Point/Counterpoint

Rieder: No, not 'too soon' to talk gun control:

POINT:
Rem Rieder, USA TODAY3:48 p.m. EDT June 22, 2015

Of course, gun control is hardly a panacea. It won't mean an immediate end to our hideous series of mass murders. And the measures gun-control advocates push will hardly mean endangering Second Amendment rights and wrenching all guns from the hands of law-abiding Americans, no matter what the National Rifle Association tries to tell you. Most of the measures are modest; Obama's centerpiece measures after the Newtown carnage would have established background checks for those buying firearms at gun shows and online and banned assault weapons.
 But at least they are a start, an effort to deal with the recurring bloody episodes that have become an all-too-common part of the American landscape. That beats unctuous hand-wringing. The president's remarks about Charleston marked his 14th statement about shootings — 11 of them in the U.S. — since he took office, according to CBS News' Mark Knoller, who keeps track of all things presidential.

COUNTERPOINT:

Writers like Mr. Reider have already heard the arguments of pro-gun advocates and have rejected them as being either specious or inadequate.

Much like our opinion of Mr. Obama's "modest measures".

The difference is, those modest measures (a) would do nothing to prevent the recurrence of similar tragedies, (b) disarming the public would put even more Americans at risk ["registration", for example, invariably leads to even greater infringement on the Constituional rights of Americans], and (c) the entire article is nothing more than "unctuous hand-wringing".

Turn in your own firearms, sir, but please have the courtesy to avoid undermining our freedoms.

My second amendment protects your first amendment.   But then, reciprocity is not a Liberal quality.

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,)

KOPS And KIDS

Here in the Pacific NorthWet  we have an amazing bunch of local cops who participate in IPSC and Speed Steel type matches.

They're pretty good.  In fact, a few of them tend to win many matches, to the point where (when the civilian Local Heroes are absent) they compete between themselves. Most of the rest of us are just hoping for Third Place.  One local cop was even the USPSA Board Member for our section for a while.

Yes, they actually are that good: not just politically, but so competent as shooters that they have garnered a lot of respect from their peers in the "Competition Shooting Community".

I have watched other PDs running their officers through drills on the range, and I was singularly unimpressed. But the Linn/Benton County guys seem to have their shit thoroughly together in a tight group.

That's not true of ALL LEOs, but in this little section of the Willamette Valley, Oregon, I think that anyone who knows these Bad Boys respect  them.  The local cops (not all of them, but enough) not only demonstrate their expertise at monthly matches at the three local clubs, but they participate as 'members of the community".

Last month the 'local' department held their nth Annual "Toys for Tots" match.  They have established an outreach program where they host an annual match, all profits going to buying teddy bears for abused children.

(Sometimes Family Tragedies leave the children behind as '"un-involved non-participants".  But when Mommy and Daddy are kicking the shit out of other, and screaming in the middle of the night ... the children are more freaked out than their drunken/angry/aggressive/clueless parents.)

It's a small thing, admittedly; but when a toddler has someone else to care for, even a stuffed Teddy Bear, it helps them to cope with a situation in which they had previously had NO control.  Actually, I suspect this program also finances other resources for 'victims' in the county.

All About The Children it's called, or the "ABC HOUSE" match.  Some years it's a Speed Steel match, some years it's an IPSC style match.  And they mix & match the stage designs to attract as many shooters as possible.

I'm quite impressed with the way the Linn/Benton County Police agencies (sheriffs, municipal police, etc.) have individually created an "Outreach" program to support their communities.  I wish all LEO agencies would find the leadership to perform the same vital function.

If an LEO agencies would like to set up a similar program, please contact me.  jerrydgeekblog@comcast.net

I would be proud to forward your contact information to local LEO individuals who might provide useful advisory information.


We  all depend on that Thin Blue Line to keep the peace.  So we don't have to.

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.

Appendix Carry

Last Friday I posted an article about a holster the positions your handgun in front of your body.  The point of my opinion was that is seemed a very dangerous way to carry a firearm.  As in "shoot your nuts off" not to put too fine a point on it.

Apparently there are a few other people who generally feel that while there advantages to this carry style, it is inherently risky.  For exactly the same reasons I gave.

