IF POLICE COME FOR YOUR GUNS

IF POLICE COME FOR YOUR GUNS: DO NOT RESIST, COOPERATE, sort it out in the courts. It is the law. Yes, the very same legal system who ordered the firearms confiscation. If not resisting and cooperating is in your opinion “dropping to your knees, and handing them over” that would be your opinion.

I'm not sure what the law is ... which is one of the reasons why this "law enforcement" thingie is so confusing .. is that police need to be specific about what they are searching for .. and they need to have a warrant  (a legal document) specifying they are searching for ...

search warrant of a private home

https://www.legalzoom.com/articles/can-the-police-search-your-house-without-a-warrant

Essentially, if the police want to search your home, they must have a warrant signed by a judge.  If it is not signed by a judge, it is not a legal warrant.  That's the first hurdle they must surmount.

Then, there's the Constitution of the United States of America ..

Comman Takem

Joel's Gulch is a refreshing counterpoint to the "we don't wanna confiscate, we just wanna alleviate the menace" crowd:

Nyet, Tovarich. | The Ultimate Answer to Kings:

This isn’t frickin’ New Zealand, Bernie. This is America. We’re descended from bootleggers, smugglers and gun-toting traitors, and before you got hold of the college campuses we wrote songs about it. Not everybody here went to college, Bernie, and not everybody who goes to college buys the bullshit. Do you really think this is going to end well?

Not to gild the Lilly, but I'm glad that bold 2nd Amendment supporters such as Joel are providing the erudite (and common-sensical) counterpoint to the smooth talkers who would cheerfully take your guns ... if they can only find someone to do the dirty work for them.

Make no mistake.  The smooth talkers would will confiscate all firearms in America if they thought they can get away with it.  (Not to mention finding enough Law Enforcement Officers willing to do the job ... all both of them.)

Oh ... LEOS actually aren't anti-Second Amendment.

When the Hound becomes too useful

There comes a time, when training a dog, when you need to let the dog run free and hope that he comes back from time to time to predate the foxes in the chicken coop.

The difficulty lies in hoping that the dog remains faithful to the master.

Today, it seems almost trite to compare the American experience with that which others have lived through, in the process of moving from the status of "sub-state" to "Equal State".

Looking back at the history of the British Empire, we see that other "colonies" (other than the American Colony) of the Empire have accepted the culture of England, and yet have established their own selves as viable sub-cultures.

Perhaps the English have learned to be less assertive of their culture, and in doing so their 'friends' have become friends, rather than sub-states of England.

It occurs  that the "American Experience" has served to teach England that they could no longer usurp the prerogatives of their nation-states.  Certainly, countries such as Australia and New Zealand (perhaps others, including
 the Caribbean Islands) seem to have achieved a degree of independence, notwithstanding the support of their former masters.

In declaring their independence from England, the Americas may have provide a primogeniture lesson to the British that their outlying nations will not accept complete subservient role in their relation.   Whether their unique solutions are viable is subject to discussion

New Zealand and Australia (for example) have chosen to retain a useful relationship to England, which serves their mutual criteria ...  a degree of independence,. and a mutual trade agreement. among other issues which are still being discussed.

These new-found agreements may not have been possible if England had not suffered the debilitating loss of America as a "Colony" due to the arrogance of the British Masters.

Since that time, England has become more cognizant of the needs of their nation-states, and worked diligently to become "partners", rather than "masters" ... to the benefit of all concerned.

Had the Americas not rebelled against their master, this lesson might not have been driven with sufficient strength that England could learn that it was no longer the "Master", but a partner, to its "hounds" ... eg: Australia, et al.

The world (and England!) have benefited from this new international relationship.  And American has learned from England that trade relations are more important  (and more lucrative) when trade is based on mutual profit, rather than the ability of a powerful nation to take advantage of a less powerful nation.

We do not want to impose our morality on other nations; we hope to demonstrate that our morality is more advantageous to our citizens and to our national prosperity than nations which impose ...

... but whether or not that independence includes a "Right to Keep and Bear Arms" or not; that is a side-bar to the discussion, and one which will not be discussed in THIS article.

