The Truth About Guns
Exploring the ethics, morality, business, politics, culture, technology, practice, strategy, dangers and fun of guns
Updated: 1 month 1 day ago
Chicago “Massaged” Crime Data to Lower Homicide Rate
“Chicago conducted a 12-month examination of the Chicago Police Department’s crime statistics going back several years, poring through public and internal police records and interviewing crime victims, criminologists, and police sources of various ranks. We identified 10 people . . . who were beaten, burned, suffocated, or shot to death in 2013 and whose cases were reclassified as death investigations, downgraded to more minor crimes, or even closed as noncriminal incidents—all for illogical or, at best, unclear reasons.” Methinks Chicago’s being a tad naive . . .
A Law Enforcement Perspective: Armed Carry on Military Bases
By Sgt Patrick Hayes
I am deeply disturbed by the attitude of Fort Hood and III Corps Commanding General, LTG Mark Milley. His statements to the press that a “few minutes” response time for military Law Enforcement is “just fine” shows his lack of concern for his troops and their families. More than that, General Milley’s ignorant of the historical failures of the policies that turned military bases into “gun free zones” . . .
I was a soldier from 1983-1993. We were not allowed to carry personal firearms on base, either on or off duty. Soldiers living in the barracks had to secure their firearms in the arms room. Married sol
Quote of the Day: Do it For the Children Edition
“We don’t teach respect for guns in Philadelphia, not really. We teach fear, we preach abstinence, we mount political crusades and there are good reasons we do so. But none of that seems to work. So let’s try something new, not because we love guns, but because we respect their power — and we love our children.” – Joel Mathis in Let’s Teach Philly Kids to Use Guns-Properly [at phillymag.com]
BREAKING: Shooting Inside LA PD
“A desk officer was shot at four times Monday night after a man opened fire in the lobby of the Los Angeles Police Department’s West Traffic Division in Mid-City,” losangeles.cbslocal.com reports. “The suspect walked in the lobby of the building, located in the 4800 block of Venice Boulevard, around 8 p.m. and started shooting, Sky9′s Kevin Takumi reported. An officer returned fire and the man was struck. The desk officer, who was wearing a bulletproof vest, was transported to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center with minor injuries, reportedly to his shoulder. The suspect was described to be in cr
Daily Digest: Better Late Than Never Edition
People magazine sponsored a photo contest called “Real Beauty at Every Age,” but they apparently have very discriminating taste when it comes to the beauty that’s allowed to be entered in the contest. An Illinois couple said their submission was rejected due to the gun that the wife is holding. The magazine didn’t specifically say the gun was the reason, stating only that photos could be rejected for “size, focus, or inappropriate content.” The couple submitted a second photo, also with a gun, and saw it rejected as well, but a third photo without the gun was accepted. According to wect.com, the couple won’t be cancelling their subscription to People, if only because they never had one. Maybe Guns & Ammo would be interested in sponsoring a contest . . .
Your Lockdown of the Day™
This Is What Happens to A Disarmed Populace: Government Crackdown in Tierra Caliente Mexico
This winter, self-defense groups sprang up in Mexico. The illegally armed uprising arose in reaction to drug cartel murder and mayhem, crimes committed with the full cooperation and collusion of local and state police and federal troops. When the self-defense groups replaced local law enforcement (such as it wasn’t), the federal government played kissy-face with the revolutionaries. The federales took-out a few [spare] bad guys and then “requested” that the “vigilantes” disarm. As we reported, the citizen militia told them to pound sand. And now the “fun” begins, so that narco-terror may proceed as normal. Make the jump for a borderlandbeat.com
MI Man with Rifle Arrested, Police Hunt for a Charge
A man attempted to board a bus in Battle Creek, Michigan, with an SKS rifle in his carry-on baggage. The rifle was longer than the bag, so the butt stuck out and was visible. Some of the riders called 9-1-1. I wasn’t there, so I do not know the totality of the circumstances, but it seems clear that that no one was threatened by the man, and that the rifle was reportedly unloaded. The police showed up and arrested the fellow for…what? They’re apparently still trying to figure that out . . .