The position of the instructor cited in the above linked article isn't that it's a 'bad' way to carry concealed; quite the contrary.  His point is that he is teaching people who may not have sufficient experience to use it safely:

If an individual wants to carry concealed that way that is fine by me but an open enrollment class with 15-20 different skill level shooters and upwards of 100 draws and reholsters is an accident waiting to happen when you add in a pistol like a Glock or M&P

In light of this more precise cautionary note, I'll modify my earlier position.

There are people who have the training and experience to use this holster safely.

Most of the people I meet on the range do NOT have what it takes to do so.

I train strangers how to shoot safely and (more or less) 'competitively' at IPSC matches.   Most of them have no idea how to handle a gun safely under the pressure of a timer; how would they react when found themselves in a defensive situation which this holster is designed to provide an advantage?

It's not just this specific holster.   I've seen adds for a lot of others ... such as one which is essentially an elastic 'belly band with a pocket sewn in'.  Very concealable.  But safe? At most levels of expertise, not hardly.

Of course there are dissenting views, such as this one which insists on "Big Boy Rules" for everyone.

Speed Kills! (OH, sorry; it's the Other Way Around)

Speed the 150-year-old tortoise dies at San Diego Zoo | Fox News: SAN DIEGO – One of San Diego's oldest residents has died. The Los Angeles Times reports that the Galapagos tortoise known as Speed has been euthanized at an estimated age of more than 150 years. ...  The massive tortoise had been in geriatric decline for some time. 

There has to be a great punchline to this story.  Damned if I know what it is.
Your suggestions (in Comments) are solicited.

Workplace Violence

Police: Ice cream truck driver fatally shot in Maryland while selling treats to children | Fox News:
(June 14, 2015)

FREDERICK, Md. – Police say an ice cream truck driver in Maryland was gunned down as he was selling treats to children and a suspect has been arrested.

Apparently, I'm not the only one who cannot abide "Turkey In The Straw"

Fast Draw From TRex Arms Sidecar - The Firearm Blog

Fast Draw From TRex Arms Sidecar - The Firearm Blog: Jarret Fawbush aka @truexodus demonstrates a quick draw from his Trex Arms Sidecar AIWB holster.

Jarret Fawbush demonstrates a good way to shoot your own nuts off.

No, I'm not impressed that the trigger is covered by the holster.

We have seen one or two reasons why you should never allow the muzzle to point at any body parts you might be loathe to lose.

I hate my (expletive deleted) Smart Phone!

Every time I get a trash text message I curse my Smart Phone and the day I bought it, I never liked phones much any way, but Smart Phones are so INTRUSIVE!

I think I hurt its feelings, because last week it ran away from home.

At first I searched in the usual places: coat and jacket and robe pockets, trousers in the laundry bag, behind and under the sofa cushions.  Nope, not there.

Nightstand, computer desk, coffee table, kitchen counter.  Nope, not there.

In the bed linen, between the waterbed mattress and the sideboards.  Not there.

I decided, I never find anything lost until I stop looking for it.  So I quit searching, for three days.

It didn't magically "show up", so I sat back and enjoyed the peace and quiet.

Then I read an article about a subject that was not familiar to me, so I reached for my phone to use the Dictionary app .... oops, I forgot.

Legislation is not the answer.

The recent tragedy in S.C. proves several things:

• Making something illegal is not a preventative measure.
• Mental Health tests and Gun Control Laws will not prevent Evil.
• Some people don't care about physical survival, but only want to prove that they actually EXIST;  they will go to any extremes to accomplish that.
• There are NO gun-control laws which will eliminate "mass murders"; those countries which have the most stringent anti-gun laws still suffer from the slaughter of the innocents (I am Charley Who?)
• Although it seems trite to say "When Seconds Count, The Police Are Minutes Away" ... maybe more people should think about that.

And you never know who's going to freak out next, or when, or where, or how, or with what.  Guns, knives, hammers, or a gallon of gas on a ballroom floor, only these things are sure:

It's going to happen.  We won't see it coming.  And there is no way in the WORLD to defend ourselves against it.

Weapons Tests For Destroyer That Will Never Destroy Anything

Weapons Tests For Destroyer That Will Never Destroy Anything: WASHINGTON — Engineers at Naval Sea Systems Command are set to begin the next phase of their ongoing plan to test the effectiveness of emerging surface warfare technologies the Navy will never get to employ in actual combat this week, the Command announced.

