If you're over 40, you know the woman in this picture. Not in the sense of personally knowing her, of course, but you know who she is.



Don't recognize her? I'll give you a hint: 1976.

Montreal.

Romanian.

Perfect 10's.

Famous theme named after her.

If you haven't already guessed, that's little Nadia Comaneci - now 46 years old, and married with children.

Her rise to dominate Olympic gymnastics was stunning. I remember watching the broadcast (back then it was on ABC) and being amazed that this little girl could seemingly come from nowhere and beat our own American athletes. With perfect scores, no less!

The whole event was darned near unbelievable. It seemed that her life was charmed; that she was on top of the world.

How little we knew. Romania in the late '70s was far from a paradise; Nicolas Ceaucescu ruled the country with an iron fist, and that included Nadia and her career. I won't give away the rest of the story, but it's a tale I knew nothing about until I read this article in London's Daily Mail.

(Thanks to Kim du Toit for the heads up.)

-=[ Grant ]=-

I wasn't going to comment on the story about the decapitation on the Canadian bus, but something bothers me about the whole incident.

A Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) spokesperson characterized the actions of the passengers - who ran screaming from the horrific scene - as "brave".

Now do not misunderstand me here: running away from danger is a normal, human reaction. Saving oneself is a perfectly legitimate response to a life-threatening situation, and is nothing to be ashamed of.

But it's not "brave."

"Brave" would have been tackling the murderer and beating him senseless; "brave" would have been hopping on the lunatic's back and holding him from stabbing while someone else pulled the victim to safety.

Running away? Not so much.

I'm not sure just when our society lost track of the true meaning of words like "brave" and "hero", but I for one am tired of the trend.

-=[ Grant ]=-

As the New York Times observes, there are two things you can find in Portland: vegans and strip clubs. That's pretty accurate.

Out state constitution has a very broad protection of freedom of expression, which the courts have consistently held to cover "exotic dancing." The result is that Oregon in general tends to have more strip clubs than other parts of the country. Portland, being the biggest city, naturally has the largest single selection of such establishments.

So, one Johnny Diablo (Carpetbagger-CA) decided to combine his love of vegetarianism and his love of...uhhh....flesh to create the first vegan strip club.

This is not his first attempt at an off-the-wall establishment: he tried a pirate-themed vegan restaurant last year, which despite intense media attention failed miserably. His new venture, Casa Diablo Gentlemen’s Club, has gotten even more media attention, which I cannot recall a strip club ever receiving. When it seems that every other corner has such an establishment, one would have to do something very unusual to warrant any media notice. After all, how many other strip clubs have been profiled on the Earth First website?

Here's a local story on the joint.

Here's the NYT take on the place.

(Disclaimer: I'm not a vegetarian, nor a patron of strip clubs. My omnivorous wife is thankful for both.)

-=[ Grant ]=-

...quite the opposite, in fact.

A client sent me this link to the Washington, DC Metropolitan Police Department's FAQ regarding handgun ownership. As you know, the recent Supreme Court decision in the Heller case struck down the handgun ban in DC. However, it did not address the ban on semiautomatic handguns in the District, which still stands.

The result is that the only handgun DC residents will be allowed to own is a revolver.

As you are no doubt already aware, I'm a big fan of revolvers. I'm on record as saying that there is no job a good revolver can't do; I originated the phrase "the world isn't flat, your gun shouldn't be either." I believe that owning a revolver displays innate good sense and good taste, and an appreciation of the finer things in life.

Still, people shouldn't be forced to own one by limiting their freedom to choose something else.

It's great that the District's residents may now own a handgun; it's not so great that they won't get a choice in what kind of handgun. I'm hoping that someone will take the District back to court and have that part of their ineffective laws struck down. At that point, residents will be able to decide for themselves what they'd like to own.

If you're in DC, I support your right to decide for yourself which to own: a beautiful, graceful, efficient revolver - or an ugly, ungainly, unreliable, ill-fitting, bottom-feeding, ground littering, reciprocating monstrosity.

(Not that I'm biased, you understand!)

-=[ Grant ]=-

Nothing profound today. Just the fervent hope that our nation, on a collective basis, regains the spirit that so inspired the Founders. It's been awfully scarce as of late.

-=[ Grant ]=-

The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) just announced their decision in the District of Columbia v. Heller case: the lower court decision, striking down the onerous firearms laws in Washington, D.C., has been upheld.

The Court has confirmed that the Second Amendment does in fact protect an individual's right to keep and bear arms. Hooray! On the downside, there is only a single majority opinion and at least two dissenting, so it's not a slam-dunk. Still, it's good news.

UPDATE: The full text of the opinion is available at this link. (Note: it's a .pdf file, not a webpage.) Quote from the decision: " possess a firearm unconnected with service in a militia, and to use that arm for traditional lawful purposes, such as self-defense within the home."

You will see this phrase often: "traditional lawful purpose."

-=[ Grant ]=-

The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) will announce their decision in the District of Columbia v. Heller case tomorrow morning, commencing at 10:am EDT. The best place to follow their announcement is the SCOTUS Blog, which has live coverage of every Court decision.

Regardless of which direction the Court takes, tomorrow will be groundbreaking in the history of the Second Amendment.

-=[ Grant ]=-

Those of you who remember that character will be saddened to hear that George Carlin has died.

Carlin, aside from being side-splittingly funny, was the comedy touchstone for my generation. Even when I didn't agree with his politics, I had to laugh at his observations. Most of the time, though, he was simply the insightful man who poked fun at some of our fattest sacred cows. Even when he was profane he was funny, which is something most other comedians couldn't do on their best day. Heck, even my Dad liked the guy!

