The Truth About Guns
Exploring the ethics, morality, business, politics, culture, technology, practice, strategy, dangers and fun of guns
Updated: 1 week 2 days ago
First Reported Chicago Concealed Carry Permit Holder Defensive Gun Use
The day after Otis McDonald went on to his reward, chicagotribune.com has a report on a defensive gun use by a resident with a concealed cary permit. “The man was walking from his garage to the front of his home when two males in hoodies appeared in a gangway between his home and the neighbor’s home, [Chicago Police Department News Affairs Officer Michael] Sullivan said. One of the two men pulled a handgun from his waistband and pointed at the man who took out his own gun and managed to fire several times at the males, Sullivan said . . .
The males fled the area without being struck and the shooting did not result in any
Sons of Guns “Steel Tornado” Saiga Shotgun [Not Shown]
“This week on Sons of Guns: a former pro football player turned contractor hires Will to have a triple barrel 12 gauge demolition shotgun made.” Yes, but – the shotgun in the clip (not magazine) is a Saiga with a ferris wheel attached, not a triple-barreled shotgun (which has certainly been done befoa). I guess you could say the full-auto Saiga has never been done befoa but I’d rather have an AA12. And I’d prefer to watch our faux Russian friend Kyle (a.k.a., FPSRussia) fire it than the sons-of-you-know-what at Sons of Guns. Of course, that was Kyle back in the good old days, when massive firepower was his plot line. Seems to me it’s time for some fresh faces and new ideas in gunTVland.
Question of the Day: Has Your Doctor Asked About Your Guns?
“I’m sure you’ve heard this a ton of times but I wanted to give you a heads up for what its worth,” TTAG reader RT writes. “I was just recently at my doctor’s complaining about frequent migraines. He asked me typical health questions and then asked me two interesting ones. #1 Do you feel depressed and then #2 Do you have any guns in the house? Obamacare in action. This is how they will get legal gun owners on a list to fail typical background checks. Ridiculous.” I’m no fan of Florida’s attempt to prevent doctors from asking about guns (First Amendment and all that) but there’s asking and there’s asking. Has your doctor inquired about your firearms? If so, how did that go?
My Most Recent – And Hopefully Last – DGU
By Tom in Oregon
Having reached over 20 years as a police officer without needing to fire my gun, I was about as secure in my career as I could be. Comfortable in the patrol unit, teaching survival skills, mostly gun-fighting. Using some earned vacation time, two workmates and I decided to try a new fishing spot closer to home. Normally, we’d take a 10-hour drive to the Snake River. This trip would be a 2-hour drive to the John Day River for four days of relaxation . . .
After three days in that location, I decided to take the guys out to the Columbia River to wrestle a big sturgeon or two. As it was a short drive to the boat ramp, I pre-loaded my Ruger MK II in a gun rug and put it on the dash of my boat. It’s an all-around great boat gun.
My buddy “Mark” was in the front passenger seat. He also taught at work and at the state police academy. My other buddy “Tim” was in the bac
Quote of the Day: Diagnosing the Problem Edition
“…the last time there was a massacre at Ft. Hood, back in 2009, the perpetrator was a provider of psychiatric care, not a patient. Army psychiatrist Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan was not clinically insane, unless the religious zealotry that drove him to kill 13 people can be classified as lunacy. And, given that much of the Republican Party base is made up of religious zealots with guns, no Republican will be tempted to make that diagnosis.” – David Horsey in Ft. Hood shooting is part of the scenery in a gun-crazy nation [at latimes.com]
Otis McDonald, Chicago’s Second Amendment Champion, has Died, Aged 80
The Chicago man whose fight to overturn the city’s handgun ban went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, where the judges ruled in his favor to incorporate the Second Amendment (it now trumps local and state law), has died. Otis McDonald succumbed to cancer at the age of 80. May he rest in peace.
Self-Defense Tip: Don’t Use ATMs
When asked why he robbed banks, Brooklyn-born bank robber Willie Sutton famously replied: “That’s where the money is.” If Willie was around today he’d see automatic teller machines and laugh. Or rub his hands with glee. While the potential earnings are small compared to the dough inside a bank, the minimal time required to rob a customer and low risk of detection and apprehension make the job as easy as, well, taking money from an ATM . . .
ATM’s are a robbery waiting to happen. There’s no live surveillance, no guard to scare-off robbers. Anyone who sees you there KNOWS you’re getting cash (or can be forced to get cash). Worst of all, you’re facing away from approaching foot or car traffic. Even if you’ve amped-up your situational awareness – using your senses of hearing and smell I suppose – you’
Incendiary Image of the Day: Equating Guns with Cigarettes. Again. Still.
Folks like Moms Demand Action, a campaign run and funded by Michael Bloomberg, keep trying to make the association between cigarettes and guns. It’s a smart move, since the “progressive” movement was very successful in branding those who argued in favor of cigarettes as being in the pocket of “big tobacco” and kept ramming through more restrictions on when and where people can enjoy their favorite tobacco products. In their minds, guns are no different — a scourge on the country with no benefit whatsoever. They even say as much in the copy accompanying this Facebook post . . .
EXPOSE THE TRUTH: Just as the tob
BREAKING: ATF eForms Crashes, Off-Line Until Further Notice
The eForms software is not performing to our expectations. As a result, we are taking the eForms system down until further notice. We apologize for any inconvenience and appreciate your patience as we work with our industry partners to deliver a quality product. Any eForm submitted will continue to be processed. The finalized forms will be sent to the user via email . . .