“For heaven’s sake, we don’t actually want to ever use these weapons systems in battle,” said head of NAVSEA, Vice Adm. William Hilarides. “If we abuse this technology we might accidentally win a war, and that’s just an irresponsible use of smart power.”

Engineers hope to install an electromagnetic railgun on the fourth planned Zumwalt-class destroyer, USS Wesley R. Crusher, currently under construction at Bath Iron Works in Maine. 

Railguns send high-powered electromagnetic pulses along a set of rails to shoot a projectile at supersonic speeds. Conventional naval guns use a chemical propellent and lack the “swag factor.”

(Please Note: Duffle Blog is a Military Satire website)

California Dreaming ... about the Second Amendment

New court battles in California about whether 2nd Amendment "permits" (as opposed to "acknowledges") the right to firearms carry for personal defense outside the home.

Gun rights in California: court to hear another showdown - San Jose Mercury News:  (August 15, 2015)

The 9th Circuit case has attracted national attention, in part because the court is reconsidering an earlier ruling that broke new ground by invalidating San Diego's strict but common guidelines for issuing concealed-carry gun permits. In that ruling last year, a divided three-judge panel found San Diego's restrictions trampled on the Second Amendment rights of private citizens to carry a gun for self-defense. After a tortured procedural battle, prompted by San Diego abandoning defense of the law, the 9th Circuit voted on its own to rehear the case. Most legal experts predict the court is likely to uphold the regulations, particularly given that much of the 11-judge panel is comprised of liberal to moderate Democratic appointees.

[emphasis added]

COMMENTS AND OPINIONS:
At issue is the "May Issue" vs "Shall Issue" priorities of California Concealed Carry laws.  This has been a bitterly fought battle in other states, and higher courts have typically determined that "May Issue" policies constitute a 2nd Amendment infringement.

The judges in recent months have been inundated with legal arguments pitting the gun lobby against gun control advocates and Attorney General Kamala Harris, who urged the 9th Circuit to uphold such regulations.

(Which is to say, California's Attorney General .. who is running for  Barbara Boxer's Senate seat in 2016 ... believes that 'may issue' protocols are just fine with California.)

Well, it's California, and and  one must expect such opposition to Constitutional Imperatives from one of the most liberal states in the union.

Blomberg finances another arrow in his quiver, titled 'Gun Violence Epidemic'

The Trace, Bloomberg-Backed Journalism Startup, Tackles Gun Violence 'Epidemic':
(June 16, 2015)

 NEW YORK -- Gun enthusiasts have plenty of options for industry news and firearms reviews. And the National Rifle Association boasts its own media arm to amplify any perceived threats against Second Amendment. 

What’s missing in the gun-media landscape, say founders of The Trace, is a news outlet devoted to the prevention of violence. 

Oh!  So, Bloomberg hasn't financed enough "Gun Violence" websites, clubs, pseudo-representatives and shills yet?

Guess Not.  There are never too many paid employees when you're trying to establish a false front for political goals.

Enter ... "The Trace":

“We believe that the rate of gun violence is too high and we believe that there is not enough information about the issue as a whole,” editorial director James Burnett told The Huffington Post in an interview. “As journalists, we have it as our mission to address that shortage of information.” 

"Journalists?"  I thought that encompassed those who could hold down a job in the .. you know .. "Journalism" milieu.  Apparently, this guy can't hold down a job:

Burnett, who left The New Republic a few months ago following a staff exodus, said The Trace will not publish editorials supporting specific legislation or candidates. But the site will operate from the standpoint that there are "too many people being killed and injured by guns," he said.

(Burnett was so valued by TNR that his web record enumerates all of his many accolades.   There were none.)

We're grateful to the man who can't hold a job at The New Republic for providing valuable and ... "unbiased" ... reporting.

...

Getting back to the point that "the rate of gun violence is too high" ...That's a big DUH ... yes, we agree.  And the reason why too many people are being killed and injured by guns is that they have been intimidated by leftists to NOT establish their own personal defense practices.

Bloomberg has enlisted the help of "independent" news sources to promulgate his views:

The Washington Examiner:
The Huffington Post:

Obviously, these 'independent news sources' have no agenda which might be interpreted as a "slant" on their reporting.