Everyone has their favorite Carlin routine. Mine was his observation about how Americans accumulate clutter in their lives: "Have you ever noticed that everyone else's stuff is crap, but your crap is 'stuff' ?"

RIP, George.

-=[ Grant ]=-

Presented without comment. You may feel free to draw your own conclusions.

-=[ Grant ]=-

(Tip 'o the hat to Say Uncle.)

I probably should have waited for the Friday Surprise for this one, but I just couldn't help myself...

The local news is buzzing with the story of a recent liquor store burglary. Yes, burglary - not robbery.

Seems our erstwhile rumrunner broke into a local adult beverage emporium a couple of weeks ago, bringing his own large-size garbage can to carry off the loot. He first raided the cigarette shelves, then proceeded to the liquids of his choice.

Allow me to digress for a moment to explain my strategy in such a situation. First, I don't smoke - never have - so the tobacco products would not interest me. No, were I to find myself alone in a liquor store at o-dark-thirty, trick-or-treat bucket firmly in hand, I would make my way to the single malt shelf. I would then proceed to gingerly (and with all due respect to the golden liquid contained therein) place the bottles in my basket. Starting, of course, with the Islays and working my way inland.

First to go would be the Lagavulin, then the Caol Ila, then (in no particular order) the Bowmore, Ardberg, and Laphroaig. That should easily fill up the 33-gallon can that this fellow toted, but should there be any room left a few bottles of Highland Park would easily fill any gaps. That is what I would do.

This fellow? He spent all that time alone in an adult candy store stealing Jack Daniels. What a waste. The man should be publicly flogged for terminal stupidity and a profound lack of good taste.

-=[ Grant ]=-

From Kim du Toit comes this gem.

Heh.

***
Everyone with access to a keyboard is blogging about Heller v. D.C. today. The level of insight varies from brilliant to "yesterday I couldn't spell blogger, today I iz one."

Lest I be thought in the latter category, I will refrain from commenting on the proceedings. I will, however, leave you with this quote from Gun Law News:

No matter what the outcome from the Supreme Court, the Brady Campaign and the Violence Policy Center will declare victory. Then they will initiate fund raising based upon their "victory".

That, folks, is the only certainty in this whole case!

-=[ Grant ]=-

---

Every once in a while, Tam hits one out of the park.

This is the country where we're supposed to be leading ourselves, not waiting for solutions to be handed down from on high.

Read the whole thing - it's good.

---

SayUncle alerts us to this story. Predictable Euro-socialist hand-wringing and whining commence.

(Yes, I would generally agree that brandishing a weapon is both a tactical and legal no-no - but then again, if you're an old, frail lady and someone strange is standing in your yard, refusing to leave, perhaps you are justified.)

---

I missed this until Michael Bane pointed me to it. Hilarious!

---

Happy Monday, everyone!

-=[ Grant ]=-

I can't come up with anything to say today. Perhaps I'll think of something by this afternoon.

(In the meantime, look at the primary results and be afraid. Very afraid.)

-=[ Grant ]=-

Let's see now...this is the view from my front yard:



Here in Oregon, we're getting historic snowfall amounts - even in our temperate valleys. Record low temps were recorded across the midwest recently, while south of the Mason-Dixon Line Tam has been freezing her tuchus. Personally, I wish someone would explain to me where my share of this "Global Warming" thing is, because I could use it right now...

---

This morning I got an email from AFGWWWTRA, who is en-route to the SHOT show. I'm hoping my secret correspondent will send me back news about neat new revolvers, though I'm not holding my breath. (Note to Taurus: revolvers that shoot shotgun shells are not my idea of "neat.")

---

Note to S&W: the "TR Special Edition" thing is getting a bit long in the tooth, and the guns themselves are getting uglier. If this keeps up, the next one will cost $5k and cause eyes to bleed upon opening the box. Please, no more.

---

...too much snow. (Big doin's afoot, though - I'm pledged to secrecy, but look for an announcement in a few days!)




-=[ Grant ]=-

By now, you've no doubt heard that Remington is acquiring Marlin. This announcement was followed by copious hand-wringing on forums all over the 'net - along with no end of opinions showing a disturbing lack of understanding of both basic economics and the global marketplace.

Against the backdrop of rapidly increasing costs for raw materials, labor, and shipping, it becomes clear that smaller makers like Marlin are facing a tough stretch of road. It may in fact be the case that their survival can only be assured by coming under the umbrella of a larger, more resilient player in the industry. (Look at Smith & Wesson's acquisition of Thompson-Center for a good example.)

Of course I hope that Marlin's quality does not diminish. (Though raised on Winchesters, I prefer Marlin lever actions for their strength and better administrative characteristics.) I don't think that Remington is so stupid as to intentionally damage something they paid a lot of money to own!

-=[ Grant ]=-

A recently discharged Marine decides he wants to become a cop - a member of a SWAT team, no less. So he signs on with a local Sheriff's Office, and prepares for his new career by practicing his quick draw.

With a loaded gun.

In the house.

With his wife home.

With his finger on the ?#$@!!*&^% trigger.

Unusually strident for me, you say? Maybe it's because the victim worked at the pet store where my wife and I shop. We even know her dog. We're pissed.

Is this another failure of Traditional Rule #1? Possibly - likely, even. One thing is certain: this guy had some mental justification for doing something stupid with a gun, and his wife paid the ultimate price. I haven't seen any interview with him - yet - but I'll bet one of the first things he'll say is "I thought it was unloaded."

(And to think that one of the "talking points" of the anti-gun crowd is that "only the military and law enforcement can be trusted with guns." Yeah, right.

If there are any readers of this blog in Clark County, make absolutely sure Sheriff Lucas understands that hiring this fellow would be a really, really bad idea.)

