Category: Safety

I remember the sign at Christ Chapel that invited those carrying to volunteer that information so we could include them in our security plan so they could be seated accordingly for better coverage.

Missouri legislation seeks to allow guns in places of worship

Missouri Republicans are making a push to allow firearms to be carried inside religious establishments and lessen restrictions on access to firearms.

House Bill 485, heard in the House Emerging Issues Committee Wednesday evening, would override existing Missouri law that restricts the possession of a concealed carry firearm in places of worship without consent or knowledge of persons in charge.

Rep. Ben Baker, R-Neosho, is sponsoring the bill, which he said the purpose of the bill is to ensure Missourians “constitutional right” to carry firearms when attending places of worship.

Private property rights would still stand, and if religious organizations want to not allow firearms in their spaces they may still choose to do so by posting signage outside, under the bill. Opponents questioned if that would put them at further risk.

William Bland spoke in support of the bill, stating that mass shootings in churches are real and would allow other concealed carry permit holders to strengthen the force against them.

“By granting permission, the church is exposed to liability in the event of a CCW permit holder is involved in an unfortunate event involving the firearm even if that action is justified,” Bland said. He said that removing the restriction of firearms would keep the church from being liable.

Continue reading “”

1% of Democrat Counties Make Up 42% of America’s Murders

Democrats desperately trying to spin high crime rates caused by their pro-crime policies began falsely claiming that crime was a Republican problem. The media began running articles with headlines like, “Red States Have Higher Murder Rates” and “Republicans Like to Talk Tough on Crime — But They’re the Ones with a Real Crime Problem”.

New York Times columnist Paul Krugman, who once claimed that the internet would have no more of an impact than the fax machine, argued that high crime was really a Republican problem and decided to prove it by claiming that, “Oklahoma’s murder rate was almost 50 percent higher than California’s, almost double New York’s.”

Krugman, who somehow has a Nobel Prize, failed to note that most of the murders were coming out of Oklahoma City and Tulsa. In last year’s gubernatorial election, Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt won most of the state while Oklahoma, Tulsa and Cleveland counties however went to leftist Democrat Joy Hofmeister. The ‘blue’ parts of Oklahoma are also red with blood.

“The fact is the rates of violent crime are higher in Oklahoma under your watch,” Hoffmeister had claimed in a viral gubernatorial debate attack. Oklahoma had 287 murders in 2020: 166 came out of Oklahoma County and Tulsa County, the two counties that supported Hoffmeister.

Oklahoma County and Tulsa are two of the 62 counties that were responsible for 56% of America’s murders in 2020. A groundbreaking study by John R. Lott of the Crime Prevention Research Center, revealed that “1% of counties have 21% of the population and 42% of the murders” and “2% of counties contain 31% of the population and 56% of the murders.”

The 1% of bloody red counties include such Democrat strongholds as Philadelphia, New York City, Los Angeles, Baltimore, Dallas, D.C., Miami-Dade, Milwaukee, San Diego, St. Louis, Chicago’s Cook County, Houston’s Harris County, Detroit’s Wayne County, Memphis’ Shelby County, Phoenix’s Maricopa County, Cleveland’s Cuyahoga County, and many others.

Biden won Cook County, the bloodiest county in the country, by 66%. He won Los Angeles County, the second bloodiest, by 71%, Harris County by 56%, Philadelphia by 81%, New York City by 76%, Wayne County by 68%, and Shelby County by 64%.

Continue reading “”

Armed civilian who stopped Greenwood Mall shooter named Citizen of the Year

Elisjsha Dicken.jpg

GREENWOOD — The City of Greenwood took time this week to honor the man responsible for stopping the gunman inside the Greenwood Park Mall in July.

Greenwood Mayor Mark Myers chose Elisjsha Dicken as the 2022 recipient of the Citizen of the Year Award for the city.

In his nomination letter, Myers recounted what occurred on July 17 inside the mall and shared thanks for the fast action of Dicken.