(NOTE: "Freedom" has various meanings, and the Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States does not apply globally; different states have different experiences.  What works more-or-less for "us" does NOT work for others@)

As Others See Us

Opinion | Hate Speech, Guns and the New Zealand Massacre - The New York Times: I lived in New Zealand for nine years. I have never encountered anything that could be called a gun culture. Indeed, Kiwis are very critical of the gun violence that they see in the United States. Many New Zealanders, upon returning from their first visit to the United States, express disquiet over seeing armed police officers. While New Zealand police officers now have access to arms, they normally do not carry them. In New Zealand there is no basic right to bear arms, and there is nothing comparable to the perverse influence of the National Rifle Association.
(New York "Times/Letters to the Editor, March 18, 2019)

In a follow-up I hope to discuss related subjects, such as socialism, a Free Market Community, and the Second Amendment ... and how they are  inter-related.

Back In The Saddle Again

For the benefit of my Constant Readers (both of you) .. yes, I am still here and the reason that I have not been blogging recently is because I have endeavored to accept a kinder, gentler attitude towards the world at large.

I thought that would make it a better place to live.  Unfortunately, nobody else noticed the movement and it's still a crappy place to live, so I will now resume my normal schedule of broadcasting the news that sucks:

In Oregon:

Portland Statue University (a community college at best) demands that Campus Cops patrol without firearms because it "makes the students feel safer".

Apparently, a Campus Cop drew down on a student, mistaking him for a nefarious individual who had been threatening other students.  This student freaked out and so the entire campus freaked out .. never mind that the cops are trained and experienced, and the unidentified wanna-be terrorist is now "The Only One" on the campus with a gun.

Well, if it makes you teen-age students feel safer knowing that a freak with a gun will NOT be countered by a "good guy with a gun", that's your choice.

I wish you well, and hope that the memorials which your co-students will build in your honor are glorious.   They will probably be in place until the expensive floral arrangements die, and the the flowers will hit the same dustbin in which your remains will be consecrated.

AS LONG AS YOU "FEEL SAFE", that's all that's important.

Me?  I'd rather know that I was safe.  But I'm old, so what do I know?

Parenthetically, as far as I know, PSU (Portland State University) is part of OUS (Oregon University System), which has decided that students and faculty are allowed to possess weapons on campus.

I was an employee of the "system", and I carried a firearm for over 20 years on campus.  Never needed it; never worried about it.   Everybody in my office knew I carried, and nobody ever mentioned it as a concern for their safety.

New York Restrictions

New York, New York!

This is potentially A Really Big Deal, in that both the state of New York and the Supreme court (pardon the alliteration) have both determined that it is necessary to review the rights of a State to infringe upon the rights of American Citizens to freely exercise their Constitutional Rights to Keep and Bear Arms.

The Supreme Court agreed Tuesday to jump back into the national debate over gun rights after nearly a decade on the sidelines.
The justices agreed to consider a petition backed by gun owners’ groups asking them to strike down New York City’s strict rules for carrying legally owned guns outside the home.

?  Is it just me, or have the Supremes finally chosen the RIGHT issue to rule upon the 2nd Amendment?

"They" (New York Politicians) don't trust you to exercise your Second Amendment Rights ... safely.

The Captain's Journal: Supreme Court Agrees To Hear Gun Rights Case Stemming From New York Restrictions: "I don’t want to hear another damn word about gun safety."

(You REALLY need to read the context provided by The Captain's Journal to understand the issue!)

Here's the crux of the NYC explanation for increased infringements on the 2nd Amendment:

“Unlike golf clubs and musical instruments, firearms present public safety risks that the city has a legitimate interest in protecting against,” their brief to the court said. “Limiting their possession and use in public minimizes the risk of gun violence.”

Their argument against Citizen Ownership of Firearms follows the same old mantra:  ("if we keep honest citizens from owning guns, criminals will be denied access to firearms which are used to commit crimes".)

This is an obvious fallacy ... criminals will ALWAYS find a way to get a gun.  Honest Citizens are "The Only Ones" who are ham-stringed by laws which make it more difficult to acquire the means of self-defense.

