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NRA, Sierra Club Differ On Candidates: At least in New Hampshire, NRA
endorsees are primarily Republican and Sierra Club endorsees are
primarily Democratic.
http://www.therockinghamnews.com/news/10212006/nhnews-ph-por-sierra.html
---
Costco Gun Ban: It came as no surprise to me to learn that Costco has a
nationwide policy prohibiting firearms in its stores. In the 1982
California election, Costco founder Sol Price was a major contributor to
Proposition 15, an initiative that would have ban further sales of
handguns to private citizens.
http://keepandbeararms.com/newsarchives/XcNewsPlus.asp?cmd=view&articleid=13332
---
125 Years Ago: This coming Thursday will be the 125th anniversary of the
gunfight at the O.K. Corral. Article gives some perspective on the
process of altering history.
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/1022tombstone1022.html
(Steve Gatto's The Real Wyatt Earp: A Documentary Biography debunks a
great deal of the Earp legend)
---
From John Farnam:
16 Oct 06
"Necessity"
At last weekend's Glock Summit in Orlando, FL, Skip Gochenour presented
a wonderful lecture on the subject of legitimate self-defense and what
needs to be in place for it to be even considered by the Court during a
criminal proceeding.
Skip emphasized that the trial judge at your murder trial, as his
option, may (1) instruct the jury to consider the issue of self-defense,
or, conversely, he may (2) instruct them that they may not consider it.
The jury is the "trier of fact," but the judge is the "trier of law,"
and he will determine what laws and presidents apply and which do not,
what the jury is allowed to hear and what it is not, and what the jury
may include and consider in its deliberation and what it may not.
Like claims of "insanity," claims of "self-defense" by the defendant may
well be determined, by the judge, to be bogus. If so, he will instruct
the jury that they must find the defendant either guilty or not guilty,
but that they may not find him "not guilty by virtue of self-defense."
He will, in fact, specifically forbid them from weighing, or even
looking at, the issue self-defense. Thus, as sympathetic as the jury
may be to the hapless defendant, they may have no choice but to find him
guilty of murder.
The legitimacy of claims of self-defense will rest on several tenants,
the most important of which is "necessity." Simply put, every blow
delivered by the accused to the injured party must have been "reasonably
necessary" in order to prevent the accused from sustaining lethal or
crippling injury at the hands of his attacker. Blows delivered when no
substantive threat exists, or delivered after such threats have clearly
gone away will be deemed "unnecessary." When there is a preponderance
of such unneeded/unnecessary blows, which, by definition, served no
logical purpose, claims of "self-defense" by the defendant will quickly
be stripped of legitimacy.
It gets back to a training issue: Those of us who have trained ourselves
to fire our pistols continuously, until the threat goes away, run the
risk of producing several entry wounds in the side and back of the
attacker. When most entry wounds are in the front, with only one or two
in the back, a claim of self-defense may still be sustainable, as the
attacker twisting as he is being shot has been chronicled and is
explicable and comprehensible. However, many entry wounds in the
attacker's back will predictably create problems for the defendant.
A superior way to address the issue, in my opinion, to insert a
deliberate "burst-limiter" into your shooting kata. That is, train
yourself to stop shooting after a certain number of rounds (we use
four), move laterally, and access, resuming firing when necessary. Thus
limiting yourself to four rounds from any one position simultaneously
(1) confuses your attacker as to your exact position and (2) insures
that all your shots are necessary" and that you will stop shooting when
the threat is clearly abrogated.
Our imperfect justice system rests in the hands of imperfect judges and
imperfect juries. Our righteous claim of self-defense must be confirmed
by "necessity."
/John
(I had never really thought before that each of my small-frame revolvers
has a built-in "burst-limiter." Regardless, unless I were physically
constrained, it seems unlikely that I would still be standing in the
same spot as I was firing the fifth round.)
18 Oct 06
DPX on deer and goats:
Today, Vicki and I were hunting at a preserve in the Midwest. We do it
every year at this time, and every year I like to use a different
weapon. I especially like to use military rifles, as we never seem to
get enough experience with these weapons in actual use.