“July 17th started off to be another beautiful day in Greenwood. Unfortunately, it became one of the darkest days in our history. A lone gunman entered the Food Court in the Greenwood Park Mall. As he emerged from the restroom he began firing a rifle, killing 3 people.

Hearing shots ring out, Elisjsha Dicken immediately identified the shooter, took cover behind a pillar, drew his weapon and fired at the shooter from 40 yards away. He was able to eliminate the threat. While doing this Elisjsha also was waving innocent civilians to safety. There were countless number of innocent lives saved that day due to his quick and selfless thinking. The City of Greenwood and the residents here owe a great debt of gratitude to Elisjsha.

Because of his heroic actions the City of Greenwood proudly honors Elisjsha Dicken as the 2022 Citizen of the Year.”

Following the mass shooting at the mall, Greenwood Police Chief said the following of Dicken.

“I will say his actions were nothing short of heroic. He engaged the gunman from quite a distance with a handgun,” Ison said. “(He) was very tactically sound as he moved to close in on the suspect, he was also motioning for people to exit behind him. He has no police training and no military background.”

MORE |‘No clear motive’: Greenwood police, FBI release new findings from July shooting at Greenwood Park Mall

Annually, the city recognizes a civilian, a firefighter, an officer and an EMT.

On Targets: Muggers Share Criminal Insight

This is Part 1 of a three-part series in Concealed Carry Magazine analyzing what muggers look for when targeting victims and what you can do to avoid becoming one.

It had been a normal day for Lee Michaels as he drove from pickup league hockey to his townhome in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota. The time was approximately 11:35 p.m. as he piloted his ’99 Cadillac STS into the parking lot. As he neared the detached garage in front of his unit, he noticed a man riding a bike. Michaels briefly stopped to watch the man ride past him. He’s got a blue jacket with red sleeves,” he said. “And he kind of rides on. So I circle the parking lot once just to make sure he cleared and, you know, keep an eye on things.”

Apart from taking these simple precautions, Michaels didn’t worry about the man too much. Brooklyn Park is a bucolic place in the fall. Named by settlers after their hometown in Michigan, the city on the west bank of the Mississippi is a desirable bedroom community of Minneapolis and St. Paul. In 2020, the city was one of 111 Minnesota communities to earn the “Tree City USA” award. Professional-wrestler-turned-politician Jesse Ventura had served as its mayor in the early 1990s.

Michaels, at the time a 38-year-old production director for Clear Channel Radio, opened his garage door and pulled in. He put the car in reverse to light things up and closed it with his car still running. “I’m always thinking that if anybody jumps in behind me, I’m taking off,” he said. Ten minutes went by as Michaels finished what he was listening to on the radio, downed what was left of his water and put away his hockey equipment. Only then did he step out of the garage through a side door.

As he stepped out, he noticed a man coming around the corner maybe 30 feet away. As he closed the distance on Michaels, he swung wide on the sidewalk and asked for change. It was then that Michaels realized it was the same man who had biked past his car. “So I immediately glanced behind me because there’s about four more garage stalls behind me,” he said. “And I’m thinking, ‘Is there somebody behind me?’ And there wasn’t.” Michaels turned back around and told the man that he had just come home from hockey and that he didn’t have anything to give him. At that moment, another man stepped from around the same corner and aimed a semi-automatic handgun at Michaels.

“Well you’re going to give me something,” he said menacingly.

Immediately reaching into his pocket for his keys and wallet, Michaels laughed nervously as he handed over his valuables. “You got me, man,” he said. “Here you go. Have a good night.” The contents of his wallet included a $20 bill and one card for a free Chipotle burrito. Disgusted, the gunman pushed the wallet back at Michaels and told him that he had to have more than that.

“Dude, it’s right here,” he stated. “You can see I’ve got nothing else. I just came from hockey.”

The gunman told Michaels that he was going to give more than that. He demanded that he get on his knees. This is not going to be good, Michaels thought as he complied with the order. He looked up at the bedroom windows of his townhouse and was dismayed to see that his wife had gone to bed before he’d come home. The man pushed the gun to his head and became irate. “I’m going to have to do you right now,” he said. “I’m going to f******* do you right now.” The first thought to go through Michaels’ mind was that his wife was going to find him, hours later, face down on the sidewalk, dead.

