Kenosha

 

Seen at Joe's Place.

Not gonna lie, I am happy that the young man survived, and it sounds like the choir boys he took down deserved it and will only be missed by those with twisted taste in friends or causes, but that doesn't mean I am celebrating. 

Joe's got other links, too, including a statement by the lawyer representing the young shooter. 

You know, if even the New York Times admits that the video of events shows that these were legit self-defense shootings, you gotta wonder why he was so heavily charged... well, no, actually, it doesn't. 

Joe has something for that, too. 

Meanwhile, in comments to this post at Old NFO's blog...

...Not to mention some co-workers who should know better...

Not illegal for a 17 year old to "possess" an AR15 in either WI or IL. 

And if his mom drove him to Kenosha, it was for his job as a lifeguard. He stuck around when he got off duty to help clean up graffiti. He only geared up later when things started to get sporty again -- and gave one or two interviews, in which he emphasized his trauma kit over the rifle. 

LawDog also has a few thoughts, here, and shares another video here. 

UPDATE: The original video was banned by YouTube for terms of service violation,

Here's another one:

Pleasantly Surprised

So Mrs. Drang walked in the house and asked me "What did you order from Ukraine?"

I laughed and said "That's exactly how I thought this conversation would go."

Anyway. There have been reports of prowlers in the neighborhood, and I work midnights.  Suddenly, that 20 gauge old coach gun I'd bought her for Christmas all those years ago seemed like more than just a prop for the contemplated (but not acted upon) pursuit of Cowboy Action Shooting as a hobby.

The thing with a double barrel shotgun, of course, is that you only have two shots. Also, it is hard to maintain it in  a "cruiser ready" status, that is, shell in the magazine, but none chambered. On a pump action shotgun you load the magazine but have the slide all the way back...

I had a butt-mounted shell holder, but it was so loose on the 20 that it slid forward. Also, it's nylon and elastic, so looked "wrong".

Amazingly few leather shell holders for 20 gauges out there, until I found an outfit on Etsy, BronzeDog. Price was reasonable for all-leather, so I ordered one...

Buttstock Cartridge Holder Leather Buttstock Ammo Holder

...and that, of course, was when I discovered they're in Ukraine.

I placed the order on April 17th. They make to order, which means they started working on it when I placed the order.

We picked it up It arrived today, the 30th. {EDIT: The 30th being Monday, and the UPS store being closed on Sunday, it might have come in Saturday afternoon after we picked up mail.}

The lace locks in behind the swell of the pistol grip pretty firmly.
Photo ©2018 D.W. Drang and the Cluemeter

I need to pick up some more 20 gauge buckshot.
Photo ©2018 D.W. Drang and the Cluemeter

The cheekpad is a nice touch.Not too high.
Photo ©2018 D.W. Drang and the Cluemeter

The excess lace will be tucked in.
Photo ©2018 D.W. Drang and the Cluemeter

They do butt and belt mounted ammo holders for rifles and shotguns, and satchels for same for range or hunting blind use, and also do dog collars and the like.

Good, high-quality leather, and sturdy construction.  Recommended.

"So, how did that class go, Drang?"

Well, I'm glad you asked... sort of.

So, two weeks ago I posted Training returns to WAC Shows!

So I secured the weekend off, since I work graveyard shift these days and being able to teach a class Sunday morning would require two days... fortunately, I have leave to burn (as in, "use it or lose it.") and no one else was requesting the days.

Unfortunately, while we had training materials, and a venue, and instructors, we had no students sign up.

Well, it was pretty short notice, too short to fully advertise. 

There's a show this weekend at the Puyallup Fairgrounds, but this is the month when it is bumped from the usual "Showplex" facility to the "Pavilion"--and that raises a critical question...

The NRA Home Firearms Safety class involves teaching people safe gun handling, including how to "unload and make safe" the major types of hand- and long guns.

This, obviously, requires manipulating firearms.

Therefore, one of the requirements to conduct the class is that you have a "safe direction", per Rule 1 (NRA Version). This means that the classroom must have at least one wall that is constructed of a material that will stop a bullet.

(Yes, NRA bans all live ammo from classroom training, even classes like Refuse To Be A Victim that do not involve actual firearms.

(So?)

We were unable to ascertain whether the Pavilion has a classroom facility that meets the requirement for a safe direction, therefore, no class this weekend.

March's Puyallup show is in the "Agriplex" which is barely big enough for the usual table-holders, does not have room for a separate class, and does not have a safe direction. (There is no show in March at the fairgrounds in Monroe.)

