Sad News

One of the prettiest ladies on TV is in the hospital, apparently for the third time since December.

Here's wishing her a speedy recovery.  And she carries a gun on TV (just to keep this all on topic.)

North Texas Tactical Combat Handgun 1

So, all finished with class, and safe and sound back at my residence in TX.  I'll give a detailed account of what we covered in the next few days, but for now, a general list of comments.

-What the hell happened to the 80 degree day we had yesterday.

-Pay Up. And as a reward, he's a legal liability waiver...

-Awareness Color Chart

-OODA loop (no, not the loop de loop)

-Carry a gun regularly = 90% of your waking hours :)

-Things may not always be as they appear.  People standing around with hands in their pockets, be careful, they may just have a plan to kill you (which could very well include having a J-frame snubby in that pocket)

-Pistol will either be indexed down range, or holstered.

-Front site. Press.  Front Site.  Press. 

-Draw.

-Failure to stop drills DNE 2 to the COM and 1 to the head.  Address the body, and then address the head.

-Wait, you want me to do what now?  Sit down and shoot the target with my ass on the ground? OK.

-Now laying flat on my back!?!?!?  OK, we can try that too.

-You shouldn't see shoeleather when you're looking through the sites.

-1,2,3,4,5,6 drill.

-Move and Shoot!

-SCAN!

-FINGER!

-Walrus story (which I'll tell you is kind of cool, but you have to attend a class to find out what it is!)

All in all, a very very worthwhile day, and if you can possibly make it up to see these guys, well worth the time and effort!

Weekend Plans...

So I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that I was considering going up to take a class with these guys. I am in fact planning on attending the session that they are having on Saturday morning, but prior to that, I'm planning on attending the TSRA dinner. My plan for the weekend at this point looks like this:

I'm ducking out of work a little bit early tomorrow afternoon, and driving up to Mesquite TX tomorrow afternoon. A short trip to the hotel I'm staying at will take care of a quick shower, and a set of clean clothes. I'll attend the dinner (hopefully get some pictures, but I'm not sure.)

I'll go back to the hotel and crash for the night, before getting up (probably around 5:30ish) to drive across Dallas to meet up in Weatherford TX. A full day in the classroom and on the range (been told to bring 400 rounds, I think I have 500 packed...) and then driving back to Franklin.

I'm planning on attending the class and using an XD45 Service in a Blackhawk Serpa holster, with Blackhawk mag carriers. I had a leather snap holster ordered, and it was supposed to arrive this week, but it doesn't look like it will arrive in time. Plastic it is. I'm also taking my Glock 19 as a backup in case I run into problems with the XD while we are shooting.

Anyone want to meet up in the Dallas area, shoot me an email, I know it is short notice.

--Jim

Just Wow...

Curiosity of SayUncle, we get this priceless gem.

I'm sorry, but... WOW..

That's all I can say.

Those guys need some more fun time with an AR-15 or an M4.

Gun Sign I'll Support

Post it where you'd like. I think I'm going to give one to my favorite shop owner.

Make sure you visit the owners website. I might pick up a copy of his book.

(H/T Shooting the Messenger)

Guns for Liberals

Sent to me from a friend via email.

Feelings instead of Facts... Again...

Dana Parsons, a columnist at the LA times wrote an editorial a couple of weeks ago in support of Sandra Hutchens, the new Sheriff of Orange County. Sheriff Hutchens has changed the requirements in regards to getting a concealed carry permit in Orange County. Many of the people who currently have a valid permit will not be able to renew their permits, becuase they do not have "suffecient need."

Forget for a second that Sandra Hutchens doesn't know jack shit about any particular individuals "need" to carry a firearm (open or conealed.) Forget for a second that she is infringing on that right which "shall not be infringed." Forget for a second that she's out of lockstep with what the county commisioners (or whatever the governing body is) want, and is out of step with what her employees (at least some of them) want.