-=[ Grant ]=-

By now you've no doubt heard about the attempted massacre at the New Life Church in Colorado Springs, CO.

To recap: man takes rifle into church parking lot, where he proceeds to shoot four people (two would later die) before making his way into the sanctuary. Luckily for the 7,000 people there, the church had a volunteer armed security staff, one of whom engaged and killed the attacker before he could get fully into that "target rich" environment.

It's no secret that many churches have, in the last decade, recruited armed volunteer security forces from their members. The media is doing it's level best to imply that the security person involved was an off-duty cop or paid security guard, but the fact is that she was a volunteer member of the church's security team. She was a concerned member who donated her time and skills to help protect her fellow congregates.

The outcome was, at least in my point of view, quite acceptable. I'm sure, however, that the more left-leaning religious organizations in this country will fail to learn from this example. (Were I a member of such an organization, I would reconsider my affiliation.)

Contrast this with last week's mall attack where eight people died - the mall was, like many others around the country, posted to be a gun-free zone. (Interesting tidbit: the mall management apparently removed all signage regarding their weapons policy shortly after the shooting occurred. Perhaps they're trying to cover their rears for the inevitable civil suits heading their way...) The result was the creation of a huge pool of potential victims, of which the gunman took full advantage.

Sadly, the lesson is lost on a surprisingly large percentage of the American public. The media certainly isn't on our sides, so it's up to us. When you find yourself in gatherings this holiday season, and the topic comes up, be sure to give a calm, rational, and factual response to those who fail to grasp the concepts ivolved. The more people whose minds we change, the fewer victims we'll have.

-=[ Grant ]=-

First off, thanks to those who sent emails inquiring about my welfare in the wake of the storms that battered Oregon. I guess we made the national news!

The storms dropped a huge amount of rain in our state, as well as our neighbors to the north in Washington. There were places that recorded in excess of a foot of rain inside of 48 hours, and the result was widespread flooding.

Particularly hard-hit are the smaller tributaries and shallower rivers. Interstate 5, the north-south route between California and Canada, is under water at Chehalis, WA and not expected to reopen until at least Thursday. Several towns in Oregon, notably Vernonia and Tillamook, are just now digging out from the muck left behind - that is, if the water has even receded yet.

Of course, the old debate about subsidizing (through government-backed flood insurance) the continuous rebuilding of houses in flood plains has been re-ignited, and the result will no doubt be the maintenance of the status quo. (Isn't that always the case?)

My wife and I live well above any flood-prone areas and have soil which is well drained; we have had no problems other than short power outages and some internet connectivity issues. I am glad, however, that last Saturday I looked up at my gutters and decided to clean out the maple leaves!

-=[ Grant ]=-

Bad storms battering western Oregon today; peak wind gusts of 129mph on our coasts, and inland the power is flickering. I'll post more when the electricity is flowing reliably again!

-=[ Grant ]=-

Saw this on the news last night, and my very first thought was "that can't happen - handguns are banned in the UK!" Guess it just shows the true futility of such laws. (Check the comments, though - apparently some people think that they're not going far enough. There are those in this country who think the same way. Even when they admit the laws won't work, they pass them anyway.)
---

Say Uncle alerted me to this...c'mon, you know you've always wanted to shoot a propane tank, just to see what happens.
---

Finally, this isn't really gun related, but is just too funny to ignore. Further comment would seem unnecessary.

---
-=[ Grant ]=-

Grab the current (August 2007) copy of SWAT magazine, and turn to page 55. See the revolver at the top of the page? Look familiar?

-=[ Grant ]=-

Xavier Thoughts chronicles the story of an elderly gentleman who, using his gun, confronted a burglar in his home. The outcome was that the perp got sent to jail. Great, right? Well, maybe not. This may get ugly when the inevitable civil suit is filed.

You see, the perp was injured because the homeowner fired an unaimed "warning shot" which fragmented and struck the intruder. As if that wasn't bad enough in these litigious times, the gentleman couldn't help running his mouth on television, which didn't do any good in terms of his legal defense.

I'll leave the analysis to Xavier, who does a much better job than your humble correspondent. I will, however, leave you with this thought: this is exactly why I strongly encourage anyone who even contemplates keeping a firearm for self-defense to take Judicious Use of Deadly Force from Massad Ayoob at the Lethal Force Institute. Had this fellow done so, he wouldn't have left himself open for what will probably be a whale of a civil lawsuit.

-=[ Grant ]=-

On this, the celebration of our country's birth, I wish for everyone a safe, happy, and inspiring holiday.

I don't usually make political statements on this blog, as I generally find unsolicited discussions of politics and religion to be impolite. After all, if you wanted to read about such things you'd go to a blog dedicated to those topics! However, since our Second Amendment rights are inexorably tied to the political landscape, I think that it would not be out of line to make a comment on this occasion. I hope you'll indulge me for just a minute or so!

Think ahead to the coming elections; at this point there is only one candidate for the highest office in the land, from the major parties, who espouses the principles espoused by our Founding Fathers. (I'll leave it to you to figure out who that person may be, as the individual personality isn't the point of this little diatribe - it's the concept I want to focus on.)

Oddly, many in this country won't vote for such a candidate because they feel those principles are "too radical" or "anarchist." Sad, isn't it, that we have become so fearful of freedom in the last 231 years that we would actively avoid the kind of real personal liberties that our Constitution guarantees!

So far, none of the gun bloggers - even the most rabid advocates of the Second Amendment - have come out in support of such a candidate, preferring instead to focus their endorsements on those who don't challenge the status quo, except in the shallowest manner.

I fear that Patrick Henry is, at this very moment, rolling in his grave.

