The Truth About Guns


My GLOCK Journey: There and Back Again
By Paul McCain
A number of years ago when I got into shooting in a major way, I was eager to run out and get my first handgun. I had spent a good bit of time shooting long guns earlier, but never a handgun. Without much thought, I bought a used GLOCK 22. I loaded up the G22 and blazed away at a torso-sized target at about 20 feet. I think I may have even hit it a few times. Maybe . . .
Since then I’ve moved from handgun models to handgun models: SIG, HK, Ruger, Smith & Wesson, Remington, FN, probably others, and I’ve purchased and used striker-fired and DA/SA semi-autos. I’ve given them all a decent workout at the gun club and at the range and training center I frequent. Revolvers too.
So here is my true confession: I’ve been there with GLOCKs, left and now I’m back again. I’ve come fu
It Should Have Been a DGU/Defensive Gun Use of the Day: Detroit Mob Violence Edition
A child steps in front of a man’s car. Driver Steven Utash hits the kid with his SUV. He stops to render aid. A mob descended on the white Clinton Township resident (yes there is that) and began to try to beat him to death. (Utash is currently in critical condition in a medically-induced coma.) If Utash had been armed, he might have avoided his life-threatening injuries. There’s your “It Should Have Been A Defensive Gun Use” story. In fact, in an extremely important way, this incident was a defensive gun use . . .
Nurse Deborah Hughes rescued Mr. Utash from greater injury. As she says in the video above, she had a gun in her pocket and was ready to do “damage” if the lynch mob didn’t stop. So even though the unarmed Utash was an easy target, his life was still saved by an armed citizen. Who may not have intervened if she hadn’t been armed.
While I reject the antis’ argument that carryi
MO Rep. Withdraws Anti-Gun Bill after Death Threats
Joshua Peters, a state representative from a district in the city of St. Louis, introduced legislation that “…would have made it illegal for someone living in the City of St. Louis to own certain firearms.” Now he reports via ksdk.com that he has withdrawn the bill after receiving death threats via email. “As for the people who sent the emails, Representative Peters says he’s moving on and does not plan turn the matter over to police.” OK, a few thoughts . . .
A few thoughts:
- How about growing a pair? “Oooh – I received a death t
G2 RIP Ammo Test, Part 3 – RIP vs Gold Dot
Ribs and chicken? Sounds like a barbecue, not an ammo showdown! But, yes, it’s an ammo test – not really one I wanted to conduct, but one that I felt I had to do to (hopefully) clear up some misconceptions among the ammo-test-watching community . . .
In my prior tests of the G2 R.I.P. ammo (Part I and Part II), I got results that were quite comparable to what other independent testers got. But my conclusions and opinions of the round are quite different from what the company claims, and it caused some confusion and disagreement. Of course, being that this is the Internet, confusion and
ACLU Defends Missouri Gun Rights Guy
“On May 1, 2013, Jerry Bledsoe, a police officer, confronted [Jordan] Klaffer while responding to a noise complaint,” thefreethoughtproject.com reports. “Klaffer videotaped the interaction, where Bledsoe issued an ultimatum to Klaffer to surrender his guns or be arrested. Klaffer refused to give up his guns and was arrested for disturbing the peace.” That was just the beginning . . .
To express his opinion that Officer Bledsoe was using his positio
Question of the Day: What Are the 10 Guns Everyone Should Shoot Before They Die?
GLOCK fanboys can slag off John Moses Browning’s gift to the world ’til the cows come home, but anyone who hasn’t punched a single ragged hole in a target at 15 yards (or more) with a properly tuned 1911 has missed out on one of the best ballistic experiences available on planet earth. By the same token, anyone who hasn’t run a GLOCK like they’re in the middle of a zombie apocalypse is gun-experience deficient. What are your ten guns you (and other gunnies) should shoot before shuffling off this mortal coil?