Dana admits, in an editorial this week, that when he opened his mouth in support of Sandra Hutches, he "knew there'd be hell to pay." Only the reaction wasn't what he thought it was. Apparently not everyone who chooses to carry a firearm for self defense is a cousin humping redneck who spits 'bacco. Dana goes on to say that he got dozens of emails, and the vast majority of them did not fit into the stereotype of "gun nuts." They zeroed in on the points that Dana had made, and argued their cases on merits.

So the Pro Rights crowd argued their case on the merits, but then Dana falls back on feelings, sharing the following:

As I suggested in the last column, I get the argument. I really do.

How can anyone dispute that if confronted on the street by a criminal intent on mayhem, it's much preferable to have a way to defend yourself?

But I and other pointy-headed people just can't extend that argument as far as the other side does. Bottom line: I wouldn't feel safer knowing that untold numbers of private citizens that I pass on the street -- yes, even salt-of-the-earth types who have been trained -- are packing guns.

Dana, I'm truly sorry that you feel less safe walking down the street knowing that good people might have guns. Now I have some bad news for you, the criminals that would prey upon the good people of this country, they don't go through the trouble of getting carry permits, and they're going to carry their firearms anyway. That means that by tightening the requirements on issuance of CCW permits, you're guaranteeing that the only guns around are the ones in the hands of the bad guys. That makes no sense at all dude.

Less gun control, more criminal control.

Daily Carry Gear

So Breda was nice enough to throw up a post about the stuff she carries each and every day. I also remember seeing a meme that floated around the blogsphere a couple of months back about what gets carried every day, so I figured I'd participate.

First of all, this is a picture of the stuff I carry each and every day when I'm at work (this stuff is carried all day, every day on the jobsite.) Unfortunately, work prohibits the carrying of firearms on the jobsite.

Starting from the bottom left:

Cell Phone (Palm Treo - Verizon Wireless)
Texas Key Ring (has the keys to my apartment, and office at work)
Cell Phone Case
Camera Case
Truck Keys
Digital Camera (Nikon CoolPix)
Small Notebook
Pen
Surefire E1b
Leatherman Multitool
Emerson CQC-7B w/ Wave
Wallet

When I'm not at work, I have the following stuff:


From the bottom Left:

Cell Phone
Wallet
Cell Phone Case
Texas Keys
Truck Keys
Leatherman Multitool
Small Notebook
Pen
Springfield XD45 Service (in a Brommeland Max-Con V)
Backup Mag
Emerson CQC-7B
Surefire E1b

--Jim

San Antonio Blog Meet Aftermath!

While I was at the blogmeet yesterday, I made reference to this cartoon, although apparently no one else who was there had ever seen it. I'm posting it so that they can enjoy it.

Now that everyone has read that and had a good chuckle, I should come clean and say that I have at least one of each (Glock and 1911) and like them both, probably equally.

Like I mentioned on Friday, I drove down to the blogmeet the night before, and met up with SpeakerTweaker for dinner at Biff Buzby's Burgers, which actually had a car show going on, even though it was the middle of February (gotta love Texas). The GPS unit I had indicated that there was a Dunkin Donuts in the area, so I planned on going there for breakfast.

I got up early Saturday AM, and headed for DD's, only to find out that it was no longer a DD, but was instead a local place. Ended up going directly to the range, and got there at about 8:30, even though the range didn't open until 9AM. Tweaker showed up between 5 and 10 minutes later, and Murphy was just a little bit after him. Before the range opened just after 9AM, there were at least 15 cars waiting to use the range.

We decided to hit the pistol range first, and settled up with the range. We had two lanes, and a total of 10 pistols (after 10% showed up.) Many stories were shared, much shootie goodness was enjoyed by all, and the range was packed. There was a CHL class going on, at least one police officer practice on the range, and numerous parent with children around. In addition, there were some people being introduced to shooting for the first time.

The total pistol collection that was evident on site:

• Kimber TLE II/RL
• XD45 Service
• Glock 19
• Ruger 22/45 Mk. 3
• Ruger Single Six
• CZ-52
• CZ-85
• Glock 22
• NAA Mini in .22mag
• Colt Lightweight Commander

And at a guess approximately 1000 rounds were fired through the various pistols throughout the course of the day. Both Speaktweater and Murphy got a kick out the .22LR rounds I'd brought, that have next to no recoil (they won't function a semi-auto).