Freedom - real freedom - is a messy, scary, imprecise thing. Back in 1776 they understood that it isn't always pretty or "fair" (by whatever definition of that word you care to use.) Any attempt to impose order or "fairness" will result in a reduction in freedom, and there is just no way around that. That is just what we've been doing for the last couple of centuries, and you can see the results. Can anyone out there honestly say that they're happy with this?

Here's a little experiment: ponder, today and come November, where your personal intersection of freedom and comfort lies - then vote a little to the freedom side of that line. Push yourself. Encourage your friends and neighbors to do the same. In that way, little by little, we might be able to make some headway against the forces who stand for prohibition, limitation, and collectivism.

End of sermon. That wasn't so bad, was it?

-=[ Grant ]=-

This has been a bad week for me, internet-wise. The mail servers at the company that hosts grantcunningham.com have been experiencing slowdowns and failures, and my own internet connection (comcast.com) has been on-again, off-again all week. I'm typing this on Thursday evening, about 11:00pm Pacific time, and the connection just came back on. It has been off all day, except for a few hours this morning.

So, if you've emailed me and haven't gotten a reply, that's why. I just downloaded a whole pile of emails, and I'll try to get through them in the next couple of days.

Thanks for your patience!

-=[ Grant ]=-

SayUncle alerts us to a new Connecticut law requiring law abiding gun owners to report firearms thefts immediately or face the consequences.

He says one insightful thing:

Punishing the otherwise law-abiding is easy. After all, they don’t shoot back. And going after people who do shoot back is hard.

Yep, that would explain it.

-=[ Grant]=-

One of my favorite blogs is Marko's "The Munchkin Wrangler." Marko is yet another prolific and intelligent blogger from Tennessee whose interests include firearms and Second Amendment rights.

He wrote an interesting piece a while back, titled "Why the Gun is Civilization." While one could (and some do) argue that his premise is not fully developed, I found it thought provoking. It's worth reading, if only to get you thinking more abstractly.

It seems that I'm not the only person who liked that little essay, as it has apparently been turning up in various guises and attributed to someone else. This is my little contribution to helping the cause: if you see his writing under someone else's moniker, or even unattributed, do your part and let people know who wrote it.

It's a karma thing.

-=[ Grant ]=-

It seems that a Secret Service agent's weapon just up and fired all by itself. At least, that's the way the media is reporting the incident.

See, it's the gun's fault. Always. This proves it. (I'm being facetious, for those who can't tell.) Expect more of this kind of reporting as the push for extended gun control gathers steam.

-=[ Grant ]=-

At first, I wasn't going to comment on the sad crime perpetrated on the campus of Virginia Tech this week. I figured that everyone, everywhere, was going to do so (with varying degrees of erudition and insight.) I decided there wasn't anything I could add. Until...

Listening to the news on the radio, I heard an interview with two students who said that they were in "the room where he was shooting." According to these people, students and faculty were hiding under and behind anything in the room that they felt would provide them some protection, or flat on the floor in the absence of same.

It's what they said next that prompted me to comment: as the gunman shot, he naturally ran out of ammunition, and had to stop to refill his magazines. After taking the time to refill then reload his weapon, he continued his unfettered spree.

He was out of ammunition, and had stopped to reload - why didn't someone, anyone, in the room take that golden opportunity to tackle the murderer? At that point the criminal couldn't shoot anyone, and the risk even to the person who would choose that course of action would have been relatively minor compared to letting him get his firearm back up and running.

The answer is as obvious as it is sad: our society has fully inculcated the victimhood and helplessness mentalities into the last several generations of people. They didn't do anything because they have been taught their entire lives to rely on someone - anyone - else for their safety and well being.

This is what the nanny state has given us. This is what our Founding Fathers, I think, understood when they listed the natural right to keep and bear arms in their Constitution: yes, it's about the ability to resist tyrannical governments. More importantly, though, is the choice inherent in the right.

You see, it's not the exercise of the right in and of itself that matters; it's the existence of the choice to exercise the right that is so very important. Even if one chooses not to exercise the right, in making the choice one has experienced the self-actualization that leads to great inner strength and a heightened sense of self-worth. The very personal decision - no matter what the decision itself is - is what makes for citizens who are self reliant, who can think for themselves, and cannot be corralled like sheep.

When the "transaction cost" of the individual choice is raised - when the ability to decide for oneself is restricted or controlled in any manner - the choice is made not by the individual, but by someone else. The benefits of making the decision are denied the individual, and he/she learns (bit by bit) how to be a subject rather than a sovereign individual. Given long enough, an entire people is conditioned to be subordinate themselves to authority figures; when the "badge" of "authority" is the firearm, the people will prostrate themselves to anyone who wields one. Even a crazed killer.

Milton Friedman was right.

-=[ Grant ]=-

Found this notice on the Winchester website:

Olin Corporation, through its Winchester Division, is recalling several lots of its WILDCAT® 22 (Symbol Number WW22LR) and XPERT® 22 (Symbol Number XPERT22) 22 Long Rifle rimfire ammunition.

Lot Numbers containing Letters: XN, YA, YB or YC

Through extensive evaluation Winchester has determined the above lots of WILDCAT® 22 and XPERT® 22 ammunition may contain double powder charges. Double powder charge weight ammunition may cause firearm damage, rendering the firearm inoperable, and subject the shooter to a risk of personal injury and/or death when fired.

To determine if your ammunition is subject to this notice, review the Lot Number. If the Lot Number contains the letters XN, YA, YB or YC return the ammunition to Winchester.

Checked my stash...luckily, all of my Xpert ammunition was from the same lot, and is not subject to the recall. Check yours carefully!