Bloomberg has his own agenda: it is that if you can't afford to hire guns, you shouldn't have a gun.

Those Who Choose Safety over Liberty => Dire Straits!

Gun killings fell by 40 percent after Connecticut passed this law - The Washington Post:

An overwhelming number of Americans say that they favor universal background checks — that is, they want anyone who obtains a gun to pass a background check first. Gun-rights activists retort that these restrictions only impede the lawful ownership of guns. But that’s clearly an exaggeration. When laws make it harder for people to sell guns to criminals, well, criminals will have a harder time finding guns.

(H/T HOT AIR via a comment by IRONS IN THE FIRE)

We thank the kind people at the Washington Post for providing such a rich textual missive for fisking.   But we're not going to fisk this, because it's just ... too .. easy.

 I'll only say that universal backgrounds do not make it harder for people to sell guns to criminals; that only assumes that criminals and otherwise-lawful citizens do NOT share contempt for these wussy, hopeful, ineffective Liberal Laws.    The sad fact is, both crooks and honest people consider these 'laws' as pure, unenforceable, useless freaking bullshit.  And rightfully so.
 
The rest is left as an exercise for the reader.

It's A Rare Gun That Fires Without A Finger On The Trigger!

The Captain's Journal  Police Officer Negligent Discharges:

Accidental gunshots by Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies have more than doubled in two years... The jump coincides with the department’s move to a new handgun that lacks a safety lever and requires less pressure to pull the trigger.They are blaming it on a SA/DA pistol because of the heavy trigger pull for the first round (although I have to say that 6-8 pounds isn’t exactly a light trigger pull for the M&P). Thus they have trained officers to keep their fingers on the trigger of their handguns when they deploy their firearm.  They say so.

[Emphasis added]

Buncha California Liberal Snits blame the gun when it's their mandated policies that are the problem.
Snarf!
Who could expect any more responsibility from the adolescent twerps who run  control  screw the state today?

Keep Your Booger Hook Off The Bang Switch!
keep your finger off the trigger until you're ready to shoot at the target.

Everything else is secondary, although some shooting rules sets seem to make this secondary to "keep your gun pointed in a safe direction'.

It's difficult to prioritize gun safety rules, we know that.  But when some "administrators" define the Rules of Engagement and deliberately ignore known safety rules,  it reveals them for the total idiots they are when the mandate unsafe practices.

And when the shit hits the fan, they blame the guns rather than to accept their own responsibility?

Well .. .it's California.

Nobody expects them to be sane, but I'm pretty sure that the officers who are required to live within their rules know their masters administrators are idiots.

Given that there don't seem to be a lot of 'accidental shootings', one wonders if the cops on the beat aren't letting a few bullets fly just to demonstrate how inane their bespoke procedures are.

What is it about Military Service that makes women kill themselves?

Suicide rate of female military veterans is called 'staggering' - LA Times:

New government research shows that female military veterans commit suicide at nearly six times the rate of other women, a startling finding that experts say poses disturbing questions about the backgrounds and experiences of women who serve in the armed forces.

Female suicides are a quarter of male suicides among non-vets.

But female vets kill themselves 4 time more often than non-vets ... compared to male vets and male non-vets.

Is it the pressure of serving?  Or are there more pressures (such as the high degree of sexual predation among serving women) which causes this high mortality rate?

I've always been a staunch supporter of women in the military.I grok the "Upper Body Strength" limitations which make it problematic for them to tote their heavier wounded male comrade from the battle field, and I know it's bullshit.

I also know that males may be so overprotective of females that they may put female well-being ahead of the mission.  That's the Male Soldier problem.

But has the American Military made the environment so stressful for female military that suicide has become an acceptable norm?

Again ... that's a Male Soldier problem.

But the female soldiers have been paying the price.

READ THE COMMENTS!

Quote of the day—Cody Fenwick. | The View From North Central Idaho: It’s time we start thinking a little more boldly and demanding much more. We should consider abolishing private gun ownership. …

For those who appreciate Joe's efforts to high-light the Idiocy of the Left (which needs no introduction), I do encourage you to go to the original post AND READ THE COMMENTS!

You have to work your way through a couple pages of The Usual Idiots, but when you notice that there ARE comments of more than 5 lines, you may want to pay attention.