Gosh, this is not a good situation, he told himself.

A Daunting Assignment

Like countless Americans before him, Michaels was the victim of a mugging, which is a form of robbery — itself legally defined as theft by way of threatened or actual force. Muggings are different from other forms of robbery in that their perpetrators target people (as opposed to banks or stores) and attack in public (as opposed to home invasions).

Because it is not recorded as a separate crime, it’s difficult to pin down how many muggings are committed in the U.S. in a given year. But according to FBI crime statistics, there were 81.6 robberies per 100,000 people in 2019, the most recent year for which data is available. This is significantly down from 133.1 robberies per 100,000 people 10 years prior in 2009.1

Despite the downward trend, muggings are still a pernicious problem — mainly in urban areas. Even our political elites are not immune. Former U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer was recently walking the streets of Oakland, California, when she was shoved in the back and relieved of an expensive iPhone. “Why would you do this to a grandmother?” she shouted at the fleeing assailants according to a news story published by The Independent.2

In Fall 2020, the editors of Concealed Carry Magazine asked me to report and write a series of articles on muggings. Largely based on the results of a survey I was to administer to muggers currently incarcerated at prisons throughout the U.S., I was to analyze the data, look for trends and try to find meaningful insights into how readers can avoid becoming victims themselves. It was a tall order, especially given that prison officials are famously reluctant to deal with the press. Despite these initial misgivings, I said “yes” to the assignment and immediately got to work.

Continue reading “”

The Impact of Liberalized Concealed Carry Laws on Homicide: An Assessment

This paper uses panel data from 1980 to 2018 in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia to examine the relationship between liberalized concealed carry laws, homicide, and firearm homicide…. The relationship between shall-issue and constitutional carry laws and homicide were statistically insignificant at the 1%, 5%, and even 10% level. The results were robust to multiple alternative model specifications. We find no evidence that looser concealed carry laws pose a significant public health or criminological risk.

SSRN-id4368641

Critical Defense Skills: There’s more to self-defense than simply carrying a handgun.

Every once in a while, I run Into something that just makes me cringe, and that’s the person who says, “Well, I just bought a gun and a box of bullets, so I’m good to go—after I figure out how to load this thing.”  Whether he or she knows it or not, that person sure is depending on having a lot of good luck when facing bad guys. They may not know that owning a gun doesn’t make them an automatic winner. Developing useful defensive skills is something that we all have to work at, and there are three major areas that require our continual attention.

The first of these is marksmanship, the ability to hit a target. Now, I’m not talking about that once-in-a-while lucky shot that all of us have made at one time or another. I’m talking about the ability to hit what we are shooting at on a regular basis, on demand. It requires the combination of correct sight picture, breath control and trigger press. And, in a defensive situation all of that has to be done in an almighty hurry.

Another thing to remember is that shooting, like all hand-eye coordination movements, is a quickly diminishing skill. If we don’t practice it, we lose it. Under the pressure created by a violent threat, we will most likely not perform as well as we did in practice. What that means is, if we are hitting exactly right 90 percent of the time in practice, we may only do the same in an actual gunfight about 50 to 60 percent of the time. Even a person who is really serious about regular practice can be expected to drop about 10 percent.

The second critical skill to work on is gun handling, which covers a number of abilities, not the least of which is gun safety. Those of us who are your neighbors have the right to demand that you do so. If lightning strikes your handgun in such a way as to make it go off, that is an accident; just about everything else is a negligent discharge. And there is never a good excuse for a negligent discharge.

Gun handling also involves developing the skill to make a smooth, fast pistol presentation—one without any wasted motion. Once the fight starts, that holstered gun isn’t doing anyone any good. When we work for smoothness and lack of wasted motion, speed will eventually come.

Regardless of what kind of gun the armed citizen chooses, he or she should know what the potential malfunctions are and how to deal with them. Different types of guns are subject to different problems.

