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Houston Homicide Rate Shows Katrina Effect: Violence among Hurricane
Katrina evacuees, much of it occurring in southwest Houston
neighborhoods targeted in a new anti-crime campaign, accounted for
nearly a quarter of homicides in the city so far this year, police
officials said Friday. (It would appear that these homicides are more
related to people than "lax firearm laws.")
http://chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/3844488.html
---
Some Insight Into The Arizona Restaurant-Carry Bill: HB 2740 was
recently amended to remove the statutory ban on firearms in restaurants
licensed to serve alcohol. The bill would also lower, from 40 to 30%,
the percentage of revenue from the sale of food to qualify for non-bar
status.
http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/index.php?sty=64903
---
"Hand Cannons" Help S&W Regain Handgun Lead: Article discusses the
effects of incompetent leadership at S&W and the firm's struggle to
recapture its lead as a manufacturer of handguns from Ruger. The new
Model 500 and 460 XVR revolvers appear to be more popular than
anticipated. (Not discussed is the role of destroying the legendary
smooth S&W trigger strokes by substituting cheaper lockwork.)
http://www.slate.com/id/2141089/
---
From John Farnam:
1 May 06
From one of our Marine instructors, now in Iraq. He is teaching
enlightened pistols classes there to Marines and Army troops,
semi-officially:
"Taught my first Pistol Class here Sunday. Fifty students, mixed
Marines and Army. I only had a day with them, so we went right into
movement, drawing, firing, reloading, and stoppage reduction, as well as
correct gunhandling. Oh, and 'catching the link.' All were amazed with
catching the link. Most had no idea how to reset the trigger. They
loved our hot range! None had ever been on a hot range before. Few had
a clue about how to carry the M9, and none had ever drawn a loaded
pistol from a holster prior to arriving at our class. They didn't know
what they didn't know. I'll be teaching another group next week. We're
spreading the sunshine here!"
Comment: Webster, A WWII Infantrymen in the European Theater, later
described his garrison rifle marksmanship training, where
competition-oriented instructors insisted that all trainees, prior to
shooting, dutifully thread themselves into the military sling issued at
the time. The sling was used to brace the arm and shoulder during rifle
"qualification." Webster was subsequently involved in the D-Day
Invasion as well Operation Market Garden. Wounded at Bastogne when the
Bulge broke through, he was hospitalized but then returned to his unit
and continued to fight with them until VE Day. He never once used his
rifle's sling as he had been trained, and contemptuously referred to
that training segment as largely a waste of time.
Whenever this nation has gone to war, it has been unprepared, and, when
a big army is called for, has thrown together training programs in order
to prepare large numbers of soldiers for active fighting. When it comes
to small-arms, the people always mistakenly called upon to do the
training are naive, competition shooters, the last people in the world
who should be doing it! Input from active combatants and those who
actually carry guns is rarely sought, as their comments, though
indisputably relevant, upset existing dogma and may actually advance the
Art (Heaven forbid!). The system goes through the motions of soliciting
"input from the front," but, when such inquiries reveal glaring training
flaws, the intelligence is invariably ignored, then covered up.
I vividly remember as a young, Marine second lieutenant trying
desperately, on my own, to develop relevant pistol techniques during my
training at Quantico, VA, just days before shipping off to Vietnam, as
all "official" pistol training we'd had was a frightful bore, designed
and taught by languid, Camp-Perry pistol competitors. As I was facing
down range, the head instructor walked up behind me and said, "Son, you
ain't never going to win a pistol match that way." Even in the middle
of a war, all he could think about was pistol matches!
Individual heroes, like my friend, above, fighting decades of encrusted,
irrelevant, competition-oriented "training," are doing their level best
to turn the system around, in spite of itself. They are heroes indeed,
and we are, finally, making progress.
/John
(About once a year I receive a phone call from someone who suggests that
I could probably abbreviate my CWP course for him because of his
training in the military. On the other hand, I can recall at least two
students, who were actually issued handguns in the Army, who could not
believe how much more they learned about using them in a few hours with
me than in all their years in the Army.)
1 May 06
From a friend who is an EMT in TX:
"My most recent GSW call was last week. Goofy unintentionally shot
himself in the left thigh as he was shoving a pistol into his pocket. A
second later, he shot himself again, same place. He was apparently so
startled from the first impact, he convulsively pulled the trigger a
second time!
Pistol was a 25Auto, piece of junk, but it seems to have worked- at
least twice! Neither bullet exited. They're both still in him. He will
recover, but likely with some permanent disability. He was fully
conscious when we arrived and able to walk normally.
His initial story was that some unknown person ran up and shot him. We
knew right away that was BS. When confronted with the evidence, he
sheepishly admitted he had shot himself. But, that is not the end of
the story: We noticed another suspicious, round scar near his two,
recent entry wounds. He went on to admit that he had the same accident
only a few months before. Slow learner!"
Comment: During his short lifetime, this cretin will probably shoot
himself a couple more times! In this country, idiots can still own
guns, drive cars, and become parents! Fortunately, as long as idiots
can own guns, I can too!
/John
3 May 06
Residential Electronic Security, from a friend a student:
"Last Friday, we had a scare here. Nancy and I arrived home after dinner
and shopping. I had been carrying my G27, but I secured it in our
basement gun safe as soon as the door was shut. My quick-access lockbox
in the bedroom (where I usually put it) is not working, and I just
wanted to get rid of my pistol, so I could have a drink. After all, we
were 'home!'
At 11:00pm we were both in the master bedroom, but Nancy needed to get
something from the garage, so she turned off our electronic security
system, did her thing, and then turned it back on after returning to the
house. Suddenly, the alarm went off! I figured Nancy had triggered it
accidentally, so I immediately turned it off. Nancy had inadvertently
set it off three times in recent months by opening windows while it was
turned on, so I was accustomed to false alarms.