There are a couple of threads which are not typical of the Usual Suspects (Gun Control Comments).

Commentators of opposing opinions demonstrate there show to have a civil, reasoned dialogue.  Who knew THIS could happen?   What's more, they find a few points on which they might agree ... albeit with certain reservations.    Nobody was asking for a quid pro quo negotiation (eg: "I'll give up a flash-hider and a bayonet lug for pistol grips").

None of the petty, irritating, divisive rot.

Its all about the real meaning of the Second Amendment, how it came to be in its present form, and what a Constitutional Convention might consider to clarify the meaning as assumed from either side of the issue.

Some people express themselves better when they have time to think it through.  And in that comfort zone, they're not on the defensive,

I love it when educated citizens of sensibility and good will actually find and accept the opportunity to communicate.

Which goes to prove that the wise man can still learn from the Village Idiot.

(Are you listening, Cody?   No?  I didn't expect you were.)

Shakespeare's mandate about lawyers

Of Arms and the Law: Jackson v. San Fran: cert denied, with dissent:

Jackson v. San Fran: cert denied, with dissent POSTED BY DAVID HARDY  8 JUNE 2015 09:53 AM Order here. The Court denies cert., not a big surprise, but Thomas and Scalia dissent and say the Court should have accepted the case, even though there is no split in the circuits.

The referenced information in the ARMS&LAW page provide plenty of background, and I would have posted a comment to the effect of  "What the HELL were these people thinking?"

But when I got into reading the dominant opinions ... and some of the rationale ... I realized that rationality was not necessarily a determining factor.

For example: the law requires that all firearms kept in the home be rendered unusable by virtue of being kept in a safe or having a trigger lock.  This was presumably to prevent children or other persons from unauthorized access.  Failure to observe this rule is punishable ....

Where Guns Are Outlawed, Only Criminals Will Have Guns

NRA version of 2nd Amendment lacks common sense - Daily Southtown:
June 05, 2015:  by David McGrath (a Chicago Tribune subsection)

So the wording and structure of the Second Amendment protects the people's right to bear arms only if they belong to a state militia.

So David McGrath has decided that 70% of Americans, along with the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS)  and enough Federal District Courts, State Supreme Courts, and enough individual case studies to sink the Bismarck are wrong.

And he is right.

Because of ... Grammar.

You've seen the Money Quote, now here's his embarrassing explanation:

ALERTS TO THREATS IN EUROPE:

by John Cleese - British writer, actor and quite tall person

The English are feeling the pinch in relation to recent events in Syria and have therefore raised their security level from "Miffed" to "Peeved." Soon, though, security levels may be raised yet again to "Irritated" or even "A Bit Cross." The English have not been "A Bit Cross" since the blitz in 1940 when tea supplies nearly ran out.
Terrorists have been re-categorized from "Tiresome" to "A Bloody Nuisance." The last time the British issued a "Bloody Nuisance" warning level was in 1588, when threatened by the Spanish Armada.

The Scots have raised their threat level from "Pissed Off" to "Let's Get the Bastards." They don't have any other levels. This is the reason they have been used on the front line of the British army for the last 300 years.

The French government announced yesterday that it has raised its terror alert level from "Run" to "Hide." The only two higher levels in France are "Collaborate" and "Surrender." The rise was precipitated by a recent fire that destroyed France 's white flag factory, effectively paralyzing the country's military capability.

Italy has increased the alert level from "Shout Loudly and Excitedly" to "Elaborate Military Posturing." Two more levels remain:
"Ineffective Combat Operations" and "Change Sides."

The Germans have increased their alert state from "Disdainful Arrogance" to "Dress in Uniform and Sing Marching Songs." They also have two higher levels: "Invade a Neighbour" and "Lose."

Belgians, on the other hand, are all on holiday as usual; the only threat they are worried about is NATO pulling out of Brussels .

The Spanish are all excited to see their new submarines ready to deploy. These beautifully designed subs have glass bottoms so the new Spanish navy can get a really good look at the old Spanish navy.

Australia, meanwhile, has raised its security level from "No worries" to "She'll be alright, Mate." Two more escalation levels remain: "Crikey! I think we'll need to cancel the barbie this weekend!" and "The barbie is cancelled." So far no situation has ever warranted use of the last final escalation level.

(from The Hobo Brasser, via Email)