But I've said this before.  Haven't I?

The Generation Gun

The Generation Gun, in my family, was the 30 caliber (.30 WCF) Lever action rifle which my father claimed was the rifle he used to kill his first deer .... when he was 5 years old.

That's the thing about Generation Guns; they are so bound up in Tall Tales and Bull-Stuff; after a while you can't tell the difference between truth and "there's no story which cannot be improved".

(And yes, I realize I've talked about this before; bear with me.)

My father (Vernon The Geek) and his brothers {Orville The Geek) and his other brother ("Shorty The Geek") ... AKA "Floyd") would get together on Thanksgiving day, and swap stories about all the deer they had killed at extreme ranges and in inclement weather. As I have mentioned before, the stories always got better with each telling.

I once saw my father, Vernon The Geek, shoot at a deer from mountain top to the other, across a hiway (which was 100 feet below us. Then he made me climb down "our" mountain, and trudge up the opposing mountain ... to find and tote down the mountain.

Yes, he had mad The Impossible Shot with a Thirty-Ought-Six rifle which was older than I was. I was astounded.

But that was only the first time. The Geek Boys love the challenge of long-distance Mule-Deer Murder, and (I think) would pass up easy shots because they were "Too Easy".




Two years later, I saw my father kill another deer on a mountainside, too far away. I was fortunate that I was only Fourteen. years old, and too small to the drag the deer up to the ridgeline where they could load it on to the truck; I only had to lug Pop's rifle, and Uncle Shorty's gun, while they dragged the carcass a couple of hundred yards up the hill to where there was a road we could drive the pick-em-up truck to tote it home.
Of course, this never happened;
I never saw my father shoot across a road, which would have been illegal.

But that fat buck tasted mighty fine!


I miss the taste of venison; it was years before I could learn to appreciate beef.

Politicians And Other Scoundrels

Are we becoming the "New Jersey of the West?"

Oregon is joining the ranks of anti-Constitutional states by toying with the enactment of laws which defy the Second Amendment.

More than one lawmaker cried on the House floor while discussing the damage that a raging person can do with a gun. The chamber's bipartisan adoption of the bill coincidentally came one day after a gunman killed 17 people at a Florida high school.

Will Not Comply!

What's the issue?  Oregon Legislators are considering inflicting even more oppressive restrictions on firearms ownership by law-abiding Oregonians.

And Oregonians are ignoring our own elected representatives, on the grounds that they do not "represent" our Constitutional Prerogatives.

We're not the first state to find ourselves defending ourselves against our own elected legislators:  consider New Jersey:

Open rebellion? | The Price of Liberty:

...  perhaps as many as one million residents of New Jersey have failed to turn in “high-capacity” magazines by the statutory deadline of 11th of December, 2018. This requirement (turn-in or take out of state) is part of a law signed into law in June. The penalty for being found with a magazine with a capacity of greater than 10 rounds, regardless of caliber, is a fine of up to ten thousand dollars and up to eighteen months in jail.  Having possession is a class four felony, which means that anyone convicted would permanently lose their right to own a weapon. 

Ex Post Facto Laws are those which make illegal an activity which was legal at the time the activity occurred.  buying a 15 round magazine They are odious because they impose a fine or other penalty upon the citizenry, and because they often require the citizen to relinquish previously legal possessions without compensation.

"Sometimes, the only way to win is not to play"

But even if compensated by the state, they are just one small step on the road to abrogating the rights of the citizen.   These laws are invariably political in nature and often unconstitutional ... as are the ban on "high-capacity magazines" in several states, soon coming to a state near you.

(Oregonians ... are you listening?)

If the Oregon legislature can impose a ban on "high-capacity magazines", they can impose a ban on the firearms which you purchased legally (which can
accept a high capacity magazine), which is a ban on the Second Amendment ...  which was enacted by the Founding Fathers of our country to protect the rights of the individual citizen against the hypothetical dictatorial government seeking to tyrannize its citizens.

Question:  if the Army can load a 30-round magazine, and you cannot ... how do you defend yourself against an Army which is tasked to undermine the Second Amendment?

