An Inside Look at Heller: ...Yet Heller was almost derailed on a series
of occasions, sometimes by the very people who cherish gun rights and
constitutional protections the most, including the National Rifle
Association (NRA). Many lacked confidence that the Court was ready to
catch up with the legal academy. In the hour of opportunity, many
blinked. Victory over these self-doubts provide a powerful reminder
that, as Barry Goldwater reminded us, sometimes an overly fearful
moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue, and that even decades
of bad policy and bad political philosophy can turn around with smart,
tenacious efforts...
http://reason.com/news/show/129991.html
---
The Beat Goes On: The National Rifle Association labels President-elect
Barack Obama a radical, a tag that gun-control advocates call a smear.
But Valley gun owners aren't waiting until January to find out who's
right or how Obama will honor his campaign pledge of "common sense" gun
control. Gun-store owners in the Phoenix area say they saw sharp
increases in gun and ammunition sales just before and after the
presidential election. The FBI reported that, during election week,
instant background checks in the U.S., an indicator of firearms sales,
shot up 49 percent over the same week in 2007. This was during the most
severe economic crunch in decades. From Nov. 3 to 9, the FBI logged
nearly 375,000 instant checks. A year before, the number was just shy of
252,000...
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2008/11/18/20081118obama-gunsales1118.html
---
Students Push for Guns on Campus: ...At least 11 colleges and
universities already allow students to carry concealed weapons, a
practice that is banned by law in 30 states. But since being founded
after the Virginia Tech slayings, Students for Concealed Carry has put
the issue squarely in the spotlight, starting chapters at about 500
colleges and universities, it says. This week, the organization is
organizing a nationwide lobbying effort targeting state legislatures and
news organizations...
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27666800/
Related Article, for those who missed it: ...Every minute the officer
waits for back-up, another three or more people could die. In other
words, while it was once considered suicide for a lone officer to take
on an active killer, it is now considered statistical homicide for him
not to do so... As soon as they're confronted by any armed resistance,
the shooters typically turn the gun on themselves.
http://www.wcpo.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=d26c29ff-f134-4202-bc40-947534a6de3c
---
New Jersey Residents Have Been Brainwashed: ...Now, let's return to New
Jersey. The latest Census estimate the population of NJ is 8.7 million.
If two percent of citizens are granted a concealed carry permit, that
would be approximately 174,000 people. That also means there will only
be 2 people per square mile who would have their permit to legally carry
their weapon. There are 10 times more criminals and street gang members
in our cities that are illegally carrying concealed right at this very
moment! So what exactly are we afraid of??? ...
http://blog.nj.com/njv_publicblog/2008/11/weve_been_brainwashed.html
---
Shooting Ruled Self-Defense: A Prince George County man acted in self
defense when he fatally shot a Hopewell man during a gathering last
month, county authorities have determined. After an extensive
investigation by Prince George police and the county commonwealth's
attorney's office, authorities have concluded that Jeremy W. Atkins, 21,
was fatally shot Oct. 11 after pointing a handgun at a resident of the
home in the 3000 block of High Peak Lane, authorities said today in a
statement. The resident, who was not identified, fired two blasts from a
hunting-style shotgun, fatally injuring Atkins, authorities said...
http://www.inrich.com/cva/ric/news.apx.-content-articles-RTD-2008-11-17-0283.html
---
Decision Still Pending in Illinois Shooting: More than a month after a
Waukegan store clerk fatally shot a fleeing robber, it's still not known
whether charges will be filed. "We haven't completed our investigation
yet," Lake County State's Attorney Michael J. Waller said Monday. Waller
expects his staff will reach a decision "within a couple weeks."
Twenty-year-old Brandon Starks was shot to death Oct. 13 outside
People's Market, 901 8th St. The North Chicago resident had just robbed
the store at gunpoint and was riding away on a bicycle when the clerk
shot him twice, authorities said. The clerk, whose name has not been
released by police, did not have a valid firearm owners identification
card and therefore was not legally allowed to use a gun, authorities
said. Additionally, some legal experts have questioned whether the
clerk's deadly actions were covered by laws governing self-defense...
