Tomorrow's Mailing: I will need to leave the house much earlier than
usual tomorrow for a diagnostic medical procedure. Unless I awaken
abnormally early, tomorrow's mailing will probably not go out until
mid-afternoon.
---
A List Member Responds: In response to my comment that the churches who
are battling the Minnesota CCW law in court are seeking the right to ban
CCW beyond the actual place of worship, a Minnesota-based instructor
observes:
The churches' issues were the posting requirements (MN signs must
meet statutory size, placement, and other specifications) and not
being able to ban firearms from their parking lots or other
property. While some property is normally a parking lot, it COULD BE
used for religious purposes and the law doesn't allow for that.
Their position is that the law infringes on their religious freedom
because they believe the signage requirement to be unduly onerous,
while totally ignoring that the signs are not a de facto ban. The
firearm carrier must ALSO be ordered to leave. No violation has been
committed if the party in question has been ordered to leave and
does so without delay. Of course, this presupposes that anyone is
even aware that they had a firearm in the first place. We are not
required to reveal whether we have a permit or that we are armed
except upon direct question from a licensed law enforcement officer.
MN statute specifically allows vehicle storage because parking lots
are space accessible to the general public. Some employment rules
issues arise that could result in termination, but not prosecution.
It is apparent to me that the underlying purpose of this case is to
weaken the statute by opening exceptions. They are hoping for
legislation from a sympathetic bench. This bunch is about as
transparent as most so-called "animal rights" organizations.
---
Do As I Say, Not As I Do: ... Activities at that armory and other
warehouses help explain how the American military lost track of some
190,000 pistols and automatic rifles supplied by the United States to
Iraq's security forces in 2004 and 2005, as auditors discovered in the
past year. These discoveries prompted criminal inquiries by the Pentagon
and the Justice Department, and stoked fears that the arms could fall
into enemy hands and be used against American troops. So far, no missing
weapons have been linked to any American deaths, but investigators say
that in a country awash with weapons, it may be impossible to trace
where some ended up.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/11/world/middleeast/11weapons.html?_r=1&oref=slogin&ref=world&pagewanted=all
---
Pancho Villa Guns Sell For Less Than Expected: Three guns linked to
Pancho Villa were auctioned for nearly $29,000, apparently less than
what organizers expected the firearms tied to the Mexican revolutionary
to fetch. "That's the fun of auctions - sometimes you get bargains,"
said Amy McMurrough, a spokeswoman for the auction, which was held
Saturday near San Antonio. The prize of the auction - Villa's Remington
single action revolver with his real name, "Doreteo Arango," engraved on
the barrel - sold for $18,000.
(It was actually "Doroteo Arango.)
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/O/OLD_WEST_AUCTION?SITE=AZTUS&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
---
Why Bother?: Federal and Ruger appear to have teamed up to offer a true
32-caliber magnum round, the .327 Magnum, on the latter's SP101
platform. Ostensibly, this is to offer a self-defense equivalent of the
357 Magnum with 20% less recoil. No mention is made of muzzle and
barrel-cylinder-gap blast, which is why I no longer recommend magnum
loads for self-defense. Also not mentioned is that the .32-caliber SP101
appears to chamber six rounds. (Of note, I have been tentatively
recommending the three-inch SP101, chambered in .38 Special, as a
current-production handgun to students who express preference for a
revolver. I see that this model no longer appears on Ruger's website
although they still list the two-inch SP101 in .38 Special and the
three-inch SP101 in .357 Magnum.)
http://www.federalcartridge.com/default.asp?menu=1&s1=4&s2=6&id=171&brand=5&year=2007
http://www.ruger-firearms.com/Firearms/FAProdResults?function=famid&famid=9&variation=Satin%20Stainless&bct=Yes&type=Revolver
---
English Mayor Tries To Ban Rifles In Remembrance Day Parade: Napoleon
tried, as did many others. They all discovered that the riflemen of the
British Army do not lay down their arms easily - if at all. Nonetheless,
Hilary Beach decided to call for 1st Battalion of The Rifles to leave
their weapons behind at tomorrow's Remembrance Day parade because she
feels they are too "violent"... Miss Beach's plea to the council fell on
deaf ears...A Remembrance Sunday cannon salute at the start and end of
the two-minute 11 am silence has been banned.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=492612&in_page_id=1770
---
From John Farnam:
6 Nov 07
Cold-Steel "Sharkie"
Lynn Thompson at Cold Steel is currently producing the "Sharkie." It is
a functional pen, with a screw-on cap. However, with the cap firmly in
place, it is thick enough to make a near-perfect Yarawa-stick. I carry
my copy in the right, inside pocked of my CCW vest. I can access it
quickly, and a crisp strike with it on the back of a bully's hand will
cause him to let go, right readily. Follow-up strikes to the jaw,
collar-bone, and ear can be even more persuasive!
I flew cross-country with my Sharkie last weekend, and TSA never even
noticed it.
The Sharkie is low-profile, inexpensive, and, like everything from Cold
Steel, robust and extremely well made. When you can have in your
possession neither a gun, nor a blade, it makes a wonderful companion.
Recommended!
/John
(A yawara is a stick, typically with knobs on the ends, long enough to
project beyond both sides of the fist when grasped in the hand.