After we finished on the pistol range, we moved over to the rifle range where we were shooting at 50 yards. Between the four of us, there were five rifles and a 9mm carbine.

• Sig 556
• AR-15 (M4gery)
• Bushmaster Gas Piston Carbine (AR-15)
• Mosin-Nagant
  
• Henry .22LR
• Kel-Tec Sub 2000

We had an exceptionally good time, considering that neither of the AR-15s on site was previously sighted in. We fixed that with Tweaters, but somehow I managed to forget the instructions for zeroing my EOtech, so it still shoots a little high and to the left. The grouping was nice though :)

At one point we were approached by a guy asking what the fascination with AR-15's is, since they "are made just for killing people." I jumped in with the argument that I know bunches of people who hunt with them, but what I really should have said was that us owning our AR-15's protects his right to own his deer rifle. Wasn't quick enough on the thought processes though. I was however quick enough to point out that there are more accessories for the AR-15 family of rifles than there are for any other gun platform out there.

It was a mighty good time, unfortunately it had to end far far too soon. 10% ducked out when his wife sent him a text message from the car saying "it's time to go." It was after 1PM before I realized how late it was getting, and that I had a long drive ahead of me, so I bid a fond farewell to Murphy and Tweaker, although they decided to pack it in about the same time.


After leaving the range, I headed back to the College Station / Franklin area, by way of Double Shot Liquor and Guns, located in Schulenburg TX. The shop seemed to have an awesome selection of liquor on sale, and a back room with several dozen firearms, and they have a drive through. How cool is that! Amongst the other stuff they had in the back room, Double Shot had a GSG-5 and at least one AR-15, which is always nice to see. The staff was very pleasant, and gave me a free coolie for beverage cans. Definitely a place to check out, although their selection for firearms was certainly not the greatest.

I also stopped off at Champion Firearms in College Station, and picked me up a new Surefire X300 for my pistols! All in all, a wonderful day, and the only way to make it better would have been to have more people join us. Unfortunately, it turns out that Sabra could've made it, but realized she wouldn't know how to meet up with anyone. Next time we'll have to make some signs up for the tables we are shooting at.

Muphy shares his thoughts up here.

10% has his views and report over here.

Last, but definitely not least, SpeakerTweaker writes out his experiences.

Thanks guys, for an awesome day!

Pictures will be put up as soon as I get them from Tweaker (I managed to forget I had my camera...boo hiss.)

Hope and Change...

or more of the same.

This pisses me off to no end.

As Breda mentioned overhearing:

"Why does the government assume that they are the only ones with a list?"

San Antonio Blogmeet Update

Tomorrow is the day.

Go see Tweaker and let him know that you're coming...

that is... if you are in fact planning on showing up.

I'm driving down tonight.

Random Gunny Pic

Ruger 22/45 Mark III, 5-1/2 SS barrel

Schoolteacher Suspended for Facebook Gun Photo

Gotta love this story on Fox News out of Wisconsin, although as one of only two states that does not allow any form of concealed carry, maybe it isn't so surprising. Sad yes, but definitely not surprising.

BEAVER DAM, Wis. —
A Beaver Dam Middle School teacher is on administrative leave after
school officials discovered a photo of her with a gun on Facebook.

In the photo, Betsy Ramsdale was training a rifle at the camera.

In an e-mail to WKOW-TV in Madison, Ramsdale said she removed the photo
immediately and that she is not "interested in any controversy.

Schools superintendent Donald Childs says a concerned staff member brought the photo to the district's attention.

Childs says the use of the photo "appears to be poor judgment" and is unaware of any sinister intent.

Ramsdale's biography on the district Web site states she is in her first year at
the school. Department of Public Instruction records show Ramsdale has
been licensed to teach since 1996.

Glad I didn't decide to become a school teacher, because I'd be fired over the number of gun pictures that I post. And to her co-worker, get over you Hoplophobia, and hurry, you look like an IDIOT.