Moments later, Nancy came running into the bedroom saying that she
hadn't set it off! I had neglected to look at which zone had triggered,
and, in this new house (the alarm system came with it), I don't know how
to review the alarm's history. I then got a sinking feeling when I
realized that my pistol was locked up downstairs. All I had with me was
my Surefire and a bottle of Fox OC. The monitoring company called
within ten seconds. Nancy took the call and instructed them to send the
police. I stationed myself at the top of our stairs, feeling vulnerable
and stupid!
Nothing happened. I finally figured, when Nancy turned the alarm back
on, she had forgotten to disable motion detectors. That requires a
separate step on our current system. However, not wanting to test that
theory, we decided we'd ask the cops to clear the house anyway.
Even though we live in town, it took fifteen minutes for the first beat
car to arrive. His backup arrived five minutes later. I explained the
situation, and the two of them went through the entire house. As
expected, no intruder was found. While they were searching, Nancy
whispered to me, 'It took fifteen minutes for them to get here. If there
had been an intruder in our house,...' I interrupted, 'We would be on
our own, right!'
Lessons: I highly recommend electronic security for residences. Here is
what you need to know about them and your personal, security plan:
My friend allowed a single equipment failure (the nonfunctional lock
box) to throw his entire security plan into disarray. Everything must
work together for your plan to be viable. Doc Gunn refers to this as
the "happy family" concept. When one member is unhappy, all are
troubled. When something doesn't work, it needs to be fixed/replaced
immediately, then reintegrated into the system.
A gun that is perfectly safe is perfectly useless! Those who regularly
carry guns need to leave them on their person, even when home, as much
of the time as possible. Taking your gun(s) off as soon as you cross
the threshold indicates that you have an unrealistic and naive
expectation of the "safety" associated with your dwelling. An intruding
VCA may not share the same expectation!
Gun carriers need to be non-drinkers. There is no way around this.
Don't drink and carry!
False alarms are murderers! Cheap, difficult-to-use, poorly-laid-out
alarm systems are worse than no system at all. Alarm systems need to be
competent, thorough, and easy to use. Accidental alarms had made my
friend complacent. False alarms must be eliminated from your system, or
you'll habitually discount the possibility of a genuine intrusion, at
your peril!
Electronic systems need to be monitored 24/7 by a capable, local
monitoring company, and you need to provide them with clear and explicit
instructions with regard to what they are to do when they receive an
alarm activation at your house. Home invaders often cut phone lines.
Your system needs a cellular backup, so the alarm goes in, no matter what.
Doors need heavy, rugged, effective locks. It should require a
sincerely violent, concerted, and prolonged effort to breach your doors.
Sirens need to be inaccessible and internal. The siren needs to drive
intruders out, not in, and they need to be difficult to access, so they
cannot be easily turned off by simply cutting wires. When your alarm
goes off, resist the temptation to immediately turn the siren off. Let
it run! It may just chase intruders away, as it is designed to do.
By the time help arrives, the fight will be over! When a determined VCA
must be stopped physically, you will have to do it, and you'll have to
do it by yourself. No one will be there to help you.
A competent electronic system always has a (1) a strong parameter (every
accessible door and window), (2) external motion lights over every
entrance (doors and windows), (3) motion detectors in the inside.
Internal motion detectors need to be thoughtfully located, as they can
easily be unintentionally triggered by pets (particularly cats) and
incautious house guests. Shock detectors and breaking-glass detectors
are also useful.
Every room should have a smoke detector, and bedrooms should also have
carbon-monoxide detectors. A fire extinguisher should be located in
every closet, plus the kitchen pantry. The fire component of your
system is always on. It is never turned off.
Bedroom windows need to be alarmed with active screens, so they can be
opened and closed even when the system is turned on. Other negative
usability issues, like requiring a separate step to disable motion
detectors, will predictably generate false alarms. Spend the money
necessary to get a competent system that is easy to use, and then USE
IT! In bed at night, you should have complete confidence that there is
absolutely no way anyone could gain unauthorized access to your home
without activating the alarm. Makes for restful sleep!
/John
4 May 06
More on residential electronic security, from a friend in the alarm
business:
"The latest generation of alarm panels automatically send a periodic
'test message' to the monitoring station. When the panel fails to send
this message at the appointed time, the monitoring company will contact
you. If your current system does not have this feature, and upgrade is
strongly recommended.
The functionality of your entire security system is dependent upon the
location of the alarm panel (the 'brains' of the system), and its
ability to resist tampering. Many alarm installers locate the panel
within a few feet of the back door, since line runs are usually
minimized by this approach. Don't allow it! The panel must be hidden
away, deep within the house, and behind a locked door. This will
provide sufficient delay in unauthorized tampering to allow a complete
alarm notification to be successfully sent to the monitoring station.
One final suggestion: A common technique used by sophisticated
burglars is to cut power to an unoccupied house. Easily done in most
cases. Burglars then simply wait a few hours for the backup battery to
drain and then for the whole electronic security system to subsequently
shut down. Alarm panels are designed to send 'trouble' signals when
line power is lost, but monitoring stations receive such signals by the
dozen every day and mostly ignore them. You thus need to instruct the
monitoring company to regard any 'trouble' signal from your system as
they would an active alarm."
Comment: As with security in any form, residential electronic security
will continue to be characterized by a technology race. In races, one
must stay ahead of the pack!
/John
--
Stephen P. Wenger
Firearm safety - It's a matter
for education, not legislation.
http://www.spw-duf.info