-=[ Grant ]=-

You've probably heard of the recent DC District Court decision that confirms what we all know: the 2nd Amendment is an individual right. Definitely good news, and the result of a lot of hard work on the part of the lawyers involved in the case.

Now you probably think that the NRA was in the thick of the legal proceedings, defending our rights and bankrolling the costly fight, just as their countless solicitation mailings claim.

Think again.

-=[ Grant ]=-

This article in the Tennessean newspaper explores the "phenomenon" of women who choose to carry a gun for their own protection. It's an interesting read, and when I saw it I was reminded of my own wife's journey to self-empowerment (in the ballistic sense.)

I'm of the belief that women should always be proactive with regards to their own safety. Sadly, our current society has inculcated a fear of weapons into the collective conscious of the female half of the population. It takes real fortitude for a lady to swim against that tide and arm herself, and I salute those who choose to do so.

Drawing from my own wife's experience I've formed some very specific opinions on the topic of introducing women to shooting. Guys, if there is a woman in your life who has decided to travel down the road of self protection, I offer you Grant's Rules For Helping Ladies Who Want To Shoot.

1) Don't try to teach her yourself. Aside from passing on bad habits that you have (I don't care if you did qualify as "expert" when you were in the Army), it's difficult to impart what you do right no matter how sincere your desire to help.

Women learn differently than men; precious few men understand this, and even fewer understand how to teach to it. It's not uncommon for women to become extremely frustrated under these conditions, and give up entirely. It may not happen until the lessons are over - you may never know of the damage you've done. Let someone else - someone who is experienced teaching women - do this for you. It doesn't mean you're any less of a man, and it just might save you some grief.

2) Rule #1 is increased by a factor of 10 if she is your GF or wife! Ignore this at your peril! I am not kidding!

3) If possible, get her to a women's only class that is actually taught by a female instructor. (If you're on the west coast, I highly recommend that you take advantage of the women's only classes taught by Gila Hayes at the Firearms Academy of Seattle. She's tops. Seriously.)

4) Don't pick her gun for her. So many times a woman, bowing to the desires of the man who proffers her shooting advice (solicited or otherwise), ends up with a lightweight titanium or scandium revolver that is incredibly ill-suited for her physical makeup. The recoil is brutal (hey, even I don't like shooting them), and their stock triggers can be difficult for petite forefingers to actuate. Yes, you could send it to me and have that problem eased, but let her decide if it is right for her!

(Listen, if you've read my blog for any length of time you know that I'm a rabid proponent of the revolver for personal protection. As far as I'm concerned, there isn't a problem extant that a good revolver can't solve. Even so, I acknowledge an autoloader is often the better choice for a woman.) The very best thing you can do is curb your own opinions and take her to a gun range that rents guns, where she can pick her own way through the models. If she picks an autoloader, it won't hurt my feelings. (Not for long, anyhow.) The important thing is that it be her own choice.

Following these simple rules will result in an excited new shooter and harmony at home (where appropriate.)

-=[ Grant ]=-

Sorry if this post is more "linky" than "thinky", but there's a lot happening very quickly...

It all started last Friday, when Jim Zumbo - a long-time Outdoor Life writer and Outdoor Channel contributor - wrote a piece on his Outdoor Life blog which opined that "assault rifles" weren't used by "legitimate sportsmen" and, essentially, were evil and should be banned. I learned about it from Michael Bane's blog, where he called for Zumbo to apologize.

It didn't take long for the word to start making the rounds, and even the people at the Brady Campaign (the professional gun-grabbers) linked to it as "proof" that assault weapons should be banned. This, just after the resurrected Assault Weapons Ban was re-introduced in Congress last week.

Zumbo, realizing that he was in deep doo-doo, started backpedaling and dropping names of the anointed in an effort to seem as though he's really "one of us." His editor, John Snow, tried to deflect the growing firestorm by posting that Zumbo was really a nice guy, and that people can agree to disagree, and other soft-shoe obfuscation.

Apparently the noise got to the folks at Remington, who have been big sponsors of Zumbo over the years. On the weekend, their CEO, Tom Milner, posted on Bane's blog that Remington would be severing their relationship with Zumbo first thing Monday morning. Though the authorship was in question, David Codrea was able to verify the courageous act yesterday, and come this morning the official Remington website added a statement to this effect.

Tam elated, vows to spend more money.

(Whew. Original content would have been easier!)

-=[ Grant ]=-

Everyone else rants on their blog, why not me? I generally I find ranting to be unseemly, but sometimes I run across something so unbelievably stupid that I just can't help myself!

After all, Straka has his "Grrrrs", and Andy Rooney has made a virtual industry of ranting; heck, there's one gunsmith who has a half-dozen blogs, each of which is a gigantic, incoherent rant! So I think it's not too much to ask to be allowed an occasional "harrumph!"

Our inaugural item comes from one of my "daily reads", the Uncommon Business blog. This is a great blog, chock-full of examples of businesses that you wouldn't normally think of as being viable, yet somehow have found a successful niche. (One could argue that revolversmithing is such a business!)

Their latest entry is for OpenX, a device that was designed to open that annoying plastic clamshell packaging. Go check out the article, then come back and read the rest of my rant.

I'll wait right here. (Cue "Jeopardy" theme...)

Back already? Did you read the whole thing? Good!

When I read the article, I was immediately struck with the thought "man, that's stupid." Don't get me wrong - I'm sure that the engineering is good and the construction quality is more than acceptable; I'm sure it opens clamshell packaging in a most efficient manner, with great aplomb and no doubt accompanied by heavenly choirs.

What I can't understand is why the heck this guy needed to invent the thing in the first place!