A failure to feed is different from a double feed, and both are different from a revolver that has a cylinder frozen in place. A person should not only know what to expect and how to correct it, but he or she should also know how to properly maintain their chosen gun(s) so as to minimize the chance of a malfunction.

Another aspect of gun handling is the ability to reload quickly. Although the need to reload rarely occurs in citizen-involved shootings, one would not want to be the exception to the rule. And, it is not just a matter of reloading the gun, but to do it quickly and smoothly while keeping an eye on what is going on. Good training and lots of practice are the keys to developing good gun-handling skills.

The third area of critical defensive skills is making yourself a harder target. It is important to know what is going on around you. None of us are as aware as we should be or could be. If we see the threat way over there, we have a lot of options as to how we will deal with it, including just getting away. On the other hand, if we look up and the threat is right in our face, our options have diminished considerably. Some people look but don’t actually see, and that can cause some really serious problems.

It is also important to educate one’s self about criminals and what they actually do. What actually happens during a home invasion, carjacking or armed robbery?  What are the telltale signs we should be looking for?  It might be a good idea to start using the NRA’s Armed Citizen column (on page 10 of this issue) as a study guide.

Personal defense is a lifestyle, not a hobby. On-the-job training is not a good way to deal with a criminal attack. When we continually work to improve our ability to truly defend ourselves we can better control the stress that comes from a violent criminal attack and have a better idea of how to deal with it. Working on these three skills—what Jeff Cooper called the Combat Triad—is the path to success and safety.

Home

Programs Firearms 101 – Introduction to Handguns

Learn Firearms Safety and Marksmanship!

This Introduction to Handguns class focuses on firearm safety and marksmanship in a low-stress, family-friendly environment. It is perfect for those who want to learn more about firearm safety, handguns, and target shooting in a safe environment with certified firearms instructors.

The following topics are covered:

  • Safe handling and storage of firearms
  • The parts of semi-automatic pistols and revolvers
  • Marksmanship
  • Live fire on paper and steel targets

All firearms and ammunition is provided!

Eye and ear protection, as well as a .22 rimfire handgun and all the ammunition needed, is provided free of charge. If you already have your own handgun and appropriate ammunition, please feel free to bring it for use in the class.

What you need to participate

You will need a Wildlife Heritage License to participate which can be purchased below, at local probate offices, and at many sporting goods stores.

Note: Participants must be 16 years of age or older.

“Live fire” tests for gun owners violates Second Amendment, says…
Harvard Law Review?

My buddy Jim Wallace of the Gun Owners Action League likes to refer to Massachusetts as a “Second Amendment battleground state”, and he’s not wrong. Beleaguered gun owners in the Bay State are subjected to a host of unreasonable restrictions on their right to keep and bear arms, and if anything the Supreme Court’s decision in Bruen has only made anti-gun activists and politicians more eager to slap more laws on the books.

Under the pre-Bruen standard, local licensing authorities had broad discretion in approving or denying applicants for a License to Carry, and Wallace has previously told us that many jurisdictions are trying to get around the Supreme Court’s decision. State lawmakers are even pushing to require applicants to demonstrate their proficiency with a firearm by requiring live fire training and passing a test, something GOAL says is completely unnecessary.

Now a new article in the Harvard Law Review says those mandates aren’t just unneeded, they’re unconstitutional. The article focuses on the licensing process in Boston, where police already require applicants to pass a “shooting qualification test” at the local police range within two weeks of submitting an application. All would-be pistol owners (a LTC is required to own, purchase, and carry a handgun) must demonstrate “safe handling of, and familiarity with, a .38 caliber, 4-inch barrel revolver” as well as completing a scored live-fire test; requirements that have no analogues in history, according to the author.

The City of Boston could presumptively argue that its Qualification Test, which requires an LTC application to obtain a quantifiable point tally on a scored target, is the type of objective test that Justice Thomas deemed constitutional.

But that contention misconstrues Bruen. First, the Bruen majority did not hold that all objective licensing requirements are constitutional, for even an objective test must not “deny ordinary citizens their right to public carry.” And a shall-issue permitting scheme “can be put toward abusive ends.”

