/Amendment/783324/PDF https://www.flcrc.gov/Proposals/Commissioner/2017/0003/Amendment/117574/PDF https://www.flcrc.gov/Proposals/Commissioner/2017/0003/Amendment/615688/PDF

For My Friends In Arizona

What is it with Republican governors in retirement havens? First there was Rick Scott (R-FL) going all squishy in Florida. Now it seems Doug Docey (R-AZ) is going squishy as well.

Arizona Citizens Defense League has the details in this alert:

Action Alert

Today, Governor Ducey revealed his "Safer Arizona Schools" gun control plan.  We posted a copy on our website.  Caution!  You may want to wrap your head with duct tape to prevent it from exploding when you read it.  It looks like a propaganda piece from one of Bloomberg's Astroturf groups.  Odds are they had a big hand in writing it.

The good news is that many in the Legislature aren't all that excited about what they see in the Governor's plan either.  The dream of suspending all the rules and ramming this through without anyone noticing has evaporated.  We're now hearing that the Governor's proposal may be broken into a few smaller bills with the hope that at least one will get to his desk.  That tells us we have a shot at ending this altogether.

The even better news is that your emails are having an effect.  After receiving over 11,000 of your emails they know we're watching and we have their attention.  We can't let up.  Your legislators need to hear from you that there is NO acceptable "gun control."

Click here to send your email

If you have already sent an email to your legislators, please do it again.  If you have not yet sent an email, what are you waiting for?  If you are willing to fight for your rights, we've done most of the work for you by preparing the email to send to your legislators.  All you need to do is click on the link above, follow instructions and click your mouse button a couple more times.

Your legislators need to hear from you, letting them know that you are still paying attention and expecting them to support your rights.  Send your email today!

Along with that alert is another one asking supporters in Arizona to send both letters and RTS (request to speak) notices to the Senate Judiciary Committee in support of two pro-2A bills being pushed by AzCDL. These bills will die if they don't pass out of committee this week.

On Thursday, March 22, the Senate Judiciary Committee will debate AzCDL-requested bills HB 2211 and HB 2212.  If these bills don't pass out of committee this week, they are dead for the session.  The deadline for House bills to be heard in Senate committees (and vice versa) is Friday, March 23.

HB 2211 would add a personal exemption for firearms to the state's bankruptcy statutes.  Currently there is no specific bankruptcy exemption for personal firearms.

HB 2212 would eliminate the restriction that only Arizona peace officers cannot be prohibited from carrying firearms in Arizona.  The proposed law would extend "shall not be prohibited" to any law enforcement officer employed by any jurisdiction (federal, tribal, state, local, etc.) in the U.S.

Since this is the last chance for these bills to get a committee hearing, we going for a double whammy - RTS and a letter to the committee.

If you have a valid and active RTS account, please log in here https://apps.azleg.gov/ and keep your browser open.  Then, click on the links below to register your support for each bill.

For HB 2211 go here: https://apps.azleg.gov/RequestToSpeak/New/102305 .

For HB 2212 go here: https://apps.azleg.gov/RequestToSpeak/New/102316 .

If you do not have an RTS account, or even if you do, please click on the links below to send your emails to all the committee members telling them to support these bills during the committee hearing.

For HB 2211 go here to send your email to the committee:
http://cqrcengage.com/azcdl/app/take-action?engagementId=453514 .

For HB 2212 go here to send your email to the committee:
http://cqrcengage.com/azcdl/app/take-action?engagementId=453653 .

Thanks for taking the time to make a difference! 

VICE News On Doug Ritter And Knife Rights

I stumbled across this short video yesterday on Reddit. It is an episode of HBO's VICE News that features Doug Ritter and Knife Rights. It is surprisingly well done and even more surprisingly pro-knife. VICE News talks about the founding of Knife Rights, their success in many states, and then concentrates on the problems with New York City's "gravity knife" law.

One aspect that is brought out is that the fight against unjust laws can have unlikely allies. As an attorney with  NYC's Legal Aid Society put it, he never thought "in a million years that he'd be working with a Second Amendment group on a criminal justice issue."

GRNC Alert About Legislative School Safety Meeting

As a follow-up to my earlier post regarding the meeting on Wednesday of the NC Joint Legislative Committee on School Safety, here is an alert from Grass Roots North Carolina with more information and a request to email committee members if you can't attend.

HELP DEVELOP NC'S SCHOOL SAFETY PLAN

Wednesday, state legislators are hearing arguments that will inform life-and-death decisions regarding school security. Please be there … 
This Meeting Needs Your Voice
At the state legislature, the House Select Committee on School Safety will be meeting on Wednesday at 9:00 AM. There may be opportunities for public comments, and it is critical that this not be a one-sided discussion. We all know that the anti-gun-rights crowd will have people there to demand policies that will only make things worse. Due to the deadly serious nature of this topic, ineffective, feel-good schemes cannot be allowed to take hold. Please make every effort to attend these meetings. Below, find details on the upcoming meetings.

Gun-free Zones: the Psychotic-Killer Loophole
The most effective way to reduce mass public shootings is for our elected officials to wise up and eliminate dangerous gun-free zones (GFZs). Documented evidence tells us that criminals and psychotics carefully choose GFZs to commit their heinous acts, because they know they will not be met with timely armed resistance.

All but two of U.S. mass shootings since 1950 have occurred in so-called
“gun-free” zones.
That’s 98%!