Until the eForms system is returned to service for the industry, all imports forms (Forms 6 Part I and 6A), NFA forms (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 9 and 10), and AFMER reports (Form 5300.11) must be submitted via paper, including any eForms in draft status. [h/t silencernews.com]
Could There be Another Waco? A (Local) Law Enforcement Perspective
Could there be another Waco? Or a Ruby Ridge? Of course. There is always a chance and today there seems to be an even bigger chance. First, let’s make a distinction. The BATFE, FBI, DHS and others are NOT POLICE officers. They are FEDERAL agents. They work for Federal agencies with political agendas ran by political appointees. This worked for gun owners when President G.W. Bush ripped the BATFE apart shortly after being elected. It worked against us with Clinton and more so now with Obama . . .
Many comments I get are against the “Militarization” of Police officers. I carry three firearms on duty. My Glock 22 sidearm, A Mossberg 500 police shotgun and an M16 patrol rifle. Each agency I listed above h
NM District Court: Resident Aliens Have Full 2A Rights
On Monday, the U.S. District Court for District of New Mexico ruled that legal immigrants have the same right to obtain a concealed carry permit as citizens. The equal protection clause mandates that those legally residing in the U.S. be treated the same under the law . . .
BELLEVUE, WA – The chief U.S. District Court judge in New Mexico today granted a permanent injunction against the State of New Mexico’s “citizens only” concealed carry law that unfairly discriminated against permanent legal resident aliens in a case brought by the Second Amendment Foundation. Judge M. Christina Armijo held…that there was no evidence showing that granting permits to legal immigrants is more dangerous than granting them to citizens and that the state had provided
Show Me State History Includes “An Indispensable Tool”
By BK
I’m a working journalist (I know, save your jokes) who also happens to be a gun guy. A few days ago I was working on a story at the Missouri State Capitol and decided to take a few moments to wander through the State Museum, which sits directly under the chambers of the House and Senate. TTAG has noted that Missouri is a fairly gun-friendly state before, but it immediately struck me that in a relatively small space, there were no fewer than 27 beautiful firearms on display . . .
I suppose a gun control advocate might be able to pass these off as relics of a bygone age or an uncivilized era, but I found the implications of some of these exhibits – and the sheer volume on display – very hard to ignore.
Gun Nuts: Front Site Sucks
“There are a lot of great training schools and instructors out there,” Caleb writes at gunnuts.net. “Long time readers of the blog know that I’ve never included Front Sight in that list, and there are good reasons for a lot of that. If Front Sight was just a training school using obsolete techniques, that would be one thing. But there are many, many problems with Front Sight that extend beyond just their training.” Specifically, Caleb slates the school’s . . .
slavish adherence to the Weaver stance, their prices ($1k for a two-day handgun course), lousy instruction and owner Dr. Ignatius Piazza’s affiliation with Scientology. Those are Caleb’s 4 reasons I’ll never go to Front Site.
Now
This Is What Happens to A Disarmed Populace: People Die Trying to Save Others
“Sgt. 1st Class Danny Ferguson [right] died while trying to hold a door shut that would have led the gunman to a room packed with military personnel, his fiancée Kristen Haley [left], also a soldier, said.” foxnews.com reports.
Question of the Day: Should Felons be Able to Keep and Bear Arms?
We’ve done this before but . . . “A federal judge has tossed out the loaded gun seized from a motorist in Brooklyn, ruling that the cop falsely testified as to why he had pulled over the vehicle, nydailynews.com reports. “The decision — which will likely result in the defendant, Raymond Jones, walking away from the felony rap — is the fourth illegal gun suppressed by a judge in Brooklyn Federal Court in the past 12 months over concerns about the credibility of testimony by cops.” Who saw that one coming? Be that as it is, the interesting bit here is Mr. Jones’ rationale for having a gat on his person . . .
Jones was arrested Nov. 1
Random Thoughts About Onions, Open Carry and Retention Holsters
“Johnson City Officer David Smith had just arrived at Southern Tier Imaging when MRI technician James Clark, 43, wildly ran up to him before punching him several times as he was trying to exit his vehicle,” nydailynews.com reports. “During the attack witnesses said Clark managed to somehow grab Smith’s weapon and repeatedly open fire until the 40-caliber duty’s magazine was spent. Once Officer Smith was down, then the suspect shot him two more times . . . Clark was consequently killed by a responding o
Are Smart Guns Actually Smart?
It’s hardly a surprise that the legacy media, and its cable analog CNN, would know little or nothing about firearms and willingly leap on any passing anti-freedom bandwagon. Kieron Monks, however, takes the budding “smart gun” craze to new lows. For those aware of these issues, so-called smart guns are nothing new, nor is the fact that the state of their technology isn’t nearly ready for prime time. As I wrote on August 2, 2013 for PJ Media and more recently at my home blog Stately McDaniel Manor . . .
Smart guns are anything but smart and are not only non-viable in th
New York City’s Gun Control Laws Claim Another Victim
“When the order came, Mr. Salvia, 50, got in his car and drove to the street,” nytimes.com reports. “He headed past a pair of tow truck yards and a scrap metal yard to a ramshackle home by an overgrown chain-link fence marking the avenue’s end. There, before he could make his delivery, an armed robber emerged and fired a single shot that struck Mr. Salvia in the head. Police officers found Mr.
Quote of the Day: Bob Costas Rigs the Game Edition
“Here’s what I would say to anybody who any time they hear the word guns automatically goes off, like, ‘Oh, they’re going to repeal the Second Amendment. Let’s make a bet, you and me. Let’s say over the next five years we’ll do a Google search. We’ll have an independent party monitor it. You keep track of how many good and constructive things are associated with athletes having a gun, and I’ll keep track of all the tragedies and criminality and folly. And let’s see who comes out ahead or behind as the case may be.” – NBC Sportscaster Bob Costas [via politico.com]