You see, I always carry a pocket knife - usually a couple. I've carried a pocket knife since (probably) the 3rd grade. (Back then every kid carried a pocket knife to school. For those born after 1980, I'm not kidding.) Every male I know carries a pocket knife. My wife carries a pocket knife, and has her own collection from which to choose.

When I need to open a clamshell package, I simply reach into my pocket, pull out my trusty pocket knife (a Victorinox Swisschamp, in most cases) and proceed to open the package with a minimum of fuss, bother, and anguish.

Apparently, that's not how everyone does it. There are ill-equipped people out there, just waiting to be frustrated by product packaging!

How is it this guy didn't have a pocket knife?!? Is he afraid of them? Does his social station eliminate the need to carry his own implements? ("Jeeves, please open this package for me.") Do his peers look down on someone who carries such an essential implement? ("I say, Muffy, he is acting positively blue-collar these days! The boys at the club will be absolutely aghast!")

Follow me here: he didn't have a knife with him, which made him conceive of the idea of a package opener; he invented a knife substitute to have with him, in place of that which he didn't have with him in the first place! So, this solves the problem how, exactly? What happens the next time he's presented with a gift that he can't open, because he doesn't have his opener with him, just as he didn't have a knife with him?

(Hmmm....wonder if the OpenX comes in a clamshell package? If so, how is one to open it?? The Helplessness Brigade would be stymied once more!)

Rant off. Until next time!

-=[ Grant ]=-

Well, SHOT has come and gone, and Colt had no revolvers in their display. (You may remember that one of their spokespeople bragged in a magazine interview that Colt was working on a new revolver design. Everyone on the forums got all worked up about what Colt might be doing, endlessly speculating on what they might bring to market. Some breathlessly suggested that they might be working on a new high end revolver to replace the Python. Excitement ran and, for some, continues to run high.)

Except here at the Revolver Liberation Alliance.

As I blogged just recently, Colt has demonstrated through their actions that they aren't interested in the revolver market. I even suggested that mention of a new revolver might be a ploy to make the company more attractive to potential buyers. You'd think that if they really had something going on, they'd show it at the industry's biggest trade show.

They didn't. End of story. (I remain ready to eat my words if they ever introduce this mythical new gun at some future show, but I suspect that I won't be needing to do so.)

In other SHOT news, Charter Arms, makers of "value priced" wheelguns, announced a line of left-handed revolvers. This would be big news if the guns were coming from a maker of high quality firearms, or even Taurus. From Charter it's just a curiosity. The honorable lefties amongst us deserve better.

Dan Wesson, lethargically owned for the last couple of years by CZ-USA, was finally showing a new Model 715. This would be exciting, except that the folks in Norwich proved that they couldn't make this decades-old design correctly last time, and I remain unconvinced that CZ management can do any better. (Let's face it: they've taken two years to produce one display example of a gun that they already had the plans, machinery, tooling, and parts to produce. Methinks they have hired some former Colt people to run the Dan Wesson division...)

Smith & Wesson is fast becoming the schizophrenic gun maker. One the one hand they're making modern "reproductions" of the guns from their heyday (though not to the same level of craftsmanship), while on the other they are coming up with such monstrosities as the new "sniper revolver." (Saw pictures, but the site that hosted them seems to have gone away. If I can find another, I'll post it.) S&W styling has always been a bit "hit and miss", but in the 21st century seems to have devolved to "miss and miss."

Glad I didn't go; I would have been too depressed to leave the hotel room!

-=[ Grant ]=-

This from an article in the Frederick News-Post in Maryland:

Seized from Vaisman's residence were a broad range of weapons including assault handguns. Among the weapons were at least one Colt Cobra and at least one Colt Diamondback.

If a Cobra and a Diamondback are "assault handguns", what does that make a Python?? It seems that the old saw about stupidity and hydrogen being the most common things in the universe has been proven true in what used to be known as the "Free State."

Thanks to SaysUncle for the heads-up.

-=[ Grant ]=-

First things first: Happy New Year!

Now, down to business: once again, I feel it necessary to inject some sanity into a topic that is all over the internet forums.

The latest concerns Colt and their supposed "re-entry" into the revolver market. Several months ago, a Colt executive was quoted in (if memory serves) Shotgun News to the effect that Colt was working on new revolver models.

As you can imagine, this set off a firestorm on the 'net. People were opining like there was no tomorrow about the possible wonderfulness that Colt could be coming up with. I still, months later, am reading the occasional thread wherein some eager enthusiast gleefully anticipates something new from Hartford "any day now!"

Let's look at this logically, OK?

Developing a new gun takes money and talent - and Colt has all but two of those. It's been fairly well established that they have little ready capital, and their massive layoffs over the last several years means that their pool of talent is a fraction of what it used to be - and I doubt that they had anyone as talented as the late, great Karl Lewis to begin with, let alone now.

What they do have, though, is a mothballed line of proven sellers - in this case, the Anaconda, King Cobra, and Magnum Carry revolvers. All are well regarded (even the King Cobra, which always lived in the shadow of the more famous Python), and are made of modern materials and designed from the ground up for automated production. They're sitting in the vaults, waiting to see the light of day, because Colt just voluntarily stopped producing them a few years ago.

So, imagine that you're the CEO of Colt. On the one hand, you've got some ready products that you know will sell, just waiting for you to flip the "on" switch. On the other hand, you could choose to design a new gun from scratch, even though you don't have the resources to do so. Which are you going to choose?

Well, if you're smart (and Colt hasn't been accused of that recently), you bring back the designs you have in the safe and simply start up the production lines again. Easy. Built in market. No development costs. Just start shipping.

But Colt isn't doing that.