That " Hypothetical Dictatorial Government" is here, now, and it's here to stay  ... unless you take action to protect your Constitutional rights in the face of a government, recently imposed by the Party which is becoming more powerful every day.

It is lead by "fearful people".

Don't make the mistake of assuming that the party in power will protect you; they will not.  They do not wish to acknowledge your rights, and they will undermine them until you have no rights at all, except those which are becoming increasingly inconsequential.

Such as the right to vote.

The party in power is not that which is elected, but that which counts the votes.

Don't you wish you had a voice in choosing who counts the votes?

GUNS, MURDERS, AND THE CONSTITUTION

A scholarly thesis from 1990 addresses the negative public vision of firearms ownership by law-abiding citizens.

Essentially, it disputes the "common" thesis that people who own guns have anti-social tendencies:

GUNS, MURDERS, AND THE CONSTITUTION: As early as 1976, it was estimated that more had been written about "gun control" than all other crime-related topics combined.[2] Yet this pre-1976 academic literature was both fundamentally flawed and severely biased. The bias stemmed from the crusading zeal of academics who, by their own admission, could "see no reason ... why anyone should own a weapon in a democracy"[3] and who felt gun owners embodied an American soul that is "hard, isolate, stoic, and a killer."[4] Naturally, this bias led academic crusaders to discuss gun ownership as a social pathology rather than as a value-neutral sociological phenomenon. 

You may want to spend some time reading the entire study summary: I did.

I found that it supported the inalienable Constitutional rights which we currently enjoy. 

And if you want to discuss "Gun Control" with people who don't under stand why you wish to "own a gun", this may provide you with some useful talking points.

I don't now about you, but I soon tire of arguing my rights against the fears of friends and neighbors .. those who only read about one side of the issue.

This article talks about the "other side" ... our side.

"To Protect, and To Serve"

Parkland shooting: Judge says school, cops had no duty to protect kids:

John Bacon, USA TODAYPublished 11:01 a.m. ET Dec. 19, 2018 | Updated 2:52 p.m. ET Dec. 19, 2018

A Florida lawyer representing 15 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High students says he is "exploring all of our options" after a federal judge ruled that law enforcement and school officials had no legal duty to protect students during a Valentine's Day rampage at the school that left 17 people dead.  (emphasis added)

"Legal Duty" isn't necessarily the same as "Moral Duty".

*(H/T: David Codrea)*

"Stupid Is as Stupid Does"

You may recall Forrest Gump saying that line.

But now New Jersey has decided to compound their institutional stupidity:

 Former NYPD Commissioner Bernard Kerik slammed New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy over a gun law that bans off-duty officers in the state from carrying magazines holding more than 10 rounds of ammunition. Kerik tweeted a leaked memo to law enforcement signed by Acting Bergen County Prosecutor Dennis Calo, which said violating the law would result in a fourth-degree crime.

NJ cops are protesting this law, on the grounds that it puts them at a severe disadvantage when they encounter criminal actions during off-duty hours and are required (by their terms of service) to intercede when possible.

The cops are also uncomfortable because the laws reduces their ability to defend themselves as "private citizens".

But what about the other "Private Citizens"? Don't they get to defend themselves?   

Out on the street, criminals can't differentiate between off-duty police (in mufti) and private citizens.    The difference doesn't matter to the mugger or the car thief who will steal your property while menacing you with a club, fists, knife, gun or just harsh language.   And if you take a few lumps during the process, or perhaps get stabbed or shot, isn't that better than a lot of "private citizens" running around with hidden guns in Trenton? 

(And cops can't tell the difference between armed private citizens and armed thugs, which is their story.)

If cops can potentially be under-armed with 10 round magazines, aren't their non-LEO neighbors equally at risk?

Smarter than the average bear

ATF caves on "accessory" classifications.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Taxes and Firearms (ATF) has officially declined to impose regulations on devices which it has designated as an "accessory".  Specifically, those federal employees would not touch the "Bump Stock" issue with the proverbial 10 foot pole!