Teaching People to Shoot Update

Update to my post over here, and on the main page of the blog.

By way of Captain and a Crew of One we find that Mulligan over at Do Over is keeping up with this list of people willing to introduce new people to the shooting sports. I left my contact info asking to be added to the roster.

UPDATE: I've been added.

--Jim

30 Days - Gun Nation

Xavier led me in the direction of this episode of 30 days, where a citizen disarmament advocate spends 30 days living in the home of a gun nut.

I remember hearing about this show when it first aired, but didn't get a chance to watch it on TV originally. I'm glad Xavier pointed the show out to me, and led me to where it could be viewed online.

The show is about 40 minutes long, and it's amazing to see the changes in Pia's attitude as it goes on.

I didn't grow up in a house with firearms, and my mother was extremely opposed to me having any in the house. As a matter of fact, when I purchased my first two pistols, I had to store them at a good friend's house, who had firearms of his own.

I started reading about the gun rights movement, and attempting to make an informed decision long before I bought my first two guns. I became interested in firearms and shooting while I was still in high school, and practiced with a mentor at work whenever he had the time and inclination. I knew long before I got to college that I would purchase my first pistols as soon after passing 21 I would.

I don't know that I've changed the minds of anyone, but I have definitely taken a bunch of people to the range who have never been before. Much of it happened when I was in college, had a nice range close by, and a huge pool of people to draw from. I've continued the tradition of introducing new people to the range and gun ownership whenever possible.

I even bought my girlfriend her first pistol for Christmas, and have taken her shooting several times since then. More on that at a later day.

To me, the single greatest thing that we can do to help ensure the future of Second Amendment rights to to introduce new people to the shooting sports, and get them to enjoy it.

I'll share my personal opinions on how to introduce someone to the shooting sports for the first time later :)

Why I Carry A Gun

This particular comment has been discussed around the blogsphere many times. The answer always varies slightly from blogger to blogger, and I'm hoping to share my opinion on the matter.

Simply put, I carry a firearm for the defense of myself ands my loved ones. I don't want to take the place of the police, but I think that part of a citizens responsibilities is to have the ability to protect him/herself from a violent offender until the police arrive.

As far as how I carry, I usually carry on my right hip either IWB or OWB. Usually it's a leather holster, although I do occasionally use a kydex holster. I always carry at least one backup mag, due to the fact the something like 90% of semi-auto pistol failures are due to a magazine failure. The backup mag is carried on my left side behind my cell phone holder.

Other stuff I have with me whenever I leave the house includes a cell phone (obviously). I also carry two knives, a tactical folder and a Leatherman multitool. Finally, I have a minimum of at least one Surefire flashlight. There is usually a second Surefire not very far away. I use all of this stuff almost every single day in my day to day working.

Now, for the good stuff: meaning what firearms do I carry. When I first started carrying in IN, I was carrying an HK USPc in .40, carried in a CTAC holster. I've moved on to an XD45 carried in a Brommeland Max-Con V or a Glock 19 carried in a Brommeland Max-Con V or Def-Con V. I also have a Ruger LCP for times when I simply can't conceal a larger pistol.

Later, I'll talk about the mentality that goes with carrying a firearm on a day to day basis.

San Antonio Blogmeet

A bunch of the bloggers from the central / southern Texas areas are meeting at the Braken Rifle and Pistol Recreational Range just to the North East of San Antonio. The group is meeting at 0900 on Saturday 02-07-2009, but I'm driving down the night before.

From what I'm gathering, it looks like I'm going to have to pay for each gun that I want to shoot. I've never been billed for a range that way, so it'll be interesting to see. I've offered to the host of the meet to bring up to 7 different firearms, as seen in the pictures below.