Because the Qualification Test requires applicants to fire a heavy, unpopular handgun accurately, which not everyone can do, it impedes law-abiding citizens from exercising their armed self-defense right — the right to public carry is reserved only for those who shoot well with a heavy handgun. Second, Justice Thomas stated that background checks and firearms safety courses are constitutional, but a shooting qualification test is not a firearms safety course.

Thus, Bruen does not support the proposition that scored live-fire tests survive judicial scrutiny. The Qualification Test’s quantitative characteristics may mitigate its constitutional deficiencies but do not cure them.

In addition to accuracy, the Qualification Test demands that applicants show “safe handling of, and familiarity with, a .38 caliber, 4-inch barrel revolver.” The City of Boston does not provide any concrete guidelines, like a scoring rubric, for the safe-handling requirement, and licensing officials may have differing opinions on the matter. Such requirements do not resemble the “narrow, objective, and definite standards” that Justice Thomas referenced as per se constitutional.

According to the author of the law review article, Boston’s requirement is already ripe for a court challenge, and any move by the state to impose similar live-fire mandates on all LTC applicants would face stiff legal headwinds.

Based on the City of Boston’s facially unconstitutional licensing regime, any Boston resident can seek declaratory, injunctive, and monetary relief for the City’s infringing the constitutional right to keep and bear arms under the Second Amendment, as applied to the states by the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause.

This Note does not purport to discuss all the mechanics of either standing or § 1983 liability. As a general matter, however, it bears mentioning that an aggrieved applicant could assert a plausible claim for declaratory, injunctive, and monetary relief against City of Boston licensing officials, the colonel of the Massachusetts State Police, and certain state firearms officials, subject to any affirmative defenses raised by the government.

It’s refreshing (to say the least) to see an article casting doubt on the constitutionality of a Massachusetts gun control law in the pages of the Harvard Law Review, and I hope this is the start of a trend. Far too many academic institutions have seemingly adopted a post-Bruen position of supporting any and all gun control laws, or at least criticizing those court decisions that have ruled a particular law unconstitutional.

Some, like the University of Minnesota, have even enshrined anti-gun activism into the curriculum in the wake of Bruen. I’m sure that the prevailing attitude at Harvard Law is still anti-2A, but at least the Harvard Law Journal is willing to print and publish pieces that take both Bruen and the right to keep and bear arms seriously.

How Hard is Real Armed Defense?

Everyone has an opinion. Most people will give you their impression of armed defense if you ask them. Is it trivially easy or is it impossibly hard? I’ve looked at armed defense for a decade and think we often ask the wrong question about defending ourselves and our families with firearms. One view is that armed defenders have to make split-second decisions after evaluating a number of complex legal and tactical factors. In contrast, many new gun owners want to concentrate on firearms handling skills so they can manipulate their gun with “fast hands”. I don’t think that is what most defenders really do.

I think almost anyone can learn armed defense if they are willing to take instruction and then practice what they were taught. This is what I’ve learned from firearms students and instructors.

Continue reading “”

YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO PROTECT YOURSELF’: OKLA. HOUSE PASSES 2 BILLS RELATING TO PROPERTY RIGHTS

OKLAHOMA CITY –

There are multiple protections in the state including “Stand Your Ground” and the “Castle Doctrine” allowing Oklahomans to use physical or deadly force, if it’s in self-defense.

A bill passing through the House Thursday expands part of the Castle Doctrine.

“It’s a simple bill, on your property if you feel that your life is threatened, you have the right to protect yourself,” said Rep. David Hardin, (R) Stillwell.

House Bill 2049 expands the definition of a dwelling- allowing people to use physical or deadly force against people trespassing anywhere on their private property, not just breaking into their actual house.

The previous law only applied to self-defense when a person broke into the actual home.

Democrats argue that this creates a vague law and opens more doors to problems.

“There are too many opportunities for accidental mishaps if we extend the Castle Doctrine,” said Rep. John Waldron (D) Tulsa.