So it looks like the next class will probably be at Puyallup in April. Well, should be plenty of time to advertise, kinda wonder if we'll need to do one class both days...

Again:

• Cost:
• Admission to WAC Gunshows is free for WAC members
• $10.00 for non-members. (Refundable if you join at the show.)

• Target audience: 
• Those wishing to learn or review the basics of safe gun handling. 
• No minimum or maximum age, but the "final exam" involves safely demonstrating "unloading and showing clear"
• Depending on turnout, students who do not have the strength or dexterity to demonstrate safe gun handling may be allowed to "audit" the class, but no certificate will be issued. (I.e., those too young, arthritis or hand injuries, etc.)

WAC's Event Rules are at the link.

By the way: Part of dues, and of the non-members entry fee for the show, goes to the Building Fund, which is earmarked to be used to purchase a permanent home for the WAC offices and shows. There have been issues with finding a large enough piece of property that wasn't zoned against firearm-related activities.

I ass-you-me that, if we ever find a suitable property, that the gun shows at alternate facilities will not cease. (That is, if it's in the south end there will still be several shows a year at the Monroe fairgrounds.

(The idea of having a couple of shows a year in Eastern Washington has also been mooted, but I don't know how far those plans have gone, or even if they got to the planing stage. I think maybe one a quarter or so, in, say, Spokane, Pasco, and Ellensberg, might be beneficial. But I'm just blue-skying here.)

The Blood Dance

Or: What Do Progressives Do When The Narrative Collapses?

QOTD worthy, from Tamara:

Today show is wall-to-wall "workplace violence mass shooting"as they cut off the legs of jihad to fit it into the Procrustean bed of the gun control narrative.

Meanwhile, as Tamara and Bobbi both also address, the definition of "mass shooting" has been redefined again, to now mean "four people shot, not necessarily killed." Because now they can claim "more mass shootings than days in 2015!" Ignoring the reality that most of these involve gang bangers, usually of the same (non-European) ethnic background, and quite frequently many are winged but few are killed.

Naturally, His Imperial Majesty Barack Hussein Obama, in Paris to deal with the number one existential threat to modern civilization(anthropogenic climate change, in case you missed it) got up on his hind legs, ran his suck, and once again made the claim that "these things don"t happen in other coutnries." 

In Paris.

Three weeks after ISIS slaughtered over a hundred.

The French press, apparently, called him an asshole. (Although I'm not as confident of that translation as the person reporting it is. Then again, insults and swear words often just sound silly, not insulting, in translation...)

Meanwhile, this seems to have been planned: Couple Kept Tight Lid on Plans for San Bernardino Shooting - The New York Times, although the Noo Yawk Slimes still insists a motive is unknown...

A good article: Obama’s inconsistent claim on the ‘frequency’ of mass shootings in the U.S. compared to other countries - The Washington Post

One for the good guys...

Police: St. Paul victim had gun permit when he killed armed suspect - StarTribune.com

And, despite details like this:

Only months before Lavauntai Broadbent, 16, was shot and killed on a St. Paul river bluff during a botched robbery, authorities say he was part of a violent mob of teens that led a rumble in a downtown St. Paul hotel.

and this:

Broadbent was wearing a mask and gloves, police said.

and this:

Broadbent was a young man caught up in a culture of gang violence, according to court documents from an April 18 fight at the Embassy Suites Hotel in downtown St. Paul. Details from the hotel fight, along with information released about Broadbent’s death and St. Paul’s youth gang culture, show that easy answers are difficult to come by and that many of St. Paul’s young men are swept up in a tit-for-tat cycle of retribution.

this:

“At one point, [Broadbent] is observed kicking someone on the ground and chases another person off camera …” said the criminal complaint in the hotel fight.

this:

Broadbent pleaded guilty in May to third-degree riot in a gang-related fight among 50 to 100 juveniles at the Embassy Suites in which members of the Ham Crazy and Everybody Killer gangs fought with members of the Shoota Boy Gang.

We still have to put up with crap like

Broadbent’s mother, Leeann Broadbent, said Monday that her son didn’t “have that kind of heart” to pull a gun on someone.

And, of course

He did confirm that on Sunday night, a car drove off the street just before midnight into Shadow Falls Park, where some people had gathered for a vigil for Broadbent. Shots were fired, and the suspects fled on foot because their vehicle had struck a concrete planter. It’s unclear where the shots were fired from, Linders said, but no one was hit.