The City’s Gang Suppression Unit responded and took the 25-year-old into custody seizing the gun and a fully loaded magazine. He has not yet been charged. It wasn’t exactly a conc
Obama Administration to Spend $1.1b on “Gun Safety”, “Smart Guns” and God Knows What
“The Justice Department has requested $382.1 million in increased spending for its fiscal year 2014 budget for ‘gun safety,’ freebeacon.com reports. “Included in the proposal is $2 million for ‘Gun Safety Technology’ grants, which would award prizes for technologies that are ‘proven to be reliable and effective.’ President Barack Obama’s budget proposal also calls for $1.1 billion to ‘protect Americans from gun violence—including $182 million to support the president’s ‘Now is the Time’ gun safety initiative.
My GLOCK Journey: There and Back Again
By Paul McCain
A number of years ago when I got into shooting in a major way, I was eager to run out and get my first handgun. I had spent a good bit of time shooting long guns earlier, but never a handgun. Without much thought, I bought a used GLOCK 22. I loaded up the G22 and blazed away at a torso-sized target at about 20 feet. I think I may have even hit it a few times. Maybe . . .
Since then I’ve moved from handgun models to handgun models: SIG, HK, Ruger, Smith & Wesson, Remington, FN, probably others, and I’ve purchased and used striker-fired and DA/SA semi-autos. I’ve given them all a decent workout at the gun club and at the range and training center I frequent. Revolvers too.
So here is my true confession: I’ve been there with GLOCKs, left and now I’m back again. I’ve come fu
It Should Have Been a DGU/Defensive Gun Use of the Day: Detroit Mob Violence Edition
A child steps in front of a man’s car. Driver Steven Utash hits the kid with his SUV. He stops to render aid. A mob descended on the white Clinton Township resident (yes there is that) and began to try to beat him to death. (Utash is currently in critical condition in a medically-induced coma.) If Utash had been armed, he might have avoided his life-threatening injuries. There’s your “It Should Have Been A Defensive Gun Use” story. In fact, in an extremely important way, this incident was a defensive gun use . . .
Nurse Deborah Hughes rescued Mr. Utash from greater injury. As she says in the video above, she had a gun in her pocket and was ready to do “damage” if the lynch mob didn’t stop. So even though the unarmed Utash was an easy target, his life was still saved by an armed citizen. Who may not have intervened if she hadn’t been armed.
While I reject the antis’ argument that carryi
MO Rep. Withdraws Anti-Gun Bill after Death Threats
Joshua Peters, a state representative from a district in the city of St. Louis, introduced legislation that “…would have made it illegal for someone living in the City of St. Louis to own certain firearms.” Now he reports via ksdk.com that he has withdrawn the bill after receiving death threats via email. “As for the people who sent the emails, Representative Peters says he’s moving on and does not plan turn the matter over to police.” OK, a few thoughts . . .
A few thoughts:
- How about growing a pair? “Oooh – I received a death t
G2 RIP Ammo Test, Part 3 – RIP vs Gold Dot
Ribs and chicken? Sounds like a barbecue, not an ammo showdown! But, yes, it’s an ammo test – not really one I wanted to conduct, but one that I felt I had to do to (hopefully) clear up some misconceptions among the ammo-test-watching community . . .
In my prior tests of the G2 R.I.P. ammo (Part I and Part II), I got results that were quite comparable to what other independent testers got. But my conclusions and opinions of the round are quite different from what the company claims, and it caused some confusion and disagreement. Of course, being that this is the Internet, confusion and
ACLU Defends Missouri Gun Rights Guy
“On May 1, 2013, Jerry Bledsoe, a police officer, confronted [Jordan] Klaffer while responding to a noise complaint,” thefreethoughtproject.com reports. “Klaffer videotaped the interaction, where Bledsoe issued an ultimatum to Klaffer to surrender his guns or be arrested. Klaffer refused to give up his guns and was arrested for disturbing the peace.” That was just the beginning . . .
To express his opinion that Officer Bledsoe was using his positio
Question of the Day: What Are the 10 Guns Everyone Should Shoot Before They Die?