According to choice of technique, it may be shifted so that it projects
more on one side than the other.)
6 Nov 07
Last weekend, in concert with several colleagues, I conducted a
Close-Range Combatives Course in SC. We spent a day in live-fire drills
and a second day in role-playing drills using Airsoft pistols.
Scenarios were allowed to "free-play," and students were confronted with
hostage situations, car-jackings, and numerous other contacts with VCAs.
My observations confirmed what has been observed at the NTI and every
other close-range, violent-encounter drill in which I've been involved.
Students invariably came to the identical conclusion:
When confronted with imminent violence at close range, who (1)
aggressively (but precisely) explode off the line of force, without
delay, and continue to move aggressively, rarely get shot, and
unfailingly inflict lethal wounds upon astonished VCAs. Who (2) move off
the line but then stop moving, get shot more often. Who (3) hesitate,
dither, or surrender meekly, seldom live through it.
A precise, but explosive, counterattack, combined with unrelenting and
aggressive movement upsets VCAs' plans so completely that they rarely
regain the offensive. Successful students don't let VCA(s) breath.
They finish the fight!
There is little doubt that the longer you allow yourself to be under the
control and domination of a VCA, the more likely you'll suffer serious
harm. There are surely risks involved in acting immediately and
decisively, but there are even greater risks that attach to doing
nothing. When they commence their attack, VCAs are always weakest and
most vulnerable. After they gain control over you, they will become
progressively stronger as you become progressively weaker. In the end,
when you're gagged and tied up, all options will evaporate. You'll
perish, wishing you had acted when you had the chance!
"Delay in the use of force, and hesitation to accept responsibility for
its employment, will always be interpreted as weakness. Such indecision
will encourage further disorder, and will eventually necessitate
measures more severe than those which would have sufficed in the first
instance."
- United States Marine Corps Small Wars Manual, (1940) page 27,
paragraph (d)
Back in the days when US Marines were armed all the time, they served as
escorts on trains delivering supplies to remote outposts. These trains
were often the targets of bandits looking for an easy score. Standing
orders for all Marines so deployed directed that, in the event of an
armed assault on the train, all Marines will start firing immediately!
It didn't matter what the odds, every Marine fired, without delay.
Bandits were thus put on notice that there would never be an "easy
score." Whatever happened, whatever the ultimate outcome, bandit blood
would be on the deck, without fail, before it was all over.
Not surprisingly, armed attacks dropped off dramatically and eventually
stopped altogether! A far cry from today's universal
"surrender-at-the-drop-of-a-hat" policy, eh?
/John
6 Nov 07
Master Grip
We train students to acquire a strong, Master-Grip on pistols any time
they are handled, as grasping a pistol any other way invariably causes
it to point in unsafe directions. Here is confirmation from a student
who just returned from New Orleans:
"In New Orleans last weekend I went to the French Quarter, discovering,
to my disgust, that violently aggressive pan-handlers are more numerous
than they ever were before Katrina. There is (still) little to
recommend it!
I noticed local police moving in on a nearby group of sleazy-looking
characters. I did my best to separate myself from them, but I was close
enough to see one of the officers confront a suspect and subsequently
remove a pistol from the suspect's waist-band. In so doing, the
officer put his thumb through the pistol's trigger-guard, pointing the
muzzle at himself, other officers, and me. That is when I went from
walking to running!
I see now why you are so insistent that pistols be handled exclusively
via the Master-Grip. The officer in question could have inadvertently
shot himself, me, or one of his colleagues. It makes me wonder how many
preventable NDs occur every year, for that reason alone!"
Comment: Careless gun-handling, particularly allowing muzzles to
inadvertently point in unsafe directions, is a plague, even among the
ostensibly trained, as we see here. When handling pistols, competent
gunmen employ a strong Master-Grip, exclusively!
/John
7 Nov 07
Gun-safe maintenance, from a student:
"I just found out the hard way that gun-safes are not maintenance-free!
Sunday, I went to my fifteen-year-old Liberty Gun-safe, with its S&G
dial-combination lock, to retrieve several items. It wouldn't open!
The dial turned normally, but no longer had a 'hard stop.' I called the
retailer where I had purchased it. He put me in touch with the
factory. They were helpful, but after trying thirty alternate
combinations they supplied, I still had no joy!
I finally called a locksmith. He managed to restore the dial to normal
function by striking it several times with a hammer. Whacking was
free. Knowing where to whack cost me a hundred dollars! Thank heaven
it was not necessary to drill it.
Tuesday, he installed a new, electronic-keypad lock.
He explained that S&G dial-combination locks need to be serviced every
five years. I had no idea! I'm just thankful this little problem
didn't rear its ugly head in the middle of an emergency.
We live and learn!"
Comment: I find electronic-keypad locks easier to use than dial
combinations, but they are not trouble-free either. And, an EMP
(electro-magnetic pulse) produced by a nuclear detonation may well fry
electronic locks instantly.
All that secured firepower will be of little use when you can't get your
safe open!
/John
(I find it hard to believe that the periodic maintenance involves
anything more than the correct lubrication. I can see where any
lubricant that can gum up with time could cause problems. It used to be
that graphite powder was the lubricant of choice in key locks.)
--
Stephen P. Wenger
Firearm safety - It's a matter
for education, not legislation.
http://www.spw-duf.info