 In the meantime, the citizen who defended himself

...took off his shirt, rendered first aid to Broadbent and called police...

So, good for him. Apparently, that attitude is widespread:

Ramsey County attorney spokesman Dennis Gerhardstein said the robbery cases have been presented for charges. He said the office had not yet received a case on the shooting. “We understand that [the shooter] was not arrested and that the police view him to be the victim,” he said.

More on Initiatives 591 (YAY!) and 594 (BOO!)

A round-up, of sorts, in a tab-clearing type of day at the Washington Arms Collectors' web site:
First, the new TV ad for 591:

One big question locally, that, as discussed at the above link, has even been mentioned in the local media, is why has the National Rifle Association been pretty much AWOL, or at best phoning it in, on this.

Is it because they figure the Second Amendment Foundation and Washington Arms Collectors, and their associated and affiiliated organizations, have it covered?
Is it because they figure Washington State is doomed, and aren't wasting money on us? 
Or is it because they hate the Second Amendment Foundation and Alan Gottlieb and are willing to sacrifice the Evergreen State just to see their bete noir go down in flames?

I really, really hope it's number 1.

There's a TV ad out there in favor of I-594, that almost caused me to go Full Elvis on the boob toob last weekend, in which some bimbo claimed that "background checks are a simple solution to gun violence."
 Where to start?

• "Universal background checks" are clearly ineffective, witness the crimes committed by people who pass one. (And I'm not just talking here about the NICS check to buy a gun, I'm talking about, for example, police officers or others in positions of trust who pass a background check and commit a crime.) 
• This monstrosity requires a background check on any transfer of a firearm.
•  These checks mandated by I-594 would require that I conduct a background check on any adult I lend a gun to, including simply swapping pistols at the range ("Hey, is that a Crunchenticker Loudenbooomer 9...?") And then he would have to conduct a background check on me before handing it back. 
• Similarly, showing off the contents of the gun safe to a visitor, handing a "spare" to a hunting buddy because his gun broke, etc. 
• And, since each and every one of these required background checks is reported to the Washington State Department of Licensing, it will, in fact, be a de facto state firearms registry. 
• And no one knows what it will cost.
• There's an exemption for age, but only if the parent is present during the time when the minor is holding a gun. 
• There's an exemption for training, but only if the training is held at a "licensed club", and if the gun is kept at the club. 

And then there's this lovely fact:

• Failing to conduct a background check  for any transfer will be a Class C Felony.
• Like Rape.

I just don't know if I'll be able to resist the urge to spit in the face of the next jackass that tries to tell me the gun banning statists don't want to take away my guns...

Previous post: Why does the "1%" like this idea?

Oppose I-594: WA Citizens Against Regulatory Excess

I've mentioned Ballot Initiative 591 a couple of times.  It is a very short (one page!  Unheard of!) that adds two lines to the Section 9.41 of the Revised Code of Washington:

• It is unlawful for any government agency to confiscate guns or other firearms from citizens without due process.
• It is unlawful for any government agency to require background checks on the recipient of a firearm unless a uniform national standard is required.

Support I-591: Protect Our Gun Rights.

W00t! Alan Gura wins again!

SAF Press Release :: MARYLAND RULING A ‘HUGE VICTORY’ FOR SECOND AMENDMENT, SAYS SAF

For Immediate Release: 3/5/2012
BELLEVUE, WA – A federal court ruling in Maryland, that the Second Amendment right to bear arms extends beyond the home and that citizens may not be required to offer a “good and substantial reason” for obtaining a concealed carry permit, is a huge victory, the Second Amendment Foundation said today.
Ruling in the case of Woollard v. Sheridan – a case brought by SAF in July 2010 on behalf of Maryland resident Raymond Woollard, who was denied his carry permit renewal – the U.S. District Court for Maryland ruled that “The Court finds that the right to bear arms is not limited to the home.”
U.S. District Court Judge Benson Everett Legg noted, “In addition to self-defense, the (Second Amendment) right was also understood to allow for militia membership and hunting. To secure these rights, the Second Amendment‘s protections must extend beyond the home: neither hunting nor militia training is a household activity, and ‘self-defense has to take place wherever [a] person happens to be’.”

h/t Uncle, who has other links. And note the comment to his post, re: the Ninth Circus Court. If Maryland doesn't appeal, the only way this will go to the Supremes is if another court rules opposite, and it makes it on appeal.

Refuse To Be A Victim -- I had no idea

That you could get certified as an instructor for this really excellent program online.

Recommended. Highly.