ATF Discontinues Accessory Classifications – Prince Law Offices Blog: if an individual or company submits an accessory to ATF for classification and it is not attached to a firearm, they won’t be rendering any decisions on it. Some readers inquired what would happen in a case where the accessory made the firearm subject to the control of the NFA. In the past, ATF has returned those items to individuals or companies that hold the appropriate type of SOT. If the individual or company lacks the appropriate SOT, ATF has not returned the item. To the best of my knowledge, ATF has not previously charged any individuals with GCA or NFA violations for seeking a determination.

You may be forgiven for considering ATF to be the one Federal Department which is staffed by "people who know better ...:

What I Like About "New Jersey"

The more I learn about New Jersey, the more I appreciate that they live 3000 miles away from me.

Why?

Not only DO they want to take guns away from their honest citizens, but they're proud of it!

If you live in New Jersey, you must relinquish your "hi-capacity magazines".  But there's an up-side:

You can sell them to New Jersey State Troopers, who CAN own those magazines which are a threat to domestic tranquility.

A Powerful Dissent Charges Judges Who Casually Uphold Magazine Restrictions With Disrespecting the Second Amendment - Hit ; Run : Reason.com:

New Jersey, which has banned magazines holding more than 15 rounds since 1990, imposed the stricter limit last June in response to mass shootings. The law requires owners of "large capacity magazines" (LCMs) to surrender them to the state, render them inoperable, modify them so they cannot hold more than 10 rounds, or sell them to authorized owners (such as retired police officers, who are exempt from the ban) by December 10. New Jersey residents who fail to comply by Monday will become felons, subject to a maximum fine of $10,000 and up to 18 months in prison for possessing previously legal products.

(Emphasis Added)

Well, isn't that lovely.  The State of New Jersey can not only deprive you of your legally acquired property, but they can coerce you to arm the minions of The State.   You know ... the fellows who will be required by law to confiscate your legally acquired property.

Funny thing is, we always thought that the whole idea of the Constitution was to protect the private individual against the predatory powers of The State.   But today, you can feed the Power of The State by selling your "High Capacity" magazines to New Jersey State Troupers.  (Will they give you a dime on the dollar when they confiscate purchase your high-capacity magazines?)

I wonder what they are going to do with them.

Sucks to live in New Jersey!

Wasn't the purpose of the Second Amendment to protect private citizens against The State?  Now, in New Jersey, they're forcing encouraging their citizens to ARM the very people who can use your legally acquired magazines against you.

Two good things about this:

(1) at last you have acknowledged who The Masters Of Your Fate  are (and it isn't you)
(2) you can rest assured that the only guns which can be used against you are in "Good Hands" ... the State Troopers.

Good bye, New Jersey.  Americans will miss you.

OOPS!

I have tripped, and hit the back of my head on the concrete patio.

Hurts a bit, it does, and so I have gathered a bunch of ice cubes in a bag and currently am trying to hold it against my head, with hopes of keeping the swelling to go down.

Here's a bit of a hint: if you must trip, don't arrange it so that your head-first point-of-impact is something as unyielding as a concrete patio.

It hurts, a lot. And for a long time.

I'm trying to type with my right hand while my left hand is holding a sandwich-bag of ice on my pate.
It's not working well, but I can only imagine the pain if I was NOT freezing the knot on my head.

NOTE: It's a "Good Idea" to wrap the ice cubes in clothe, like a wash clothe, so you aren't reduced to holding freezing hard ice cubes against your "oowie!";

The ice cube remedy takes a while to be effective, I guess.  I'm getting tired of holding the plastic bag against my head.    It's hard to type like that.  more later .... or not..

(22) All Hell Breaks Loose After Tucker Asks Jorge How Many Caravan Migrants He’ll Will Take In(VIDEO)!! - YouTube

(22) All Hell Breaks Loose After Tucker Asks Jorge How Many Caravan Migrants He’ll Will Take In(VIDEO)!! - YouTube

Do NOT assert your 2nd Amendment rights.

The police WILL arrest you if you're too 2nd Amendment!