http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=251485&src=3
---
Rule Two Reminder, part 1: A Tucson man who shot his girlfriend in the
head was sentenced to 10 1/2 years in prison Monday on a manslaughter
charge. Anthony Sylvia, 23, shot Danielle Mason, 22, April 28, and she
died a week later. Sylvia told police he thought the safety was engaged
on his .22-caliber handgun when he cocked the hammer and pointed it in
Mason's direction and it went off... (Rule Two: Don't let the muzzle
cross anything you're not prepared to shoot.)
http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/267687
---
Rule Two Reminder, pat 2: A 15-year-old St. George high school student
is dead, killed by a gun used in a school musical. The gun was loaded
with blanks, and was being used for sound effects. Police say Tucker
Thayer was setting up for the musical at Desert Hills High School
Saturday night when the gunshot rang out. He was found lying on the
ground with severe head injuries... "The gases, the pressure that it
would build up, such a close proximity where the gun was pointed at the
individual's head, caused the injury," explained St. George police Sgt.
James Van Fleet... (In 1985 actor Jon-Erik Hexum died after shooting
himself in the head with a blank; not only does firing a blank produce
the mentioned gas, it also propels a wad for a short distance.)
http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=4812167
---
Rule Four Reminder: A toddler was killed by a stray bullet over the
weekend when a New York City deer hunter fired his rifle too close to
her grandparents' home in the Hudson Valley, the police said. The
hunter, Edward Taibi, 45, of Queens, was being held without bail on
Monday after being arraigned on a charge of second-degree manslaughter
in the Bethel town court in Sullivan County, the authorities said. They
said that Mr. Taibi was hunting from a tree stand on Sunday afternoon in
a rural part of the county when he shot a deer. The police said he came
down from the stand and fired his .30-caliber rifle again, about 400
feet from a trailer home in Swan Lake, a small community just south of
the Catskill Mountains... (Rule Four: Always be sure of your target and
what's beyond it.)
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/18/nyregion/18hunt.html?_r=1&ref=nyregion&oref=slogin
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20081117/D94GV7R80.html
---
Avoid the Bucket: ...Investigations after the fact turned up some
surprising trends. When faced with a madman who didn't care if he lived
or died, officers would shoot their revolvers empty and then never get
around to reloading. Most of them were found, shot dead by the perp,
with six empty cases in one hand and their gun in the other with the
cylinder open. Most of the officers never even tried to reload from the
extra rounds riding on their belt. But wait, it gets weirder. Witnesses
would report that a few officers would even break cover and wander
around in the open, staring at their feet. They, too, would have a
handful of spent brass and an open gun... (Article makes some very good
points and should prompt people to go beyond it and question the
street-relevance of anything taught on a range.)
http://www.hellinahandbasket.net/2008/11/avoid_the_bucket.htm#more
---
From GOA: Last month, we told you how the ATF was trying to prevent the
distribution of an electronic 4473 Form. This software has been
developed by a private firm, Coloseum Software Corporation, and is
intended to protect dealers against the "mistakes" that have allowed the
ATF to prosecute or harass them into giving up their licenses. GOA
issued a grassroots alert in mid-October explaining how the ATF had been
dragging its collective feet for months -- keeping Coloseum from
distributing its software, even while the ATF was developing its own
competing software (and possibly, violating the copyright which belonged
to Coloseum)...
http://www.gunowners.org/a111708.htm
---
British Man Jailed for Possession of Inoperable Rifle: A memorabilia
collector has been jailed for five years for possessing a Second World
War rifle listed as a prohibited firearm. The rifle was not in a
condition to fire live ammunition. But Stafford Crown Court heard
replacing the deteriorated pin would have made that possible. Phillip
Peter Kent, aged 29, of Owen Walk, Highfields, Stafford, was arrested in
the street by police acting on information at 7.30am on June 20 this year...
http://www.expressandstar.com/2008/11/13/collector-jailed-after-rifle-found/
---
Tangentially Related: In summer of last year, Arizona miners were
getting signing bonuses and incentives such as free housing to work in
Safford. But on Monday, 59 of the town's mineworkers were among more
than 500 in Southern Arizona and 600 in all who were told that it was
their last day of work for Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc., based in
Phoenix. The ongoing squeeze on the economy and plummeting copper prices
resulted in cuts at four of the company's Arizona mines and one in New
Mexico... (If there is no government intervention in the marketplace,
falling prices for copper and other base metals should eventually result
in lower prices for ammunition)
http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/267686
--
Stephen P. Wenger, KE7QBY
Firearm safety - It's a matter
for education, not legislation.
http://www.spw-duf.info