Along with improved security provisions, such as fewer unlocked entrances and generally beefed up security, the most effective way to protect school children is to proclaim that any attack will likely be met with rapid armed resistance from an unpredictable source; that source would be teachers and other school personnel. 

Remove the Shackles
Of course, teachers who do not want to carry defensive weapons should not be required to. However, the shackles must be removed from those willing to mount effective resistance should the worst occur. Some seem very concerned about teachers using weapons during a dire emergency, but consider the alternative: bullets flying in only one direction and resulting in the deaths of many innocent and helpless people. Any objection to evening those odds seems entirely unreasonable. Let’s demand that legislators close the psychotic-killer loophole!

IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED!

EMAIL THE REPUBLICAN COMMITTEE MEMBERS: CLICK HERE to generate one of two email messages, and then CLICK HERE to send an email to the other half of the committee Republicans. After each click, check your email program. An email should have been generated for you. Simply add you name to the bottom and hit ‘send.’  (This 'click' method likely won't work with gmail. Please use the delivery method/information listed under 'Deliver This Message' if using gmail). If an email was not generated automatically, or wasn’t generated properly, send the email using the copy/paste email list and the copy/paste text provided below, under ‘Deliver This Message.’ ATTEND THE SCHOOL SAFETY COMMITTEE MEETING: It’s critical that the public be involved in these meetings, especially because it’s the safety of the citizenry’s own children that is being debated. Practical and effective solutions from concerned citizens like you must be discussed, and ought to dominate the conversation. But without you there to speak, or at least to support the speakers by your presence, that may not happen. Please attend. Find the meeting details below.  MEETING DETAILS: WHAT: House Select Committee on School Safety WHEN: Wednesday, March 21, 9:00 AM (arrive an hour early if possible) WHERE: Legislative Office Building, Rm. 643 300 N. Salisbury Street Raleigh, NC (directions: https://www.ncleg.net/help/directions.html)     NOTES: Dress for the press. Please dress professionally with no inflammatory slogans or the like on clothing.   Arrive early. To deal with any parking issues, and to make sure you get a seat. Arriving at least one hour early is recommended.

DELIVER THIS MESSAGE

Copy/Paste email List(s): 

Allen.McNeill@ncleg.net, Bill.Brawley@ncleg.net, Brenden.Jones@ncleg.net, Chris.Malone@ncleg.net, Cody.Henson@ncleg.net, Craig.Horn@ncleg.net, Dana.Bumgardner@ncleg.net, David.Lewis@ncleg.net, Donna.White@ncleg.net, Donny.Lambeth@ncleg.net, Harry.Warren@ncleg.net, Holly.Grange@ncleg.net, Jamie.Boles@ncleg.net, Jason.Saine@ncleg.net, Jeffrey.Elmore@ncleg.net,

Jimmy.Dixon@ncleg.net, John.Bell@ncleg.net, John.Faircloth@ncleg.net, John.Torbett@ncleg.net, Josh.Dobson@ncleg.net, Justin.Burr@ncleg.net, Kelly.Hastings@ncleg.net, Larry.Strickland@ncleg.net, Linda.Johnson2@ncleg.net, Nelson.Dollar@ncleg.net, Pat.Hurley@ncleg.net, Sarah.Stevens@ncleg.net, Stephen.Ross@ncleg.net, Ted.Davis@ncleg.net

*Due to the limitations of some email programs and some spam filtering systems, it may be best to send this email in multiple groups. Use the copy/paste emails above, as separated into groups, to send the message to the respective set of recipients.

---

Suggested Subject: 

"For School Safety: End Gun-Free Zones"  

---

Dear Committee Member:

I am writing today in reference to your service on the House Select Committee on School Safety.

Since the recent disturbing events in Florida, all the usual gun-control voices have called for all the usual ineffective and unconstitutional schemes. None of these useless and ominous notions are acceptable, and I insist that you not lend them credence during your upcoming committee meetings. I do expect you to discuss school security concepts that are actually effective and will truly result in the protection of school children.

Removing the shackles from school employees who have concealed handgun permits would be the simplest and most effective solution. The legislature could do this almost immediately by removing the dangerous gun-free zone (GFZ) status from school buildings and grounds. Teachers and other school staff are no danger to students. If they were, we wouldn’t allow them unfettered, daily access to our children. Yet, the threat of swift armed resistance from an unpredictable source is a highly effective deterrent. This is why a full 98% of all mass public shooting since 1950 have occurred in so-called “gun-free” zones. Should the worst occur, teachers defending their students with deadly force is not such a terrible thing when you imagine the alternative. Indeed, no imagination is necessary, as recent events have shown us exactly what the alternative looks like.

A large number of teachers are already willing and ready for classroom carry. A recent Elon University Poll of North Carolina teachers (which skewed heavily Democrat) revealed that roughly 20% of teachers are open to the idea of concealed handguns in the classroom. Consider that the number of every day citizens who legally carry a gun in our state is something less than 10%. This means the number of teachers willing to consider classroom carry is at least twice the number in the general population who already carry a handgun. This is great news, and further evidence that dangerous GFZs have run their course. 

Our children’s very lives are at stake. I demand that your time on the School Safety committee be used to consider and implement only practical and effective policies. I will be monitoring your actions on this matter through Grass Roots North Carolina legislative alerts.

Respectfully,