I'm planning on bringing the following:

• Bushmaster AR-15, 5.56mm
  
• Henry .22LR Lever Gun, .22LR
  
• Ruger 22/45 Mark III, .22LR
  
• Ruger Single Six, .22 LR
• Glock 19 with CT grips, 9mm
• Springfield XD45 Service, .45ACP
• Kimber Custom TLE II/ RL with CT grips, .45ACP
  

And I laid the rest of my supplies in today for the blogmeet. I visited Champion Firearms in College Station and picked up the following:

• 200 rounds .45 ACP
• 100 rounds 9x19
• 200 rounds .223 Rem
• 50 rounds 7.62x25
• 40 rounds 7.62x54R

Also picked up a Serpa holster for XD45, a package of snap caps, and a set of Radians Electronic Muffs. I'll post a review of the new muffs after I get a chance to try them out at the blog meet.

Unfortunately, Champion was SOLD OUT of .22LR ammo. As a gun shop, how do you sell out of ammo for a .22? I headed over to Gander Mtn and picked up 1000 rounds of .22LR for the Henry and Ruger pistols.

Anyway, if you live in the San Antonio area, or want to make the trip, you're more then welcome to join everyone who's going to be there. Just for the record, I have never met any of the guys who are meeting up before.

New Idea...

I do most of my reading of blog posts through Google Reader, and that definitely has some advantages.  However, it also has some disadvantages.  I followed a link tonight from Murdoc over at GunPundit to the Armed Canadian.  When I first opened up the page, I noticed the header that AC has on the top of his page regarding taking people to the gun range for their first ever visit.

I want to make the same offer, and I'm going to put a similar message on the header of my blog.  Just wanted to say thanks to AC for giving me the idea!

ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ!

Amen Dude!

And I'd be willing to bet that push come to shove, and the chips are down, I know how it would turn out.

Unity

So I was talking to Jay the other night on IM, it doesn't matter which client we were using to talk and we were talking about the difference in the laws between states like MA and NJ vs. states like TX and IN.

Don't misunderstand me, I hated the way the gun laws were written and enforced in NJ.  I mean, on a range trip, if I stopped off at Dunkin' Donuts, I was committing a crime!  That includes if I used the drive through, which I was never inclined to do.  I remember hearing horror stories of people arrested in NJ for having a SPENT shell casing rolling around in their vehicle.

I was expecting a change when I moved to IN in June of 2007.  I fully expected that it would be easier to purchase a new pistol (because it was worse than pulling teeth in NJ), and I was anxiously anticipating getting my concealed carry permit.  But there were changes that I was not expecting to deal with after I moved to IN.

One of the first goals I had when I moved to Indiana was to scope out the different gun shops in the area.  The area that I moved to in IN is a decent sized city in the southern part of the state, although my family moved to a location about 20 miles north west of the center of town, we were definitely close enough to access all of the benefits of the city life.  The city has 3 gun shops, and the county it resides in has an additional shop (which actually has a city address....).

When I walked into the three shops that were actually located in the city limits, I couldn't believe how much the guys behind the counter treated it all as a business.  There was not necessarily any warmth in their eyes, even when I started asking questions, to show that I'd actually done a little research.  One of the shops that I visited, the owner or employee (not sure which) didn't even get off of the stool he was sitting on when I walked in the door.

Compare that to the scene I was used to in Southern NJ (where I went to school).  I was a regular at Bob's, in Glassboro, on Friday nights.  If I was in town, I was at the gun shop.  Most nights we shot, some we sat around the counter and talked, and some of the more regular guys then me actually helped answer questions if it got busy.  With the group of regulars, it was almost like a bunch of friends, as opposed to people conducting a business transaction.

For the first 6 months that I lived in IN, I couldn't find a shop that duplicated the feelign I got when I was at Bob's shop.  Finally, about a year or so ago, I found Red Ghost Gun Shop (sorry, no website).  I've been doing business with the owner ever since.  Some times when I walk into the shop, I only want a couple dollars of merchandise, sometimes I want a new toy to bring home (like the Kimber I got last week), and sometimes, I just want to talk politics, or guns.  It doesn't matter what I want out of the visit, Terry is always pleasant when I show up.

But it's interesting to note, that the two states that I've visited gun shops in that have relatively gun friendly environments, I find that the gun shops are run much more like a business atmosphere.  Although, all things considered, I prefer the way it is in IN and TX!

--Jim