Machete!

Man charged with assault after allegedly slashing woman with machete in Bryant Park | New York's PIX11 / WPIX-TV: MANHATTAN —
(June 23, 2015)

A man went on a machete-swinging rampage in Bryant Park Tuesday morning, slashing a woman who had just left a yoga class in the park in a startling burst of violence on the great lawn. 

An hour after the random attack, Kyle Newberry described the incident as “just another day in the city.” 

Officers received a 911 call of an assault about 11:30 a.m. near 42nd Street and Bryant Park, an NYPD spokeswoman said. When they arrived, they found a 31-year-old woman with a slash would to her right arm. Members of the park’s private security team followed the slasher with folding chairs for protection as members of the NYPD eventually caught up with the suspect at the south entrance off of 40th Street.S

(H/T: Borepatch)


That must have been especially traumatic for a woman who has just left a Yoga class, with the obvious intent to improve her physical health.   One YOB with a Big Knife has just chopped her life style into bloody shreds.

And there wasn't a damn thing she could do about it.  Legally.

In my extended dialogue with a London (England) "Bobby", in 2008, my British friend pointed out that the total ban on firearms has ensured that those citizens who were the victims of random violence didn't die.  Yes, they might have got beaten bloody, sliced and diced, but they didn't die.

What he failed to acknowledge was that Brits are unable to defend themselves against arbitrary attacks by bigger, stronger, better armed and more violence-prone assailants.  (Just as NYC Citizens are similarly made vulnerable,)

Really bad training experience

I don't know if I've ever seen a more egregious example of under-training a shooter.

I found this via the gunbloggers round-table, and for those of you who follow  gunbloggers I apologise for repeating the "DON'T SHOOT A GUN LIKE THAT" post from SayUncle.  (The video has been removed from YouTube, so you must go to the original link  to view the incident.)

DESCRIPTION OF THE INCIDENT:
A female (police?  She has sergeant stripes on her blue uniform) shooting a pistol on a range demonstrates clumsy incompetence as she tries to acquire a prone shooting position, tries several grips, holds the pistol inches forward of her face, and gets a "Magnum Eyebrow" cut when the slide recoils into her face.

(Note that the FIRST thing she does in the video seems to be to flick the thumb safety to OFF .. before she even begins to acquire the prone position!)

Immediately after her injury, the instructor grabs her by the head and ... without first clearing the pistol ... turns her face to the camera to show the bloody injury.

Babes 'N Arms

Controversy over Facebook photo of baby holding rifle | WTNH: WOODBRIDGE, Conn. (WTNH)–
 (February 25, 2014)

A report it (sic) photo from a viewer is sending shock waves across social media and the state Tuesday. The photo was snapped at a local gun store and it shows a Bolt Action Rifle, resting on a baby’s lap.

That picture of the sixth-month-old baby girl with the rifle in front of her was taken by her father at Woodbridge Firearms Trading Post. He and the store owner say it’s just a picture, others say it’s just wrong.

The baby girl is becoming very popular on social media. The picture of the baby with a rifle resting on her lap was sent in to News 8 through our Report It feature and many are reacting.

“She can’t even speak yet and she has a gun in her hand and it’s bizarre,” said Alexa Grose, Seymour.

We posted comments about the furor over the paternal photo of a 12-year-old boy holding a .22 caliber rifle a few months ago, here.  We considered their outrage humorous, at best, then;  what's more natural than that a father would give his son a .22 rifle as he grows beyond his childhood and approaches adolescence? 

(My father gave me a .30-06 rifle on my 13th birthday, and I thought it was the best present I ever got!   That fall, I went hunting with him and my uncles, and killed my first deer.  It was delicious, and fed us through the winter.  I was never so proud as when my mother cooked a family dinner around the meat which I had literally put on the table.  It was my Protestant "Bar Mitzvah" ... on that day, I was a man!)

The ownership of a weapon is, or at least historically has been, a rite of passage in America.

Now, even touching a weapon is a shameful moment.

The Liberal press, and especially "social websites",  are appalled that a father would put a gun in the hands of an infant!