This year, I used my EOTech-equipped RA/XCR (223) with Cor-Bon 53gr DPX
ammunition. Vicki used her M1 Carbine, also with DPX (100gr).
Normally, our friends at this facility require that hunters use
something heavier, but they extended special dispensation to us,
because they know us well, and I indicated to them that DPX would do
the job. I was right, in spades!
I shot a fallow stag (200 lbs), in full rut, quartering away, at
seventy-five meters. My one shot entered at the rear ribs on the right
side and penetrated through eighteen inches, exiting the shoulder on the
left side. Internal damage was massive! He took several tentative steps
and then dropped dead ten feet from where he was hit. Like all Barnes
bullets, this one did not break up, but expanded fully and then held
together. I was on the link immediately, trying to hit him again, but
he fell before I was able to press off a second round.
Vicki shot a four-horned goat (175 lbs) at forty meters, broadside.
Her first round hit at the point of the shoulder and, like mine, went
through and through. The goat dropped immediately, not even taking a
step. However, after kicking for several minutes, he struggled back to
his feet. A second shot in the same spot settled the issue for good.
Again, both bullets expanded, held together, and plowed through.
My positive impression of DPX, in all configurations, continues to
grow! DPX is a wonderful performer on living tissue. Up until now, I
would not recommend any 223 round for deer hunting, but, after today's
experience, I have no compunction.
The XCR is a ideal travel-gun. With it, I'm ready for anything.
Equipped with an EOTech, it is hard to beat!
It was a great day! We do this every chance we get.
/John
(This is why, when Cor-Bon came out with the DPX load for the M1
Carbine, I only replaced half of the 120-round basic load for my truck
gun with it. I can easily conceive of circumstances where I would prefer
the less deep penetration of the old Winchester "hollow softpoint" load.)
19 Oct 06
Comments on self-defense shooting, from a friend and instructor, who is
also a district judge and personally presides over many of these cases:
"An objective standard will be applied to your situation, by twelve
people who weren't there and likely have no clue as to what it really
takes to emerge victorious. That being the case, one must be able to
articulate clearly not only what was done but, more importantly, why it
was necessary.
It may well be good tactics to limit oneself to four rounds before
moving, but if you explain it that way to a jury (instead of simply
saying you stopped shooting in order to assess the situation and see if
additional shooting was necessary) you will find that the jury (1) has
not the foggiest idea what you're talking about and (2) you have come
across as cold, surgical, and detached. That will probably not end with
a good result.
Remember, trials have little to do with 'truth,' in any objective
sense. They have everything to do with appearances, impressions, and
perceptions. As the accused, you have to insure the jury sees the
situation in a light favorable to you, and you do that by presenting
yourself as a likeable, sympathetic, even naive person. Whether that
is actually true or not is irrelevant."
Comment: Welcome to Planet Earth!
/John
19 Oct 06
A friend who does criminal cases sent me this. It is a closing argument
in the defense of a person on trial for criminal violence:
"Now, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, the prosecutor in this case has
proven one thing to the satisfaction of all of us: a terrible crime has
been committed. And, I know he doesn't like my client, and I suspect
you also don't like him. In truth, I don't like him either.
None of this is surprising. My client isn't likeable. And, although
the prosecutor has made a convincing argument that a terrible crime has
been committed, the case against my client is weak and largely
circumstantial. But, he is hoping you'll convict anyway, mostly because
the accused is not likeable.
If you or I were on trial for the same offence, such shoddy evidence
would fall far short of the mark, but, since my client is not likeable,
the prosecutor is doing his best to persuade you to overlook all that
and convict anyway, and he is sincerely hoping that is okay with you.
Someday, this prosecutor, or some other prosecutor, will decide you're
not likeable! He will then do his best to throw you in prison, solely
because he doesn't like you. Is that okay with you? Because, it's not
okay with me!"
Comment: Criminal trials cannot be about convicting people because they
are not likeable. They must be about convicting people because they are
guilty. When our system loses sight of that, the stage is set for
throwing people in prison solely because they are Jewish, or because
they own guns, or because they hold unpopular views.