(22) Debate with anti gunner leads to arrest at White House - YouTube:

AdamKokesh Published on May 7, 2017 SUBSCRIBE 243K Adam was arrested on a bogus warrant and did a week in jail as a result of this. He was held for Maryland to pick him up from jail in DC and they never did. This is not some big conspiracy, just another case of petty harassment of activists that is a feature of modern America, where everything I want to do is illegal. ;) 

FORTY NINETY EIGHT

This will be the 8641th post I've written to this blog since December of 1998.

But it's only the 4098th post I've actually published.   The other 4562 I sat back after I wrote and then said to myself:  "Hmmm ... that's just stupid" ... and never published them.

Given some of the *(often repetitive)* tripe I've published in the last 20 years, you can imagine the amount of embarrassment I've saved myself by declining to publish the other half of them.

So I want to thank my "constant readers" ... all four of them ... and the rest of you who somehow noticed that something I said may have seemed reading through to the end.

PS:   Yes, I noticed that the published and unpublished counts don't add up to 8641.   Blame it on the software .... they found the one extra post, I didn't.

So enjoy your turkey and trimmings.  I have my dinner cooking and it's in a pot on the front burner, not cooking for hours in the oven.

I've got to go now before the pot boils over.  I hate it when that happens.

Stolen Firearms Part II

I've received comments suggesting that, considering the ease with which the burglars managed to enter my home WHILE I WAS THERE, I need to establish more stringent security measures.


I've begun hooking the chain on the front door, besides ensuring that both locks are locked.
(My landlord assures me that only he and I have keys to the lock ... which confirms that I didn't make that extra check on Wednesday night.   My bad.)

.  I've received permission from the landlord to change the locks on the door.   In the meantime, I'm leaving the interior lights on 24/7 to dissuade return visits.   Unfortunately I'm a sound sleeper, but I reconfirm that all doors and windows are locked before I go to bed.

I know ... locking the barn door after the horses have been stolen.   All I can do is all I can do.

I don't have much ... a little cash and some old credit cards ... I've called my credit card vendors requesting that my old cards be cancelled and new cards sent to me via mail. All firearms are either locked in the safe or by my side. 

The thing is, I don't go out much.  Mostly, just a trip to the grocery store once a week, and the house is locked up then, too.

The burglars left long guns which were laying in the open (I was writing down the serial numbers to confirm my records, and went to bed before securing them .. this one night, only!)

I've been laboring under the delusion that I just "tucked them away someplace" when I went to bed, but I've now confirmed that the firearms are no longer resident here.

Now that I'm certain that it wasn't just a matter of forgetting where I put them, I'll be getting the police involved.  I should have done that immediately, but I tend to be forgetful and I needed to check the whole house.

I've done that; they're gone.

So now I have to enter a claim to my insurance company.

Unfortunately, they also found my wallet with all my credit cards, so I've been contacting card issuers to shut off the cards (no purchases have been made as of today) and request new credit cards be issued via mail.   I still have cards issued from local stores, so I'll visit them to request the old cards be cancelled and new cards issued.    They also got away with the $80 cash that was in my wallet.

This is a traumatic experience for me.    I've had trouble sleeping, I have no appetite.  It's not just  that I've discovered how vulnerable I am to theft, but that someone in this neighborhood knows that I have valuables worth stealing, and they were so comfortable with their thievery.

The only good news is that they missed the valuable competition guns (in the safe) .. it was a "Smash And grab" ... just took the handguns, which they could conceal in a bag, and then they split.  I'm concerned that they seem to have either taken the time to search the downstairs (I don't THINK they cam upstairs, where I sleep), or they were familiar with the layout.  That suggests that they have been inside my home before.  Both of those theories give me no rest.

So I'll spend another sleepless night.   And we'll see what kind of help the police can provide when I finally am able to identify all the firearms by serial numbers ... which I should have recorded LONG AGO!

Curmudgeon Blogging Not Allowed!

The reason I keep writing here is because I have this really terrific "Support Group" of people who, when I get all cranky anc curmudgeonly ... they remind me  that I'm among friends and I don't have to be The Cranky Guy (at least, not all the time(*).

*(see the comments here)

IN OTHER NEWS:
Still can't find the 'missing firearms", still concerned, still searching the house in hopes that I've merely "misplaced them".  Not expecting a good outcome at all ... which feeds my curmudgeonliness.