OMG ... they're right?  Who knows what emotional damage this poor innocent may have incurred.  She may have been infected by the poison of Cold Steel.  The odds that she will become a Serial Murderer have just gone WAY up in a single moment of poor judgement!

Never mind that it was demonstratively NOT LOADED.


Everyone knows that the very touch of The Evil Gun can alter the natural maturation process of a normal human being.  Anyone who has ever watched "The Day of the Evil Gun" (1968, Glenn Ford) knows how carrying a sawed-off shotgun changed Arthur Kennedy's  (40-year-old) character from a gun-loathing, law-abiding, peace-loving Liberal to an Insane Klown Killer Conservative!

And remember the movie "Blue Steel" (1969, Jamie Lee Curtis) when Ron Silver's (40-year-old) character found a .38 Special revolver after a police shoot-out, and the mere possession of it so infected his mind that he went around randomly shooting people?   "A pistol-wielding psychopath!" Thank goodness it was only a six-shot revolver!  He wore a suit, for God's sake!

Still, he was unable to resist the lure.  Which examples prove that just the mere touch of Blued Steel can turn a rational, productive, even Democratic member of Society into the worst murderous savage the world has ever known.

Is no one safe?

(Thank you, Hollywood, for telling it As It Really Is!)

----

Introduction to USPSA: April, 2009

Once again we're looking forward to the next month, and the possible addition of New Shooters joining the Columbia Cascade Section of USPSA.

That means that, on the First Saturday of the month, I will be found from 1pm to 4pm at the Albany Rifle and Pistol Club (ARPC) teaching an "Introduction to USPSA" match.

By now you understand how much I enjoy meeting these eager New Shooters, and you probably understand how enthusiastically I approach each class.

It occurs to me that, even though I've tried to share my syllabus with others who intend to teach similar classes, I've never codified the information which I provide to students.

Here then, is the note which I attempt to send to each student before the class:

My name is [My_Name]. I've been a member of (and a competitor in) USPSA since 1983. I will be your instructor in the [class_date], "Introduction to USPSA" class.

To complete the certification process, you need to do the three things which [Head_instructor] has already defined. My part is the "#2" thing: "Attend Live Fire Safety Session with one of our instructors."

We have provided this instruction (in my personal experience) for a single person, and for as many as 13 people. Sunny weather seems to bring more people to the range. The medium attendance seems to be 3 or 4 people. As a member of a smaller class (if that so happens), you're lucky because we have more time to attend to the nuances.

USPSA People LOVE to have new shooters. Expect to be welcomed by the 'old' competitors at your first match; we like to see new people.

We want you to feel entirely comfortable, so here's what you will learn on the first Saturday of next month, when you take the class, and (hopefully) the second Saturday of April, when you will complete your certification.

Here is some information so you know what to expect during the Class and during your first match.


Two Things You Need To Know:

1. What the Certification class will be like;
2. What you need to bring, both to the Class and to your First Match.

1: What the USPSA Certification Class will be like:

You will need to bring with you:

• Your completed test
• Handgun (minimum: 9mm)
• Ammunition (minimum: 50 rounds)
• Wear a belt which is wide enough and strong enough to support the 'stuff' you should carry on your belt.
• At least two, preferably four (depending on your magazine limits) Magazines, and sufficient Magazine Carriers which will fit on your belt. You will need to reload at least once in the certification course; you will need to reload at 3 times at your first match. (Note that this varies according to which Division you declare for competition. This is because some Divisions only allow 8 or 10 rounds per magazine, and others have no limits on the number of rounds which can be loaded in your magazines.)
  

Your handgun must fit your ammunition, your ammunition must fit within reload magazines, all reload magazines must fit your gun. This probably seems obvious to you. We'll talk about this in the class.

We will meet at the designated bay on the North Range of the Albany Rifle and Pistol club ... probably bay 3 or bay 5. I'll try to put a sign out in front of the entry to the bay, before your expected 1pm time of arrival.

Bring your 'test'. The first hour of the class will be devoted to discussing the test question, and the various nuances of the test questions. Read the book, know the answers.