Marginalizing minorities, pushing them so far from the mainstream that
their lives become insignificant, indeed expendable, is the province of
autocrats and tyrants, and the foregoing is their preferred method of
getting rid of political opponents.
Our system of justice is one of the dwindling few that even makes a
pretense of equity. We treat it casually at our peril!
/John
21 Oct 06
Here in Memphis, TN, where, believe it or not, violent crime is eighteen
times higher than in LA, local gun retailers tell me Glocks and SIGs top
the list of serious guns wanted by those who carry concealed, a group
that includes nearly everyone with at least two nickels to rub together.
The local PD has been into 40S&W for some time, and that is the caliber
everyone here seems to want. Thus, the G23 is a top seller, followed at
some distance by the G22 and the G27. The single-column SIG 239 is
popular too, actually more in demand than is the double-column 229.
After trying it, nearly everyone opts for the DAK trigger. Beretta,
H&K (particularly the LEM), and Ruger are also in the mix.
The 1911 crowd is active down here too, with S&W's Scandium being the
top seller. Kimber and Detonics also sell well. Comp-Tac, Ky-Tec, and
Hoffner holsters are well represented.
Like so many big PDs, MPD is hopelessly top-heavy, antiquated, slow to
respond, and, not surprisingly, the local 911 system is clogged solid
during evening hours. As always, you're on your own. The good news is
that honest citizens who shoot VCAs in self-defense (and it happens a
lot!) are almost never prosecuted. They're actually treated well by the
criminal-justice system, unlike the case in so many other places. In
TN, you have the clear right to defend yourself!
Actually, I prefer it here, where I am allowed, indeed expected to, take
care of myself, to LA, where violent crime may be technically lower, but
where all who take unilateral action to protect themselves are treated
far worse, by the criminal justice system, than are the real criminals
who try to harm them!
/John
(I believe that by "LA," John is referring to Los Angeles, not
Louisiana. "VCA" is Farnamese for "violent criminal actor.")
---
From NRA-ILA:
NRA-ILA Grassroots Alert Vol. 13, No. 42 10/20/06
States with updates this issue: California, Illinois, New Hampshire,
and Virginia.
THE PASSING OF A PATRIOT
The pro-Second Amendment community lost a true friend last week, with
the passing of Herman Richard Daniel of Irmo, S.C. "Rick" died due to
complications from aortal heart issues. He was 45.
An NRA Life Member, Rick's pro-gun r�sum� was long and distinguished and
included:
� 10 years as President, and currently Legislative Director, of Gun
Owners of South Carolina, NRA's state affiliate;
� NRA-ILA Election Volunteer Coordinator for South Carolina's First,
Second, and Fourth congressional districts;
� Being appointed by NRA President Sandy Froman to serve on the NRA
Board of Directors' Grassroots Development Committee;
� First ever America's 1st Freedom magazine's "NRA Member of The Year;"
� Only non-legislator in South Carolina to be named "Defender of
Freedom" by NRA;
� Honored by South Carolina Senate and House in 2001 with Resolutions
recognizing Rick's "efforts to ensure that future generations of South
Carolinians will enjoy the Right to Keep and Bear Arms through his
support of responsible gun ownership and gun safety legislation and to
congratulate him for being chosen" as the first recipient of the
America's 1st Freedom magaine's "NRA Member of The Year;"
� Second Amendment Foundation's 2006 "James Madison Award" winner for
excellence in writing;
� Panelist, 2006 Gun Rights Policy Conference;
� Member, S.C. Legislative Sportsmen's Caucus Board of Advisors;
� Founding Member, Mid-Carolina Friends of NRA Committee;
� NRA Certified Firearms Instructor and State Certified Concealed
Weapons Permit Instructor;
� NRA "Refuse to be a Victim�" instructor;
� Taught Eddie Eagle GunSafe� Program at schools and churches.
In addition to practicing what NRA preaches on volunteerism, Rick also
dedicated his professional life to public service, as he served four
statewide elected officials, including serving in the former S.C.