Look at it this way: just the Magnum Carry alone would put them back squarely in the hottest segment of the market, which is concealed carry. The MC is a superb gun, and used examples are selling at multiples of their original prices. There is nothing on the market that is competitive with it; it could have a niche all to itself. Scarcely bigger than a S&W "J" frame, it carries a full 6 rounds of .357 goodness! What other gun can boast that? None.

Be absolutely clear on this concept: these are guns that have a built-in market, that they have facilities to produce, that they know how to produce, and that they've chosen not to produce. (That is, if they really wanted to be in the revolver market...)

So why would Colt imply that they're working on a new revolver design, when they won't even produce the proven sellers they have now, and likely don't even have the resources to come up with a new product?

Well, we know that they're up for sale, and the company has reportedly garnered little-to-no interest from potential buyers. But maybe, they're thinking, if they start a rumor that they've got this new, exciting design, it will stimulate enough industry buzz to interest someone in what's left of the grand old name.

Could I be wrong? You bet. In fact, if I am, I'm willing to eat a hearty plate of crow. But actions speak louder than press releases, and Colt's actions say that they have no interest in selling their existing revolvers - let alone make a new one.

(Hey - maybe CZ-USA could buy Colt, which would give them even more revolvers to not make!)

-=[ Grant ]=-

Some random news bits to round out the year...

So, according to Fox News, last Thanksgiving a man breaks into a barn, spray paints some goats, and leaves some porno behind. Guess he didn't have cable...(I'd comment on this story's interesting similarity to the town I grew up in, but thankfully I've managed to suppress those memories!)

In a story out of Russia - one that literally begs for a Yaakov Smirnoff joke - we learn that a pack of squirrels has attacked and killed a dog. What happens if they get guns? THIS:



Finally, in North Carolina they just aren't making desperate criminals like they used to. And "they" say that kids aren't affected by television!

Have a safe and sane New Year's celebration!

-=[ Grant ]=-

Are you familiar with the concept of a Blog Carnival? If not, you're missing out on a great way to read about your favorite hobbies, activities, and interests!

A Blog Carnival (or Festival) is a collection of links to blog entries that fit the subject matter of the Carnival. For instance, a Carnival of shooting will have links to blog posts that deal with the shooting sports, self defense, and other related topics. It's kind of like a gun show in concept, but without Beanie Babies.

For instance, for shooting and firearms topics there is the Carnival of Cordite, the Shooting Sunday Carnival, and the 2nd Amendment Carnival. If you want a lot of great information in one place, check them out!

But, you're asking yourself, how does one find out about Blog Carnivals? There's a great resource to locate carnivals on all sorts of topics: the Blog Carnival List. Check out some of their more interesting entries: the Carnival of Cheese, the Hellenic Religion Carnival, or the Naughty After Forty carnival.

(Hmmm...wonder which one of those will get the most hits??)

-=[ Grant ]=-

Our big wind storm came and went, and I'm still here!

Winds in my area gusted to just a tad over 60mph; while our lights flickered (and we were treated to a transformer blowing up down the block), we never lost power. Guess the power company has hardened their distribution system in the last few years!

The storm did have a good effect: my neighbor, who has a tree trimming and removal company, is swamped with work. Judging from the number of downed trees just in our area, he's going to have plenty on his plate for the next week or so.

-=[ Grant ]=-

The Navy retired the F-14 "Tomcat" fighter last month. The F-14, one of the premier fighter aircraft of all time, is being replaced by the F/A-18.

The F-14 grew out of a failure. In the 1960s Defense Secretary Robert McNamara was on a mission to standardize all kinds of equipment across the various military services - everything from boots to rifles to aircraft. He decided that the Navy (who, remember, operates airplanes off of short aircraft carriers) could use the same fighter as the Air Force (who operate from nice, long runways.) He decreed that the Navy should adopt a variant of the Air Force F-111A, to be designated the F-111B.

The F-111 wasn't exactly a rousing success in its original role, and despite throwing huge amounts of money at the modification project it never did make any of the Navy's goals. It remained grossly overweight, had extremely poor visibility for carrier landings, and at the medium speeds the Navy anticipated it to operate it had less than stellar maneuverability. It proved to be less suitable for the role than the plane it was to replace, the F-4 Phantom II.

It should go without saying that F-111B project died a horrible death, and the F-14 project was initiated. What the Navy got was one of the premier fighter aircraft ever made, and also one of the most visually striking. After giving yeoman service for 34 years, the Tomcat received a heartfelt farewell from the Navy.



F-14 FAQ
Tomcat Alley: The F-14 Site

-=[ Grant ]=-

The Carnival of Cordite, that is!

That's right, once again you can get your fix of the best gun blogs on the net. This is a great one - lots of links. Take a look!

-=[ Grant ]=-

A while back, I told you about the Brits tracing the source of the illegal guns in their country to a ring operating out of New Jersey. Sounded a bit fishy to me...

Well, now we learn that the problem isn't people from New Jersey - it's their own soldiers bringing back stolen guns from Iraq! Of course, this won't matter to the Europeans who belong to the Blame America First Club, but I find it ironic.

Note to Tony Blair: you worry about your mess, we'll worry about ours. Heaven knows that we both have enough to deal with...

-=[ Grant ]=-

I hate to keep harping on Californians, but come on people - a sunny climate really can't be worth these continuing assaults on your constitutional liberties, can it? Are you really so fond of your upwardly mobile lifestyles that you're willing to voluntarily surrender your freedoms by continuing to live there?

Read about the latest raids here.

-=[ Grant ]=-

A tip of the Revolver Liberation Alliance ball cap (now available here) to Tamara K., who blogged this CNN story over at the View From The Porch.

So, let's see if I've got this straight: the British police, enforcers of some of the toughest gun laws in the world, busted a gun running operation whose pipeline originated in New Jersey - home of some of the toughest gun laws in the United States? What's wrong with this picture? I'll give you three guesses, and the first two don't count...