After the talking part is through, we will walk you through several scenarios designed to teach you what you need to know about safe gun-handling, and USPSA competition. Note that there will be plenty of opportunities for error. During these exercises, we will faithfully follow the three steps of successful training:

1. Describe the training scenario
2. Demonstrate the training scenario
3. Walk the student through each stage.

You are ALWAYS encouraged to ask question during the class.

The scenarios used to teach you safe Gun Handling skills, and competitive skills (also etiquette and an understanding of the Squadding procedure) are as follows:

1. Stage 1, designed to familiarize you with Standard Range Commands and revisit basic Gun handling skills: Engage one target with one shot. NOTE: also teaches range commands, and the appropriate shooter reactions to errors in understanding;
   
2. Stage 2, designed to re-enforce previously taught skills, also to learn the skill needed to engage multiple targets. Engage two targets with at least two rounds each. The student may reload as needed. A mandatory reload requirement may be included, depending on the mood and whimsy of the Range Officer, to teach you how to reload during moments of competitive stress..
   
3. Stage 3, designed to teach you the principles of safe movement, shooting behind a vision barrier, safe reloading and indexing from one shooting position to another: engage two cardboard targets with at least two rounds (see above), then move down-range to a shooting box behind a Bianchi Barricade (with a shooting box behind it.) . There you will be expected to engage one USPSA Steel Target, and one USPSA Pepper Target, from opposite sides of the Bianchi Barricade. (Note to yourself: always be certain that during movement, you make it obvious to the Range Officer that your finger is NOT on the trigger during these two events.)
   
4. Variations on the above themes, as they seem necessary to the instructor.
   

(1a:) What you need to bring both to the Class:

1. Handgun; caliber 9mm or larger
2. Ammunition, at least 50 rounds.
3. Magazines (if appropriate to handgun, assumed to be a semi-automatic pistol); at least three;
4. Magazine carriers, at least two .. preferably three (for a match);
5. Belt, sufficient to carry holstered pistol, magazines and magazine carriers. At least 1-1/2" wide, sturdy enough to support the weight of the pistol yet withstand the action of drawing the pistol without excessive 'give'.

Again; variations may be included, but these are the basics.

2: What you need to know and bring, to your First Match.

You will need the same equipment to our first match as you need to bring to your orientation class. However, expect that you will need a minimum of 150 rounds of ammunition to successfully complete the match. There will be six (6) stages at the match, with an average minimum round count of 25 rounds per stage. My personal criteria is to bring at least 50% more ammunition than the minimum, which suggests 225 rounds. For your own satisfaction, I strongly suggest that you bring 100% more ammunition than the minimum .. 300 rounds. You'll use it up eventually, so you should seriously consider bringing much more ammunition than you will need for the first match.

Depending on the Division restrictions for ammunition available in each magazine, you will need more magazines than the minimum required to complete a single stage:

• Singlestack (8-rounds maximum per magazine) bring at least 5 magazine (40 rounds available);
• Production or Limited-10 (10-rounds maximum per magazine) bring at least 4 magazines (40 rounds available);
• Limited (either 18 or 20 rounds maximum per magazine) bring at least 3 magazines (54 rounds available);
• Open (up to 30 rounds maximum per magazine) bring at least 3 magazines (75 - 90 rounds available).

The reason to bring MORE magazines than you expect to need is because if you lose a magazine, or experience a failure-to-feed jam, you may need to jettison a magazine. You should ALWAYS bring more ammunition, and more magazines, than you expect to need.

You should bring sufficient magazine carriers to legally carry the maximum number of magazines. Note that you can carry 'extra' magazines in your pockets, and use them after all of the magazines in your magazine carriers have been expended. If this financial investment is excessive to your ability, don't feel that you cannot be competitive. Bring what you have, and expect to "go to the pocket". Still, at least two magazine carriers are strongly advised no matter what Division you choose to compete in.

Procedures:

You should show up at the range by 8am, certainly by 8:30, for a 9am start to the match. This will allow you sufficient time to sign up for the match, and get your gear on and magazines loaded.