Attorney General's Office as an investigator. Additionally, at the time
of his passing, Rick served as a State Constable Officer in S.C. State
Guard (Special Liaison Unit) and was a longtime aide to South Carolina
Comptroller General, Richard Eckstrom (R). He was eulogized by, among
others, Lt. Governor Andre Bauer (R), and the service was attended by
other elected officials.
Not only was Rick among the top pro-gun activists in the country, but he
was a friend to many of us in the NRA family. His activism, wit,
friendship, guidance, and professionalism will be sorely missed, and our
thoughts and prayers remain with his family and friends.
The son of Evelyn Spires and the late Herman Daniel, Rick is survived by
his loving wife Esther and two daughters, Heather Rhea and Kara Nina;
his brother Jim and wife Tonette, with niece Jamie; and sister Linda and
her husband Charley Butler.
VISIT NRA-PVF SITE BEFORE ELECTION DAY FOR CANDIDATE GRADES & ENDORSEMENTS!
Election Day, November 7, is now less than three weeks away! For
up-to-the-minute campaign information, and to see what more you can do
to help elect pro-Second Amendment candidates to office, NRA members are
strongly encouraged to visit the NRA-Political Victory Fund (NRA-PVF)
website, www.NRAPVF.org. This official NRA campaign site will serve as
your one-stop campaign reference guide this election season. The site
is loaded with all of the critical information you'll need to make
informed decisions on Election Day, November 7. Included on the site
are news stories, articles from NRA's magazines, NRA-PVF press releases,
and a complete listing of NRA-PVF candidate grades and endorsements!
In addition to all of the late-breaking campaign news, candidate grades
and endorsements, EVC contact information, and firearm issue background
information, you will also find our multimeda section--
www.nrapvf.org/Multimedia/Default.aspx -- that houses easy-to-access ads
that are perfectly suited for distribution among your fellow NRA Members!
Early and absentee voting is currently underway in several states. If
you are voting early or by absentee ballot, please be sure to visit
www.NRAPVF.org before casting your ballot.
With so few days between now and Election Day, November 7, please be
sure that you leave no stone unturned and, on November 7, join us on
"Freedom's Frontline" and "Vote Freedom First"!
"GIVE THEM BACK"
As you've read in previous Grassroots Alerts, in the wake of Hurricane
Katrina, law-abiding citizens had their lawfully owned firearms
confiscated by local officials! When citizens needed protection the
most, they were stripped of their right to self-defense. As you've also
read, President Bush recently signed NRA-backed legislation to ensure
such travesties are never repeated.
NRA has launched a new web site--
http://www.givethemback.com/--with
shocking video coverage of New Orleans gun confiscations that you'll
never see on ABC, CBS, or NBC. This site gives gun owners a stark and
brutal reminder of why we must defend our firearm freedoms with passion
and vigilance, in Congress, in state legislatures, in the courts.AND ON
ELECTION DAY.
This site makes it clear why gun owners can never, ever sit on the
sidelines during an election, and serves as a slap-in-the-face wake up
call for every gun owner who thinks anti-gun politicians don't have the
nerve or the will to confiscate our guns. And why they must be defeated
before they ever get their hands on power!
Please be sure to visit
http://www.givethemback.com/ today, and forward
the link to your friends, family, and fellow gun owners. Remember what
happened in New Orleans, and let your voice be heard on Election
Day--Vote Freedom First on November 7! With your help, we're going to
make the first time in New Orleans the LAST time in America.
HALBROOK DEMOLISHES ANTI-GUN PROPAGANDA
When it comes to the debate over the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, few,
if any, have contributed more than constitutional scholar and attorney,
Stephen Halbrook. His books and law review articles are "must reading"
for all (including other scholars) who are interested in the origin of
the right to arms and the Second Amendment.
Now, Halbrook has come to the defense of the right to arms once again.
This time, he responds to arguments currently being pushed by Ohio State
University (OSU) history professor, Saul Cornell.
Most of the academics who once believed that the Second Amendment
protects something other than an individual right have changed their
minds or gone silent, due to the overwhelming evidence presented by
Halbrook, Joyce Lee Malcolm, David Hardy, Don Kates, Sanford Levinson,
Robert Cottrol, William van Alstyne, Akhil Reed Amar, Nelson Lund, and
many others over the last 20-odd years.