Gear Review: Grizzly Gunworks Muzzle Brakes
When I decided to turn my HK SL8-6 into a “designated marksman/sniper” configuration, I knew I wanted a good muzzle brake so I could “call my own shots,” so to speak. I also wanted to tame the recoil of my Steyr SSG-69. So I did some research and determined that a Grizzly Gunworks Defcon-1 brake would meet by needs, called owner Jeff Cox and placed an order. As he and I talked, I mentioned that I had recently purchased a Beretta CX4 Storm, and he convinced me to get a brake for it as well. Easy sell . . .
Gun Tweet of the Day: NRA-Bashing Dem Decrys Partisan Politics Edition
Mike Dickinson is a Democrat running for the nomination to take on House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.). To say Dickinson’s campaign’s taking the low road would be like saying Barack Obama likes to play golf. I don’t know how many of Virginia’s big city Dems are NRA members, but Mr. Dickinson better hope it’s statistically insignificant. As for the tone of his Tweet, this is the same man whose campaign website claims “Mike believes Congress needs to get back to finding solutions to our nation’s problems rather than being stuck in a loop of partisan bickering and crisis management.” Because not being partisan means never having to say you’re sorry. Or something like that.
Fort Hood Was A Warning of [Much Worse] Things to Come
Americans are laboring under the false impression that the next terrorist attack will be another cataclysmic, 9/11-style assault. They also believe that spree killings are committed by lone, drug-addled psychopaths who kill themselves the moment they face armed opposition. The most recent Fort Hood shooting fits “safely” into the latter category. Spec. Ivan Lopez was alone. He was mentally ill. He “only” killed three people. Police responded quickly enough (unless you happen to be one of the 19 people shot). So there’s nothing to see here folks, save the usual missed opportunities to forestall the firearms frenzy and individual tales of tragedy and heroism. Oh sure . . .
There have been plenty of calls to eliminate the Bu
Quote of the Day: Prophetic Edition
“It is stupid to me that anyone can have easy access to a powerful weapon without being mentally evaluated. This makes the government indirect accomplice (to Adam Lanza)… These bastards have perfected their way of attacking studying previous massacres to gain publicity and their minute of fame as a villain. But thanks to Hollywood and the sensational profiling by the media [they] give more power to those intelligent cowards.” – Spc. Ivan Lopez on his Facebook page [via cnn.com]
Not So Ceremonial Now, Eh Mr. Bond?
“A soldier at Buckingham Palace pointed his bayonet-fixed rifle at a member of the public after an argument erupted at the gates,” news.yahoo.com reports. “The soldier, on guard duty, left his post to intervene [running 50 yards to do so] when a man refused to stop shouting at a police officer manning the gates of the palace on Friday . . . A police spokesman said the man was given ‘words of advice’ and left. He was not arrested.” But he was intimidated. Or not.
OMG! People Beauty Contest Bans Gun Photos! OMG!
We’re all kinds of pro-gun around here. We see no reason why anyone should discriminate against an American seeking to exercise their natural, civil and Constitutionally protected right to keep and bear arms. But if someone doesn’t want people carrying a firearm on their property it’s their right to ban guns from their property. Just as it’s our right not to visit them if that’s the way they want to be about it. By the same token, if a magazine (not clip) wishes to exclude pictures of guns from their beauty contest, that’s perfectly legal and, in People’s case, entirely predictable. I mean, it’s not as if it was . . .
a “women of a certain age showing their primary method of personal defense” contest. And if it was, I’d be binning at least one of the shots sent in by Bob Ferris for his wife’s poor trigger discipline. (Notice how Sandra picks up the gun at the end of the report.) Still, it’s good (if weird) to see CNN take up their case with only a modicum of gentle ribbing. I especially liked the slam against the dead
Incendiary Image of the Day: Let’s Not Forget the Constitution Edition
Here we have a protestor protesting a pro-gun protest. That would be one Jason Paul, a self-proclaimed progressive Democrat running for State Representative in Connecticut’s 48th District. Mr. Paul posted the pic on Facebook, proclaiming “Braving the gun rally and standing up for the overwhelming majority of Connecticut residents.” To which
STL Friends of the NRA Rakes it In
Last night in suburban St. Louis, Dirk Diggler, Tim McNabb and I – along with wives and assorted friends – attended the Gateway Friends of the NRA dinner. The whole thing came off without a hitch thanks to a lot of hard work by the organizers including the NRA’s Travis Scott. The good news: Travis told me that with well over 300 there, attendance was up by about 100 from last year. They were still collecting payments when we left, but you’d have to think that night’s haul was a good one. The bad news: Dirk and his friend Paul were the only black faces in the room, so there’s still lots work to do and room to broaden the org’s appeal. The best news: Along with some cheap cigars and a nice Spyderco knife sharpener, I managed to walk away with one of the most valuable prizes offered . . .