Rep. Jay Steagle, (R) Yukon, argued that this is just a recognition of what should already be in the law.

“Suggesting that an individual has the right to be on someone else’s private property before any kind of action needs to be taken- even conversation is absolutely ridiculous,” said Rep. Steagle.

Many republicans say this bill is necessary for rural areas of the state.

“I live 30 minutes away from a maximum-security prison- I don’t have time to ask them what they’re doing there, I need to have the right to protect my property,” said Rep. Jim Grego, (R) Wilburton.

Democrats say property lines aren’t always clear, and that this can create problems for people who may be out hiking or hunting.

“Are you all familiar with somebody that’s been affected by being out in a rural area and death coming to you because you are out on someone else’s land,” questioned Rep. Goodwin.

With all the debate the author reminded house members the intent behind his bill was simple.

“This bill is never intended for you to walk out and shoot anyone you want on your property, this bill is intended for you to be able to protect yourself,” Rep. Hardin said.

Oklahoma House Republicans vote to expand a person’s right to self-defense with a firearm

House Republicans advanced a bill Thursday to extend the area where a person can defend themselves with a firearm, an expansion of the so-called “castle doctrine” that has been a top priority for pro-gun groups for years.

House Bill 2049 changed the definition of “dwelling” from a building or house to the edge of the property line, possibly justifying a person’s use of deadly force to protect themselves as long as they are on land they own or rent.

Also referred to as “stand your ground laws,” Oklahoma law does not require a person to leave a situation if they feel threatened. Instead, current law states someone has a right to stay and shoot a person who is threatening their safety, as long as they are in their home.

Rep. David Hardin, R-Stilwell, the bill’s author, said that the expectation of self-defense should include the entire property.

“This is a simple bill … on your property if you feel that your life is threatened you have a right to protect yourself,” Hardin said. “This bill was never intended where you could just walk out and shoot anybody on your property. But if that person confronts you with deadly force, then you would be allowed to use deadly force.”

The bill now heads to the state Senate for consideration.

Democrats, who voted against the bill, expressed concern that innocent encounters, possibly with trick-or-treaters or hikers mistakenly coming onto private property, could end in a shooting death.

Rep. Monroe Nichols, and other state House Democrats, gathered for a news conference on June 2, 2022, to call for gun control measures.
“Maybe I’ve been watching too much ‘Yellowstone,'” said Rep. Forrest Bennett, D-Oklahoma City, referring to the violent television show that centers on property rights disputes in Montana. “But can you understand that there is some concern that this definition really opens this up to the possibility of unsafe actions?”

Hardin disputed those claims, saying any shooting would still be investigated by law enforcement and a person would be held accountable if it were determined their life or safety was not at risk.

Pro-gun groups have lobbied for the bill, including the Oklahoma Second Amendment Association.

Missouri: Committee Hearing Public Transit Self-Defense

On Wednesday, the House Emerging Issues Committee will hear House Bill 282, to ensure law-abiding citizens may carry firearms for self-defense on public transit. Please click here to file witness forms to support HB 282. 

In addition, please contact committee members and ask them to SUPPORT HB 282.

House Bill 282 removes the prohibition on law-abiding citizens carrying firearms for self-defense on public transit property and in vehicles. In addition, it allows law-abiding citizens to transport unloaded or non-functioning firearms on buses. This repeals an arbitrary “gun-free zone” that does nothing to hinder criminals while leaving law-abiding citizens defenseless, and it ensures that citizens with varying commutes throughout their day, and of various economic means, are able to exercise their Second Amendment rights and defend themselves.

Again, please file witness forms and contact committee members and ask them to SUPPORT HB 282.

I prefer RRLP (Reduced Ricochet Limited Penetration) frangible that the Navy developed for boarding operations -extra unplanned holes in the hulls of ships being a bad thing – for inside the house. Otherwise, I use Blackhills 70 grain TSX.  Your choice may be different.

The Best 5.56 Ammo for Home Defense

If you’re looking for the best 5.56 NATO ammo on the market, then you’ve come to the right place! With so many different varieties of 5.56 ammo available from multiple retailers, it can be hard to know what’s best for home defense.