(Oh, and a fat raspberry to Associated Press, who just had to point out the American flag hanging over the porch at the offending house in Britain - a "large" flag, as the article made sure to mention. That, people, is what we call a "cheap shot.")

-=[ Grant ]=-

In case you missed it, Steve "Crocodile Hunter" Irwin died this weekend after taking a stingray barb to the chest. He was a man who engendered strong opinions from all who saw him. Loud, brash, seemingly without fear, he was certainly a unique personality on television.

What I find intriguing about his death is that he died the way that he said he wanted to (albeit not from a croc):

"Even if a big old alligator is chewing me up I want to go down and go, 'Crikey!' just before I die. That would be the ultimate for me."

He died doing what he loved, and that is - to me at least - far preferable to wasting away in a bed in a care facility. Having witnessed such a death, I don't wish it on anyone, least of all me! I hope to go the way Irwin did, a death as large as his life.

I'll leave you with some of my favorite quotes, ideals to which I aspire:

"Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, But rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming WOW --- WHAT A RIDE!!!" - Author Unknown

"You gotta be original, because if you're like someone else, what do they need you for?" - Bernadette Peters

"Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life." - Steve Jobs

-=[ Grant ]=-

The California Senate has passed a bill that requires "microstamping", which imprints each fired case with a unique identifier from gun in which it was fired.

As usual, Tamara K. at The View From The Porch has a great analysis of the situation. Check it out.

I hate to sound harsh, but how long are all you California gun owners going to put up with these kinds of gun control plans? Haven't you figured out that they just don't want you in their state?

-=[ Grant ]=-

It's all over except the wailing and gnashing of teeth.

In case you haven't heard - and I don't see how one couldn't have - Winchester has closed its doors permanently. The auction of the remainder of their manufacturing facility is September 27 & 28.

Another sad day in firearms history.

-=[ Grant ]=-

The Carnival of Cordite is a regular collection of up-to-the-minute links to current gun topics and discussions. No matter what your shooting interest, you're likely to find something that you just have to read!

-=[ Grant ]=-

Here in Oregon, we once had a thriving retail enterprise known as Meier & Frank. M&F, as their logo appeared, was a department store in the grand old tradition - think of what a Nordstrom department store would look like, and you have Meier & Frank. The store expanded to several stores here in the northwest, but never got really "big"; many years ago the family sold out to a corporation, and the circus began.

Since then, the small but elegant little chain has had several owners (and bad management teams), culminating in their recent acquisition by Macy's.

We should have sensed that this behemoth from the east was up to no good, in the way that RiteAid (another large eastern corporation that purchased another homegrown chain, Payless Drugs) proved to be. Sure enough, Macy's announced that they would eliminate the venerable Meier & Frank name and paste their own (far less stylish) moniker on their buildings.

It is the end of a fond era.

But why "Friday Surprise"? Back in the good old pre-corporate-takeover days, Meier & Frank had a tradition of having some special sale or event every Friday. It was never advertised, but everyone knew about the Friday Surprise. So, to keep the memory of an Oregon institution alive, I'm inaugurating my own version of the Friday Surprise. This is where I hope to share all of the wilder (non-gun related) stories that I come across, pictures, events, personal stuff, and so on.

I hope you enjoy it!

-=[ Grant ]=-

Thanks to the precision machining abilities of the Swiss, we now have the world's first revolver that presents a greater hazard from choking than from firing!

I'm not sure whether I'm more amazed with the workmanship, or that police organizations in this country are so imbecilic as to believe that this thing actually constitutes a hazard. As one blogger put it, someone armed with a Sharpie marker is more dangerous!

So, in salute to the vacuous hand-wringers in our media (and their sycophants everywhere), I hereby resurrect the feel-good mantra "won't SOMEBODY PLEASE think of the children?!?!?"

(You heard it here first, folks!)

-=[ Grant ]=-

This last weekend was the large wedding of one of my close relatives. Since we're known as the "Second Amendment Family", the day would not be complete without some sort of ballistic celebration. What we came up with fit the occasion perfectly.

One of my cousins handloaded some special 12ga shotgun shells with birdseed. (That's right, SEED, not SHOT!) He used a 100% cotton wadding for biodegradability, and a very small amount of powder. (We had originally thought that primers alone would be sufficient to propel the lightweight charge out of the barrel, but that proved to not be the case.) The resulting rounds sent their payload out of a vertical barrel some 25 to 30 feet, and the sound level was approximately that of a .22 Short - just enough to attract attention but not so much that anyone's hearing would be in jeopardy.

After thoroughly checking the shotguns for non-approved ammo, and making sure that no one had any such ammunition on their person, our little Matrimony Militia (a grand total of 4 people) met the happy couple at the entrance of the reception area. We announced them, and (with the best military precision that a bunch of civilians could muster) fired our rounds straight into the air - muzzles held high, well above anyone's head, of course.

The effect was perfect - the birdseed rained down and thoroughly covered the bride and groom, who were surprised and greatly amused at their "shotgun wedding." Their photographer even stifled her laughter enough to thoroughly document the prank, and I'm quite certain that this was a first for her too!

If you are moved to try this, remember SAFETY FIRST. We made sure that everyone involved behaved in a safe manner, from the loading of the rounds to the storage of arms afterwards. The rounds were completely biodegradable (save for the hulls, naturally) and we made sure that all of the standard safety rules were obeyed. Of course, this was well before the bar was opened and absolutely no alcohol was permitted until after the arms were stored in locked trunks. (The fact that this event was held outdoors on private property made the whole thing possible. DO NOT try this at a church or indoors!)

-=[ Grant ]=-