GLOCK fanboys can slag off John Moses Browning’s gift to the world ’til the cows come home, but anyone who hasn’t punched a single ragged hole in a target at 15 yards (or more) with a properly tuned 1911 has missed out on one of the best ballistic experiences available on planet earth. By the same token, anyone who hasn’t run a GLOCK like they’re in the middle of a zombie apocalypse is gun-experience deficient. What are your ten guns you (and other gunnies) should shoot before shuffling off this mortal coil?
Gear Review: Grizzly Gunworks Muzzle Brakes
When I decided to turn my HK SL8-6 into a “designated marksman/sniper” configuration, I knew I wanted a good muzzle brake so I could “call my own shots,” so to speak. I also wanted to tame the recoil of my Steyr SSG-69. So I did some research and determined that a Grizzly Gunworks Defcon-1 brake would meet by needs, called owner Jeff Cox and placed an order. As he and I talked, I mentioned that I had recently purchased a Beretta CX4 Storm, and he convinced me to get a brake for it as well. Easy sell . . .
Gun Tweet of the Day: NRA-Bashing Dem Decrys Partisan Politics Edition
Mike Dickinson is a Democrat running for the nomination to take on House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.). To say Dickinson’s campaign’s taking the low road would be like saying Barack Obama likes to play golf. I don’t know how many of Virginia’s big city Dems are NRA members, but Mr. Dickinson better hope it’s statistically insignificant. As for the tone of his Tweet, this is the same man whose campaign website claims “Mike believes Congress needs to get back to finding solutions to our nation’s problems rather than being stuck in a loop of partisan bickering and crisis management.” Because not being partisan means never having to say you’re sorry. Or something like that.
Fort Hood Was A Warning of [Much Worse] Things to Come
Americans are laboring under the false impression that the next terrorist attack will be another cataclysmic, 9/11-style assault. They also believe that spree killings are committed by lone, drug-addled psychopaths who kill themselves the moment they face armed opposition. The most recent Fort Hood shooting fits “safely” into the latter category. Spec. Ivan Lopez was alone. He was mentally ill. He “only” killed three people. Police responded quickly enough (unless you happen to be one of the 19 people shot). So there’s nothing to see here folks, save the usual missed opportunities to forestall the firearms frenzy and individual tales of tragedy and heroism. Oh sure . . .
There have been plenty of calls to eliminate the Bu
Quote of the Day: Prophetic Edition
“It is stupid to me that anyone can have easy access to a powerful weapon without being mentally evaluated. This makes the government indirect accomplice (to Adam Lanza)… These bastards have perfected their way of attacking studying previous massacres to gain publicity and their minute of fame as a villain. But thanks to Hollywood and the sensational profiling by the media [they] give more power to those intelligent cowards.” – Spc. Ivan Lopez on his Facebook page [via cnn.com]
Not So Ceremonial Now, Eh Mr. Bond?
“A soldier at Buckingham Palace pointed his bayonet-fixed rifle at a member of the public after an argument erupted at the gates,” news.yahoo.com reports. “The soldier, on guard duty, left his post to intervene [running 50 yards to do so] when a man refused to stop shouting at a police officer manning the gates of the palace on Friday . . . A police spokesman said the man was given ‘words of advice’ and left. He was not arrested.” But he was intimidated. Or not.
OMG! People Beauty Contest Bans Gun Photos! OMG!
We’re all kinds of pro-gun around here. We see no reason why anyone should discriminate against an American seeking to exercise their natural, civil and Constitutionally protected right to keep and bear arms. But if someone doesn’t want people carrying a firearm on their property it’s their right to ban guns from their property. Just as it’s our right not to visit them if that’s the way they want to be about it. By the same token, if a magazine (not clip) wishes to exclude pictures of guns from their beauty contest, that’s perfectly legal and, in People’s case, entirely predictable. I mean, it’s not as if it was . . .
a “women of a certain age showing their primary method of personal defense” contest. And if it was, I’d be binning at least one of the shots sent in by Bob Ferris for his wife’s poor trigger discipline. (Notice how Sandra picks up the gun at the end of the report.) Still, it’s good (if weird) to see CNN take up their case with only a modicum of gentle ribbing. I especially liked the slam against the dead