The match will start at 9am. There will be a Shooters Meeting, usually given by the Range Master (RM_Name), often followed by a "Walk-Through" of the stages. During the walk-through, the Range Master will describe the requirements for each stage. These requirements are described in you test. You will want to know, and be clear on, the requirements for each stage.

During sign-up you will want to make the statistician aware that you are a New Shooter. If the statistician does not do so, you will want to mark each score sheet (one for each stage) with the comment "NEW SHOOTER". This will help others in your squad to know that you should be the last shooter in your squad to shoot each stage. This is for your benefit; you will be able to watch the rest of the shooters in your squad engage the targets, so you have adequate time and experience to evaluate the best way for YOU to engage the targets on each stage.

Squadding: there is a 'squad sign-up sheet' available in the stats room when you sign up for the match. Find a group of people who you wish to shoot with, and put your name on the same squad sign-up sheet. Look for my name ([My_Name]), or the name of the demonstrator who assisted during your Certification Course. Usually, this is [Demonstrator_Name]. IF another demonstrator worked during your class, look for that person. If those squads are full, it doesn't matter what squad you join as long as they know that you are a New Shooter. Experienced shooters will almost invariably be happy to help you get through your First Match safely.

>From this point on, just ... coast. Your goal is to get through your first match safely. Do not attempt to shoot 'fast';, shoot SAFELY, and your second priority is to conform to the stage procedures. The third priority is to shoot accurately; hit each target with the first shot if possible. Be certain that you can at least engage ("shoot at") each target without running out of ammunition.

That's a lot to remember. Don't feel that you need to remember all of this. We will discuss every point, and demonstrate most of them, during your certification Class. If you have questions, don't feel shy about asking them during any part of the class.

This is suppose to be fun. It's not suppose to be as intimidating as this email probably suggests. Be assured that you will leave your Introduction to USPSA class with all of your questions answered, and you will have plenty of advice (much of it unsolicited) from the members of your squad at your First Match.

All you have to remember is (a) shoot safely, and (b) have fun.

You aren't expected to win your first match. The only expectation is that you will shoot safely, and will become irretrievably "hooked on IPSC" after a single match.

Ask questions. You can reply to this email if you have any concerns which are not already answered.

Looking forward to meeting you on [class_date].

Introduction to USPSA: Class of March, 2009

This weekend I was privileged to instruct four potential USPSA competitors in the Albany Rifle & Pistol Club's "Intro to USPSA" class. If you are a regular reader, you may be aware that I have been volunteering my time to perform this necessary function since July of 2008.

This may be my fifth or sixth class ... I've already lost count of the classes and the number of students ... and as usual I found the experience taught me as much as it did my students.

INTRINSIC vs EXTRINSIC attitudes:
The people who sign up for this class (free to ARPC club members) are highly motivated, which is the best condition for any training situation. The alternatives are those who are Intrinsically motivated (these people, who sign up "just for the fun of it", or because they derive a benefit from the course of instruction), or those who are extrinsically motivated ... they sign up because they are obliged to do so because it is a necessary stop to achieving another goal.

Intrinsic motivation insures that the student performs to his/her highest possible degree of endeavor.

Extrinsic motivation tends to result in poor student performance; he just wants to get through the day and achieve certification which allows him to compete.

I have been fortunate in that most people who enroll in this introductory course want to learn the skills necessary to compete successfully in USPSA competition. They have an intrinsic interest, because they want to learn how to shoot safely, and to feel more comfortable in the competitive environment.

Those students whose motivation is extrinsic seem, if a generalization may be suggested, to only want to achieve a sign-off. They usually have the attitude that they already know everything they need to compete, and anything that they may learn from the instructor can readily be picked up during competition.

I've been fortunate so far in that most of my students are intrinsically motivate. Those students who are only extrinsically motivated are easy to identify: they either don't show up for the confirming match (see below), or the do show up and are filtered out because they are demonstrably unable to compete safely. It's a Darwinian solution: they drop out of future competition because they don't have the skills, and they are too proud to ask for help.