In this article, we are going to share with you our top 5 picks for the best 5.56 NATO home defense ammo available right now.

If you simply cannot wait, the best 5.56 ammo for home defense AR-15 rifle is Black Hills 62 gr Dual Purpose. But if you want to see the full list just keep scrolling and we’ll cover all our choices and explain why we picked them.

If you’re new to the 5.56x45mm NATO round, make sure to check out the Buyers Guide by clicking HERE.

Now let’s get to our top 5 picks for the best types of ammo for your 5.56 rifle…

Continue reading “”

Kostas Moros

Few baseless claims are more frustrating than the idea that anyone who cares about the right to keep and bear arms “doesn’t care about people being murdered” and that we somehow support mass shooters.

No, we hate those vile lowlifes so much that we want them to be promptly shot in the head when their rampage begins, and not ten minutes later when the police arrive and the harm is already done.

There have been many examples of armed good Samaritans either preventing mass shootings entirely, or cutting short ones that would have hurt or killed many more people. Unfortunately, too many states preemptively disarm good samaritans by either making CCW permits hard to get, or by allowing “gun free zones” to proliferate, where killers know they are unlikely to meet armed resistance.

Also too often, the media does not cover prevented mass shootings with anywhere near the same attention as they do completed atrocities. That’s a shame, given we know that a big chunk of mass shooters are obsessed with becoming infamous. They need to be made aware that their vision of twisted glory can commonly end with Dicken-style humiliation.

Stop fearing them. Instead, it’s long past time we make these dirtbags afraid.

IN SELF-DEFENSE
ARMED CITIZENS ARE FIGHTING BACK

There are now 25 states with so-called “Constitutional carry” and Florida appears to be approaching permitless carry, which translates to more citizens soon being able to carry defensive firearms without having to jump through the hoops of a licensing process.

There is another translation: Criminals, be careful … be very careful. In fact, now might be a good time to reconsider your career choices and see if the hardware store is hiring.

I routinely report on the number of active concealed pistol licenses in my home state of Washington, and following a slight end-of-year dip reported Jan. 3, the number has been steadily climbing. Last month, a whopping 698,186 active CPLs were reported by the state Department of Licensing.

Continue reading “”

Arizona Wants to Use Public Schools to Demystify and Destigmatize Guns

The Arizona House of Representatives is working hard to secure gun rights for the citizens of the Grand Canyon State. It has so far passed a slew of bills that include legalizing gun silencers and allowing parents to carry firearms on school campuses. Another bill that is raising eyebrows is HB 2332, which will require middle and high schools to offer training on how to properly handle a firearm. According to Arizona’s local NPR, parents would still be able to opt out. But even with this provision, groups like Moms Demand Action and Civic Engagement Beyond Voting are speaking out against the measure.

PHOENIX – Arizona’s House of Representatives is continuing to advance a bill requiring public middle and high schools in Arizona to offer training on the proper handling of firearms.

Rep. Selina Bliss, R-Prescott, who sponsored HB 2332, said she wants children to learn proper firearms handling from experts to stop accidental deaths, and denied that the bill was about training children to use firearms.

Continue reading “”

Debunking the gun-banners’ false constitutional-carry claims
Gov. DeSantis will likely sign the bill long before its July 1 effective date.

Nearly every anti-gun group in the country has descended upon Tallahassee to try to stop Florida from becoming the 26th state to allow residents and visitors to carry concealed firearms without a permission slip from the government.

It’s an important mission for the gun-ban industry, because once Gov. Ron DeSantis signs the bill — and he will — a majority of states will allow unlicensed or permitless carry. For pro-gun advocates, this would be a significant victory in the war to restore our Second Amendment rights, and the other team will do anything they can to prevent that from happening.