I've got to go to the County Sheriff on Monday and admit that I've not stored my firearms completely in compliance with Oregon new laws.    You can write me in care of Birmingham Jail.

Guns Stolen (?)

Somebody got into my house while I was asleep a couple of days ago.

They found a couple of handguns (a .38 snubby & a 9mm carry gun) out in the open on a bookshelf, and waltzed away with them.

 I had brought the guns out while I reviewing my firearms inventory, intending to make sure I had the recorded serial numbers. Started with the long guns, then got sleepy and just went to bed.

I didn't notice for a day that the handguns were not where I put them. I thought I had put them back in the safe (which was the reasonable thing to do) until I checked; they weren't there. And the front door was unlocked.

I checked with my landlord and he said only he and I had keys to my house.

My guess it that it was a target of opportunity ... but is someone checking my front door every night to see if I left it unlocked? (I "always" lock my doors, even when I'm awake and in the house. Maybe this time I forgot the check? I can't believe that.)   And as far ask I know,  my neighbors don't know that I own firearms.   How could they?  I never talk to them ... they move in and out of the neighborhood (all rental townhouse duplexes in a college term) every three to nine months as they enter and exit the local college.

Since nobody else had keys, and my landlord was out of town (has been for a week), I have to conclude that I left it unlocked. It was closed and latched, I'm certain of that.

 And I keep my porch light on 24/7/365 ... that light has been burning for seven years on the same 60 watt bulb.   It was intended to make burglars think twice before attempting entry.

 Well that didn't work and locks didn't work. What's next, booby traps?

Now I have to go to the police and report the stolen guns. That will prove awkward, as I don't have serial numbers for both handguns. I have the original box for the automatic, but I don't have any record for the revolver. I missed it by THAT MUCH! (Actually, I did write down a number but I'm not certain that the tall vertical marks are "slashes" or "ones".)

They also took my money clip, with about $80 in cash and ALL my identification (drivers license, CHL) and two or three credit cards plus my bank card.

Monday I'll go around to my bank (haven't seen any withdrawals) and the police to report the robbery. I'll get with my credit company ... I have old cards, so I have my account numbers and I can also contact them online.

I don't mind the money, and the cards and drivers license are an inconvenience. Identity theft is an issue, although all the cards are password protected so they could not be used. 

But I'm concerned about a couple of loaded handguns in the possession of burglars.

I'm thinking it was kids. Teens. There were two rifles in plain sight ... I was checking their serial numbers, too ... and they weren't touched. There were guns in a nearby *temporarily unlocked* closet that I planned to record next but hadn't got around to, and they weren't touched.

There's a moral lesson out there for someone, or for everyone.  Maybe a couple of them.

(1) Make sure you have ALL your serial numbers, plus take photos of the firearms (including close-ups of the serial numbers to confirm ... which I was in the process of doing when I went to bed without properly storing my firearms).

(2) check all your doors before you go to sleep.  I do this religiously (I think) and someone still got into my house.

There's another issue:

Oregon is playing with a law which requires that all firearms be under lock and key, when they are not on your person.  There may be a civil liability ... I could go to jail ... if I report stolen guns where were not locked in an "adequate" container.  I've always said my apartment was always locked, and so my firearms were secured.  I'm in a quandary whether I should report the guns as stolen.

I WANT to report the theft *(or maybe I just "mislaid" them)* but can I ... WILL I? ... be prosecuted because I considered my locked doors adequate security.

The problem with new gun control laws is that it makes felons of innocents. However, in spite of my good intentions, I still lost guns which I considered to be secure.

All of my handguns are now in the safe, except for the one which I keep by my bedside.   And a few long guns, in my bedroom closet.  Obviously, I need the immediate availability of at least one firearm ... even in a neighborhood which for over 20 years I have considered to be "safe".

I guess I need to start wearing a gun on my person 24/7 ... which is certain to frighten my neighbors.

I don't like being  'The Bad Guy".

Incomprehensible Retro Rock: Karma Chameleon:

What WERE we THINKING???


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JmcA9LIIXWw