We know who they are before the complete the "Introduction" class. They don't want to learn, they are confrontational, they "have an attitude".

__________________

The Class Experience:
I was extremely fortunate in the four students who arrived early for the class, and were happy to help set up the stage props for the class.

Here's the student roster. (I feel confident in revealing backgrounds while maintaining a sufficient degree of anonymity. As is my usual practice, I provide my blog URL and my personal email address on a "Get Out Of Hell Free" card so they can monitor what, if anything, I have to say about their course of instruction.):

"TOM" is the friend of Aaron, an experienced USPSA competitor. Aaron is actively encouraging his friends to try USPSA competition because it's fun.

"WES" signed up for the course because he wants to compete. I have no idea what his background is, because the training is so compressed into a short time period that it is impossible to interview the students individually. What I know about the students is whatever the volunteer during the training period. It's perhaps enough to know that Wes is willing to work as hard as is required to learn new skills.

"Don" is a USPSA member, a LEO, who has 'other' training and has demonstrated his gun-handling skills during the course of training. As is true of almost all students, I don't really know whether he has actually competed in USPSA matches.

"Chase" is a youngster (perhaps 10 years old ... I don't know, and I didn't ask) whose father "Wade" enrolled him in the class. I don't know if Wade is an experienced Competitor, and I didn't ask.

I won't get into the individual details of training, because frankly the skills and familiarity with USPSA range commands, practices and procedures is almost invariably know and is universally confusing.

The most telling significant events are how they handled themselves and their firearms in situations where the one-hour discussion of test questions and hypothetical scenarios were not adequately covered. It's impossible to cover every event they may encounter, and that's precisely why we start with exercised designed to introduce skills and procedures in a manner which limits the 'new things' they need to do.

First scenario: Load one round in your magazine. At the sound of the starting buzzer, shoot target T1 with one round only.

The purpose of this exercise is not only to familiarize the new shooter with the standard range commands (and his response) but to allow the shooter to make mistakes and see how he handles them.

One shooter responded to the start signal by drawing his pistol and then racking the slide of his semi-automatic pistol ... thereby ejecting the single cartridge. His response was to wait for further instructions from the Range Officer.

Positive results: he knows he doesn't know everything he needs to know, so rather than compound his instinctive error (he is not accustomed to a structured shooting scenario), he waited for, and actively requested, further instruction from the Range Office.

Instruction received: "The clock is still running, you may reload with another magazine and continue to satisfy the requirements of the published Stage Procedures".

Lesson learned: the competitor is responsible for every event which occurs after the starting signal.

The second scenario: Load with a full magazine, carry every reload magazine you can carry. Engage target T1 with at least 2 rounds (Comstock scoring), perform a mandatory reload, and engage target T2 with at least 2 rounds.

Objective: become familiar with the 'reload' requirement; also, indexing between targets, be aware of the passage of time while striving for accuracy.

Note that all scenarios were scored by the RO, and time was announced as well. Class members were designated "A Squad", and were required to tape and reset all targets ... to familiarize them with the etiquette of "everybody works".

Reportable Event: One shooter performed the reload when appropriate, but then racked the slide of his pistol, ejecting a perfectly good round and incurring a 'time penalty'. The student said to himself: "Oh, I didn't need to do that. I'm sorry." Not necessary to comment, of course, but it's important that he realized that he had performed an unnecessary function, and understood that time was a necessary factor in his competitive performance even though the defined imperative was first to shoot safely, and second to shoot competitively.

Note that the competitor is ten years old, and he is THIS aware of his priorities!

Also note that the competitor experienced a jam during the reload. He immediately effected the "Tap/Rack/Bang" resolution, in which he smacked the magazine to seat it ("Tap"), racked the slide ("Rack"), and continued shooting ("Bang!") , apparently without even having to think about it. Excellent gun-handling skills, you can tell that the shooter has been well trained.