It’s important to point out that neither Florida’s HB 543 nor its companion bill, SB 150, are traditional constitutional-carry bills, since neither bill legalizes the open carry of arms. True constitutional carry allows gun owners to decide for themselves whether to carry arms openly or concealed. Despite Republican super-majorities in both the House and the Senate, and a governor who’s promised to sign “constitutional carry” legislation, open carry was not included in either bill. We still have not been told why, at least not officially.

In what has been called “smart bundling,” SB 150 also includes numerous school-safety provisions, such as expanding Florida’s School Guardian program, adding funds for hardening schools, providing additional money for gun-sniffing dogs, clarifying zero-tolerance policies and ensuring every law enforcement agency has an active-shooter policy. So, a vote against the bill can be seen as a vote against school safety.

Regardless of what the bill is called or its other offerings, the very thought of restoring more gun rights — especially in Florida — has brought the gun-banners out in droves. We’ve seen members of Everytown, Demanding Moms, Demanding Students, Giffords, Brady and Florida’s extremely anti-gun League of Women Voters all shuffle to the mic. Their testimony before House and Senate committees has been interesting, desperate and at times, comical. If the gun banners sent their A-team to Tallahassee and this is the best they can do, freedom will most certainly prevail.

It’s clear the gun-banners’ moves are well organized and orchestrated. Too many of their objections seemingly come from the same playbook. Keep in mind anti-gunners have phones, Skype and Zoom, too. They’re sharing information and ideas. Florida has become their latest battle template. They are throwing a lot of crap against the wall. That which sticks likely will be used in the next state they attempt to victimize.

Here are some of the lowlights of their testimony.

Continue reading “”

Private Gun Carriers’ Self-Defense Against Public Shooters
The El Paso incident from a few days ago, the FBI 2021 statistics, and more.

I had written about this in past years, but I thought I’d update it to reflect the El Paso incident from last week. According to the El Paso Police Department (see also CNN [Andy Rose]), a confrontation between two groups of teenagers at a mall “escalated into a physical fight” and then into a 16-year-old fatally shooting a member of the other group and seriously wounding another member, as well as injuring a member of his own group. Then,

As soon as the shooting ended, the 16-year-old suspect began to run and was pointing the gun towards the direction of bystanders, including 32-year-old Emanuel Duran, a Licensed to Carry Holder. As the suspect ran towards Duran and bystanders, Duran drew his handgun and shot the suspect.

At that time, one off-duty El Paso Police Officer arrived at the area of the shooting and together with Duran rendered aid to the 16-year old suspect and the others that were injured. Investigators found that there were at least two other legally armed citizens in the area of where the shooting took place, but were not involved.

Now in this case, the suspect didn’t seem to have planned a mass shooting; he seems to have had a beef with the other teenagers. On the other hand, he appears to have been pointing his gun towards the bystanders, so it’s hard to know what would have happened. And something similar could easily have happened with an intended mass shooting as well; for an incident like that from last year, see this WCHS-TV story:

Police said a woman who was lawfully carrying a pistol shot and killed a man who began shooting at a crowd of people Wednesday night in Charleston.

Dennis Butler was killed after allegedly shooting at dozens of people attending a graduation party Wednesday …. No injuries were reported from those at the party.

Investigators said Butler was warned about speeding in the area with children present before he left. He later returned with an AR-15-style firearm and began firing into the crowd before he was shot and killed.

“Instead of running from the threat, she engaged with the threat and saved several lives last night,” Charleston Police Department Chief of Detectives Tony Hazelett said.

According to WCHS-TV (Bob Aaron), Butler was a convicted felon, and was thus not legally allowed to own guns. In principle, perhaps he might still have been stopped by (say) a law requiring background checks, which would likely have stopped law-abiding sellers from selling him the gun; but it’s not clear whether someone with his criminal record would have much been stymied by that, as opposed to just buying a gun on the black market. Likewise, in El Paso, CNN reports that the gun used by the 16-year-old shooter was reported stolen.

I gathered some more examples from over the years here, and then followed up with data based on FBI reports of mass shootings in 2016 and 2017: legal civilian gun carriers tried to intervene in 6 out of 50 incidents, and apparently succeeded in 3 or 4 of them.

Continue reading “”