Blog
Guns & Politics
NYC Mayor Bloomberg Calls For Police Strike
Knowing that A.T. & T. can't print enough phone books to elevate mayor Bloomberg to a level of credibility, I quit listening to his foolish rhetoric years ago. But, we have to realize that he is not alone in his opinion. There are other people who really believe that law-abiding gun owners are a threat to public safety. Many come from a culture overrun by people who can't, or won't, exercise the discipline necessary to possess, or safely use, firearms. So, they just can't fathom any legitimate use for guns. I can empathise with some of them, but that doesn't invalidate the fact that they, and Bloomberg, are wrong.
As far as cops' opinion's are concerned, I worked in law enforcement during the days when armed citizens were often my only backup. The ratio has changed, but my respect for the citizen gun owner has not. There are a lot of other retired cops, like me, who vehemently disagree with the NYC mayor. The following video is from one of them who expresses my sentiments exactly. -fl
Life outside of the "gun free zone"
Gun carrying man ends stabbing spree at Salt Lake grocery store
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC 4 News) - A citizen with a gun stopped a knife wielding man as he began stabbing people Thursday evening at the downtown Salt Lake City Smith's store.
Hoorah for the 'real' crimestoppers!
-fl
Guns & Politics
Napolitano Doesn’t Know if Any ‘Fast and Furious’ Guns Were Apprehended
The Justice Department’s Operation Fast and Furious, which began in fall 2009, intentionally allowed guns to flow to Mexican drug cartels with the intention of tracing the guns to the crime scene. The operation was halted in December 2010 after two of the guns from the operation were found at the murder scene of Border Patrol agent Brian Terry.
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee has been investigating the matter for more than a year. The House recently voted to hold Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt of Congress for failure to produce subpoenaed documents.
It seems that we're stuck. We have people clamoring for more gun laws — as if it will help to outlaw outlaws, while it's obvious that some important laws that we already have are not being properly enforced, or deliberately flaunted, at the national level. The 'Fast and Furious' debacle is a good example. The all too familiar bureaucratic mantra repeated: “I just can't answer that. I don't know.”
-fl
Frenzy and Fact
Does Fuzzy Thinking Tickle the Brain?
If it does, it could explain why New York City mayor Bloomberg, and others like him, act so giddy.
While normal people are wrestling with the horrific crime in Aurora, Colorado and trying to visualize a personal strategy to deal with the effect of the deinstitutionalization of mental illness and psycopathic drug abuse (an all too common antecedent to gun abuse), we have people like Bloomberg blaming law-abiding citizens for the crime. We even saw an attempt to associate the Tea Party with the crime.
Outlawing guns because of what happened in Colorado is like outlawing matches because of wildfire; it's not only missing the point of the problem, but it removes a useful solution to the effect of the problem.
The response time of the Aurora Police Department was very good by today's standard — but not good enough to save the people who died. One properly trained and equipped citizen responder could have saved most of them in this case.
-fl
Armed Citizen
A 71-year-old Florida man is being hailed as a hero after he pulled out a gun and shot two men as they tried to rob an Internet cafe in Ocala. The foiled robbery attempt was captured on surveillance video.
The Florida State Attorney’s Office told The Gainesville Sun that it is unlikely Samuel Williams will be charged.
“Based on what I have seen and what I know at this time, I don’t anticipate filing any charges,” said Bill Gladson of the State Attorney’s Office for 5th Judicial Circuit.
It's easy to argue wisdom, but it's difficult to argue results!
Knowing that this sort of thing can happen anywhere, it would be an excellent case to critique in a Defensive Pistol class.
-fl
Marksmanship
Whether reticle or front sight is your focus...
... when shooting rifle or pistol, here are some good tips from Ryan Cleckner and the National Shooting Sports Foundation.
Infrastructure
"While it hasn't been determined why the 100-foot tall, 40-ton tree fell at 9916 Georgetown Pike, it's believed recent storms weakened the aging tree."
Lesson: Before we place our faith in people who can't determine why a dead tree falls over, we should take a good look at this case. The term "safe roads" is a complex term.
Who's on first?
Who's The Victim?
The Tampa Bay Times recently published a list of 210 'stand your ground' cases. Aside from the fact that the SYG law is designed to protect law-abiding citizens, not miscreants, who find themselves in situations requiring the use of deadly force, the Times' article points out one of my pet peeves—referring to the dead guy as the victim. When valid criteria are met, the person who was forced to apply SYG is the victim! This kind of sloppy classification, coupled with inept councel and/or prosecutorial misconduct, has led to more than one miscarriage of justice. Is it any wonder that these cases are confusing the dabblers?
-fl
Freedom
U.N. Arms Trade Treaty Negotiations Underway
"[T]he NRA has fought tirelessly to oppose any United Nations effort to
undermine the constitutional rights of law-abiding American gun owners.
That fight has grown more intense lately, as the U.N. and global gun
banners have markedly stepped up their attack on our Second Amendment
freedoms by including civilian arms in the proposed Arms Trade Treaty.
As
called for in a resolution adopted by the U.N. General Assembly in
2009, a conference began [the first week of July] in New York City to draft the
treaty's language. The United Nations Conference on the Arms Trade
Treaty is one of the most serious threats to American gun owners in
decades.
The NRA will continue to maintain a strong presence at
the ATT meeting, which will run through July 27. And we will continue
to champion the position that any ATT must in no way impact gun owners'
rights."
Freedom
Mexico paper stops drug war coverage after grenade attacks
"Tuesday's attack on the daily El Manana was among the latest incidents that have made Mexico one of the world's most dangerous places for journalists."
For anyone who cannot see the symbiotic relationship in our 'Bill of Rights', here is a good example of what happens when you do away with the things that are "necessary to the security of a free State." So goes speech.
-fl
The Great Outdoors
Nature's Charmin?
I didn't think that Marine Corps Drill Instructors used toilet paper. I guess everyone mellows a little bit when they get older; maybe it's the long hair...