Also in the same scenario of engaging two Metric (cardboard) targets with a mandatory reload between targets, another shooter demonstrated his prior training by NOT hesitating after successfully engaging the first target and then performing the mandatory reload. Typically, the new student will hesitate between the first target. He will obviously begin to engage the second target, realize at the last moment as it occurs to him that there is something he needs to do before engaging ("shooting at") the 2nd target. Instead, this student got too good hits on T1 and immediately performed his reload.

Lesson Learned: Know what you need to do before beginning the stage. Walk through the functions you must perform at each significant tactical point, and be prepared to perform that function without pausing to think about it.

Finally, we get into the ultimate scenario:

Engage two Metric (cardboard) targets from the shooting box. Move to the second shooting position (in a shooting box behind a Bianchi Barricade. Engage a Pepper Popper from the left side of the Barricade, index, engage a U.S. Popper from the right side of the Bianchi Barricade. Minimum number of rounds: six shots.

Mandatory reload between the two shooting positions (eight feet apart). Do NOT attempt to reload "on the move". (Safety/training issue.)

One student experienced some problems engaging steel targets around a barricade. He ran out of ammunition for his Single-Stack 1911 Pistol. During the standing reload, he forgot to remove his finger from the trigger. He had been repeatedly warned during the exercise to show that his finger was NOT on the trigger during movement, clearing a jam, or while reloading. Still, he had his finger within the trigger-guard while performing a standing reload.

He was DQ'd (Match Disqualified) as a consequence of egregious failure to observe basic safety rules. The failure was carefully explained to the entire class. The consequence of his Match DQ was that he was required to reshoot the stage safely, which he did.

Why do we expend such effort to train new shooters?
Our goal was primarily to train the new competitor in safe shooting, which includes and emphasizes safe gun-handling skills. All students are required to either demonstrate his ability in a beginning "Introduction to Pistol Shooting" class, or to convince Range Staff that he has the skills. When these skills are not demonstrated during the Advance "Introduction to USPSA Competition" class, we have two options:

1. Re-enforce the necessary skills through repetition;
2. Require the student to successfully pass a (remedial) "Introduction to Pistol Shooting" class, and then require that he successfully pass the "Introduction to USPSA" class.

In this specific instance, the first step was adequate to allow him to move forward.

The next step in certification if that each student must successfully complete an actual match. This explicitly requires that he shoot all six stages without violating safety rules. We watch New Shooters very carefully, and nobody gets a "Free Pass". The new shooter is held to the same standards of Safety as is every other shooter.

The Downside:
Yes, we have lost enthusiastic, motivated new competitors because they are unable to safely complete their first match.

Yes, we regret that they lost confidence in themselves to the point that they declined to continue trying to safely complete a match.

And yes, we have had people who required more than one match to learn how to shoot safely, but had the confidence and the "gumption" to keep coming back until they learned how to shoot safely.

We regret the loss of New Shooters who are discouraged. And we recognize the courage and determination of those who are willing to learn the lessons we teach.

This is an entirely self-regulating sport, and one which potentially can result in injury, even death, when the mandatory safety rules are not instinctively observed.

But the record of injury and death is less than the record of injury and death incurred in High School Football.


Bad Days:
We realize that we are 'playing' with tools which are essentially deadly weapons. We make every effort to train new practitioners. We use multiple levels of caution to prefent unsafe actions of every competitor, no matter what their level of experience may be. And if you, as a competitor, violate a single Safety Rule in even the most minimal manner, we will disqualify you from competiton for the balance of them match. The rationale is that you have demonstrated that you are unable to compete safely today, and while you may be more "in the game" tomorrow we are unwilling to risk injury to yourself or to others by permitting you to continue shooting when you are "having a bad day".

We don't do "Bad Days".

We train you so that you know if you are having a Bad Day.

We don't want you to have a "Bad Day", because we want everybody to go home in exactly the same condition as you were in when you showed up at the range. Nobody bleeds, and if you leave limping it's only because you pulled a muscle by trying to move faster than your physical condition would allow. You may be tired, but nobody was seriously damaged because firearms were involved in your chosen sport.

Practical Pistol Competition is the safest sport in the world, because we make the effort to insure the safety of everyone who shows up at the Range on Match Day.