Not Cornell. He is trying to create a niche for himself as a conspicuous
dissenter, heading up the Second Amendment Research Center (SARC) at
OSU. While the SARC purports to be a "nonpartisan center promoting
scholarship on issues concerning the Second Amendment to the United
States Constitution and firearms regulation," it receives funding from
the radically anti-gun Joyce Foundation.
Cornell is pushing the idea that the Second Amendment requires gun
control and imposes a civic duty to possess arms while serving in a
militia. And he says that those who believe that the amendment protects
an individual right misinterpret the writings of Judge St. George
Tucker, author of the first and foremost treatise on our Constitution
and Bill of Rights.
To the contrary, Halbrook points out, Tucker considered the Second
Amendment the "palladium of liberty" and self-defense "the first law of
nature." Tucker lamented that under the infamous British Game Laws, only
well-to-do Englishmen were permitted to hunt, but "others can keep a gun
for their defense; so that the whole nation are completely disarmed, and
left at the mercy of the government, under the pretext of preserving the
breed of hares and partridges, for the exclusive use of the independent
country gentlemen."
By comparison, Tucker said, under the Second Amendment our Congress has
"no power to regulate, or interfere with the domestic concerns, or
police of any state," "nor will the constitution permit any prohibition
of arms to the people."
DEER MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR CUYAHOGA VALLEY NATIONAL PARK, OHIO
The Cuyahoga Valley National Park announced that it will be preparing a
management plan to address overpopulation of white-tailed deer. An
environmental impact statement (EIS) will be prepared and the
preliminary management options are: landscape management, fencing,
reproductive control, direct reduction, or a combination of these
options. The use of hunters is not mentioned because hunting is not
permitted in the Park. However, the Park should "contract" people with
hunting skills to assist them in any reduction plan. The Park is
accepting comments on the preliminary options until November 6. The
Park will be holding public meetings and when a draft EIS is prepared,
it will be made available for public comment. Hunter participation in
wildlife management has proven to be the most cost effective tool
available. Let the Park hear your thoughts by sending comments to:
Resource Management, Cuyahoga Valley National Park, 15610 Vaughn Road,
Brecksvile, Ohio 44141 or on line at
http://www.parkplanning.nps.gov/cuva. Click on the link titled Cuyahoga
Valley National Park Deer Management Plan/EIS. You can also go to
http://www.nps.gov/cuva to see when public meetings will be held.
A LOOK AT THE STATES
(***For all of the action items below, you can find contact information
for your legislators by visiting www.NRAILA.org, clicking the "Take
Action" icon, and then clicking the "Write Your Representatives" icon.
For information on NRA-PVF candidate endorsements, NRA members are
encouraged to call the NRA-ILA Grassroots Division at (800) 392-VOTE
(8683), or visit www.NRAPVF.org. As always, thank you for your support.***)
States with updates this issue: California, Illinois, New Hampshire,
and Virginia.
Please note: Early and absentee voting for the Tuesday, November 7
General Election is already underway in many states across the country.
For more information on early/absentee voting, please contact your
state's Board of Elections office. Be sure to "Vote Freedom First" on
Tuesday, November 7!
CALIFORNIA
On Tuesday, October 10, the City of Santa Clara withdrew its proposal to
ban gun shows on city property. The City Council claimed it received a
"huge volume" of e-mails from NRA Members across the State of
California. A special thank you to all NRA members for your calls and
e-mails against this threat to your Right to Keep and Bear Arms!
Also, on Saturday, October 21, at 9:00 a.m., the U.S. Forest Service
(USFS), with assistance from PLINK, a cooperative program of the NRA
Members Council, El Dorado Rod & Gun Club, and the USFS, will be
cleaning up shot shells and targets from Tiger Creek Quarry. Volunteers
are needed to preserve this valuable shooting sports resource.
Volunteers will gather at the Firehouse Caf� in Diamond Springs at 7:30
a.m., for a complimentary breakfast prior to caravanning to the site.