Don’t bother asking how much I bid for it in the silent auction. I’m taking that to the grave.
Question of the Day: Is There Common Ground on Guns?
Over at the Hartford Courant, gun control advocate Rand Richards Cooper has a question for gun rights advocates: “Can we agree that 30,000 annual gun-related deaths (and many more injuries) is undesirable; that it is a problem? If we can agree on that, we can proceed to discuss how one might reduce these numbers without threatening the fundamental right to own a firearm?” Before you answer, clock Cooper’s characterization of the “gulf” between pro- and anti-gunners. ”The bottom-line fear on the other side is that that we &#
Thousands Rally in Hartford to Support CT Gun Owners’ Rights
by CTSheepdog
On a blustery and cloudy Saturday, thousands of Second Amendment supports came from across Connecticut to mark the first anniversary of the passage of the now infamous Constitution State gun law and, most importantly, to call for its repeal. The rally drew like-minded supporters from nearby New York, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and others as far away as Virginia, West Virginia, Georgia, Mississippi and even Montana. Capitol police indicated that the crowd exceeded 3,000 attendees while other observers put the total closer to 5,000 at the rally’s peak . . .
Connecticut Citizens’ Defense League (CCDL) sponsored the rally. Scott Wilson, president of the CCDL, told the crow
Quote of the Day: Leland Yee is an Inspiration to Us All Edition
“This FBI investigation of Leland Yee reveals how easy it is to import lethal assault weapons that were previously banned. This case should be a warning to us all that even the most trusted appearing among us are ready to do real harm. 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.” – California State Rep. Jackie Speier
Weekend Digest: Not Helping Edition
According to the Journal-News of Middletown, Ohio, police found an arsenal of weapons inside the home of a Middletown man after he was arrested during an altercation with officers. WCPO.com said “He kept safes full of guns at his home that he inherited from his father.” [What did he inherit? The home? The safes? The guns? All of it?] Police found 20 weapons inside the home of William Jefferys [epic mugshot above], including “high-powered rifles, sniper rifles with scopes [not much good without them], night vision equipment and
Want a Free Gun? Here’s April’s Giveaway List
While you may not have taken down our P22 or KSG, there are other fish in the free stuff sea. And thanks to Aaron Spuler at weapon-blog.com (who allows us to share it with you), there’s an easy way to pick and choose amongst ‘em. Make the jump, go forth and enter . . .
Handguns
- Sig P226 MK 25 + SilencerCo. Osprey 9 Combo
Deadline: April 6, 2014
Added to this list: March 19, 2014
http://www.silencerco.com/989234jotherg984ithjoerghp9up23475928rjqeoigj981y39htekleihgdybadbyoqjrht8t7897234968723908tuehu98h7w9thyq9e8h79r7h98sf7h09sfgh-987fh908sg7h09s8f7gh98sf6gh908sf6h/
Infographic: America’s Rap Sheet
If you listen to the hysterical shrieking regularly emanating from Shannon Watts and her action-demanding maternal types – and really, why would you? – you could be forgiven for coming to the conclusion that crimes involving guns and what Evolve terms ‘dumbassery’ with firearms has never been worse in these fifty-seven United States. Of course, spreading that disinformation is very much to the advantage of the denizens of the Civilian Disarmament Industrial Complex. After all, that’s what keeps the media attention and, by extension, the dollars flowing. On the other side of the coin, to read the comments on this site and others, you could also come to the conclusion that gun owners walk out the door each morning kitted up for the inevitable Thunderdome-like struggle to make it t