I guarantee it.

New Shooter Chronicles!

Two weeks ago I wrote about a local news organization which decided to 'out' (as in "publish the names and addresses") of CHL (Concealed Handgun License) holders in Benton County, Oregon.

In the strangest of coincidences, a couple of days later I had an unusual (and very private ... Politically Incorrect, y'know?) conversation with a Co-Worker who told me that he had qualified for a CHL five years before, and that he recently (for reasons entirely unconnected with the election of Barack Hussein Obama, for whom he had voted) decided that he would not only renew his CHL but planned to actually BUY A GUN!

That's right.

He had the license, but didn't own a gun. No, I do not know the background story. It would, I'm sure, be interesting; but it it is not germane to the point.

Anyway, this friend and co-worker (I'll call him "Harley") decided that since he had the license, he was seriously thinking about buying a gun to go with it. He asked me if there was a gunshop in town. I told him that the last two gunshops in this town had gone out of business due to lack of interest, but there was a gunshop in a close town where he might find what he needed. In fact, I had bought my last two pistols from them, at a gun show. Unfortunately, although we can often find the best deals at gunshows, the last local one was in September and the next one wasn't scheduled until March. So, he might wander over there and see what they have to offer.

I also mentioned the CHL Expose planned by a local news source (via a local law firm), and suggested that he protect his privacy by going to the links which I would email to him and submit an amended CHL application.

Which I did.

Today, "Harley" and I were (as usual) the last two people to leave the office, and as I walked the office to make sure the lights were off and the doors were locked, I found Harley at his desk, working diligently on esoterice Geek-stuff. After I told him that he was 'in charge', I asked about his progress in upgrading his CHL to 'Private Mode', and he informed me that the links that I had sent him allowed him to establish his CHL application as "a private Self-Defense issue" and therefore not part of Public Records.

When I asked him if he had found a handgun, he told me that he had found a "357 revolver ... you know, a short-barreled revolver that shot a .357 Magnum load, and boy oh boy if it didn't kick like a mule!"

We talked a bit about practicing with the .38 Special load to become accustomed to the way the revolver works, and then about using the Magnum load for familiarization, and to keep as the "standard load" because if he bought the Magnum version for defense, he should keep it in that mode.

We talked also about Practical Pistol ("IPSC"/"USPSA"), Race Guns, Dot Sights ("C-MORE"), point-of-aim vs point-of impact, Defensive Carry vs Competition, and various other arcana having to do with pistol shooting vis-a-vis the need to tailor the pistol to the designated purpose of buying a handgun.

And we finally got down to the nitty gritty:

"When you find the time" I said, "Let me know. I'll take you out to the range and let you get in some practice time with your new pistol. It's important that you know how to shoot it under various conditions, and you need to build confidence in how to handle your new gun safely, and efficiently."

And I left it at that.

Harley may never take me up on the offer, but I suspect that he will. He's a responsible guy, and I don't doubt his determination to master Safe Gun-Handling Skills just as he has mastered many Computer Skills. He is, after all, an Alpha Geek.

I've already told him about a co-worker who spent a couple of Saturday Hours at the range with me "Les and the New Gun"). Some time in the next couple of weeks, or months, we'll stop in the hall of the office, or say goodnight after everyone else has gone home at the end of the day, and we'll make an appointment to spend a Saturday Morning at the range. He'll bring his new Revolver, and I'll bring a few 'other' pistols, and we'll both bring fewer rounds of ammunition than we discover we want to shoot. We'll play with guns, he'll learn a few things and I'll learn a few things, and he will go home with the new-penny bright idea that shooting is fun.

That end of the office space has always been a Liberal Bastion. It will be interesting to watch the burgeoning interest of a man who has just realized that there IS a reason why a rational man would want to own a firearm.

One at a time. That's all we need to defend the Second Amendment.

And Harley has a son. Watch this space; in a year, we'll have two new shooters who not only decide to spend their disposable income on ammunition, but the line to the check-out counter at our local gun shop will be longer by two new shooters.

I love this job.

.