If you are unable to attend for breakfast, but can help with the
clean-up, take Highway 88 about 18 miles east of Jackson to Buckorn,
then turn south (right) on Tiger Creek Road. At the Reservoir, keep
driving east above the PG&E houses on the one lane paved Salt Springs
Road for a bit over one mile, then turn right 500 yards down into the
quarry. To RSVP, please contact Steve Morgan at (530) 620-3946 or by
e-mail at
[email protected].
ILLINOIS
When Cook County voters go to the polls this Election Day, November 7,
they will be faced with the opportunity to vote on Countywide Advisory
Referendum 1�a non-binding referendum that seeks to urge the State of
Illinois to ban countless semi-automatic rifles, shotguns, and handguns,
as well as all .50 caliber rifles. The Cook County Board could just as
easily have given the voters of Cook County an opportunity to voice
their support for any number of proven crime-fighting measures, but
certain anti-gun extremists on the Board have chosen to promote a
statewide version of the federal gun ban that was such a complete
failure in combating violent crime that Congress allowed it to expire
two years ago. Targeting law-abiding gun owners instead, the referendum
uses buzzwords and phrases ("For the health and safety of children...")
that could have been lifted directly from the websites of gun-ban
extremists such as the Brady Campaign, which has endorsed the proosal.
Joining the Brady Bunch in support of the referendum at a September
event were several anti-gun politicians, including Cook County
Commissioners Larry Suffredin (D-13) and John Daley (D-11); State
Senator Antonio Munoz (D-1); State Representatives Edward Acevedo (D-2)
and Esther Golar (D-6); and Alderman Todd Stroger (D-8). NRA opposes
passage of Countywide Advisory Referendum 1, urges its members in Cook
County to vote against it, and to spread the word to oppose this effort
to prohibit the law-abiding citizens of Illinois from possessing
firearms commonly used for personal protection, hunting, and sporting
purposes.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (R), and Boston Mayor Thomas
Menino (D), are personally contacting every mayor in New Hampshire
asking them to sign onto Mayor Bloomberg's New York-style gun control
agenda. Please call your Mayor and find out if he/she has received such
a call, then, discourage your mayor from signing onto this outrageous
attack on our Right to Keep and Bear Arms. Then, please call the Gun
Owners of New Hampshire at (603) 225-4664, and let them know whether or
not your Mayor received that call. The following online links will help
you find the contact information for your Mayor:
www.newhampshire.com/nh-towns/rochester.aspx,
www.directorynh.com/NHCities-Towns/NHCities&Towns.html, and
www.nh.gov/municipal/index.html. Citizens throughout New Hampshire are
counting on you to contact your Mayor TODAY!
VIRGINIA
The Loudoun County Friends of NRA Committee invites you to attend its
annual banquet and auction. This event includes a live auction, silent
auction, games, raffles, and prize drawings. Proceeds benefit The NRA
Foundation and provide funding for shooting-sports-related grants. Come
out and join your fellow NRA supporters for an evening of fun while
raising money for Friends of NRA. The event is scheduled for Thursday,
November 9, at the Leesburg Holiday Inn-Carradoc Hall, 1500 East Market
Street, in Leesburg. Tickets are limited and are on sale now, $40 per
person and $70 per couple. Sponsorships are also available. For
additional information or to purchase tickets, please contact Brooke
Berthelsen by phone at 703-267-1354 or by e-mail at
[email protected].
In addition, the Virginia Shooting Sports Association presents: "Methods
of Concealed Carry with Tom Marx." Please join us on October 28, from
8:30 a.m., to 4:30 p.m., at the Izaak Walton League of America, 14708
Mount Olive Road, Centreville, VA, for the full-day version of the
program Tom has done for several years at the NRA Annual Meeting. Space
is limited, and advanced registration is recommended. The cost is $15
for members and $20 for non-members. For more information and to
register, please call (703) 599-9399 or visit
www.myvssa.org/methodsofconcealedcarry.pdf.
--
Stephen P. Wenger
Firearm safety - It's a matter
for education, not legislation.
http://www.spw-duf.info
