I'm Baaack!: It was a very different experience attending an IALEFI conference and not doing any shooting. For a combination of reasons, I elected to take all indoor classes and to use all my electives to take armorer courses. Here's a quick summary of salient points: * Opening Session: "Tactical Anatomy" by James Williams, MD, (http://www.tacticalanatomy.com/) validated my recommendation to use the pelvis as an aiming point under a wider variety of circumstances than has previously been recommended by most other instructors. There is one caveat, however. With handgun rounds, Dr. Williams recommends aiming for the lateral pelvis, not the sacrum, as the lateral pelvis (from the edge of the sacrum to the hip joint) is more vulnerable to fracture and contains a larger area of large blood vessels and nerves than the area in the chest that contains the heart and major vessels. * Glock armorer course: This was the best organized of the four armorer courses I took. Aside from the technical aspects, I came away with a great deal of respect for the simplicity of the design and an enhanced awareness that very little happens at Glock if Gaston Glock does not choose for it to happen. * S&W M&P armorer course: This was the next best organized course of the four I took. S&W appears to have done their homework in their third major attempt to capture a portion of the law-enforcement market for a polymer-frame pistol. While they clearly looked at how they could improve on the Glock, the take-down lever is reminiscent of SIG's and the requirement to rotate the disconnector and magazine-disconnect-safety lever (if present) downward into the magazine well to field-strip the pistol, is reminiscent of Ruger's similar requirement with its ejector. The trigger stroke was somewhat reminiscent of a Glock with a New York 1 trigger and a 3.5-pound connector (my personal preference) but with a much less distinctive reset. It looks as though there may still be some minor design refinements but these will probably be more of a noticeable improvement for armorers than for shooters. * Beretta PX4 armorer course: The PX4 stands out among the polymer-frame pistols competing in the law-enforcement market in that it is hammer-fired, not striker-fired. At this time there are two major configurations. The F version (hammer-dropping safety lever, DA/SA trigger) and G version (decocking lever which springs back to the firing position) are convertible to each other. The D version (DAO) and C version ("continuous action" trigger) are also convertible to each other. The "continuous action" trigger system is described as being very similar to the Para Ordnance LDA and also has two separate clicks in its reset. As I will be able to purchase a PX4 at a very favorable discount, I intend to purchase one in the C version. Of note, the full-size pistols use a rotating barrel but the compact versions use a more conventional "falling barrel" locking system. * Bushmaster armorer course: Not ready for prime time the day I took it, this was a very rudimentary course in the disassembly and reassembly of the AR-15/M16 system, with a lot of plugging for the superiority of Bushmaster barrels. Of note, Bushmaster is introducing a variant with a piston operating system and has developed an upper receiver, in conjunction with Hornady, chambered for a "proprietary" high-power .45-caliber cartridge. <> --- Parker Appears Headed To Supreme Court: The District of Columbia's local government has taken another step toward the Supreme Court in a major case on the Second Amendment and gun rights, and it has come under some pressure from an unusual source - a federal judge - to go ahead with the appeal. http://www.scotusblog.com/movabletype/archives/2007/05/another_step_on.html --- Tennessee Governor Signs Stand-Your-Ground Bill: Gov. Phil Bredesen has signed into law a bill that will allow an individual to use deadly force to protect him or herself wherever they have a legal right to be. The bill also provides civil immunity for those who defend themselves from criminal attack. http://www.theleafchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007705240365 --- Texas Governor Signs CCW-Privacy Bill: Governor Rick Perry has signed into law a bill that seals state records showing who is allowed to pack a gun in public. Only law enforcement agencies would have access to the license information. The law took effect immediately upon its signing Wednesday. http://www.kbtx.com/home/headlines/7671902.html --- Oregon Tunes CCW Law: Gov. Ted Kulongoski is expected to sign a bill that would ban sex offenders, people convicted of drug crimes and those who leave the military with dishonorable discharges from getting concealed handgun licenses in Oregon. House Bill 2334, which also allows those on active military duty to renew their permits by mail, passed with support from Democrats and Republicans. http://www.oregonlive.com/newsflash/regional/index.ssf?/base/news-19/1179821366134560.xml&storylist=orlocal --- Giuliani Masquerade Continues: Rudolph Giuliani Wednesday sounded open to letting anyone who's not a criminal or mental patient carry a concealed handgun - even telling a woman who packs a piece in New York that it's OK with him... http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/nation/ny-usguns0524,0,7938209.story?coll=ny-top-headlines --- Oops, Wrong House: Police said a woman shot a man with a shotgun while he was allegedly attempting to burglarize her home in Long Island (NY) on Tuesday. Police said the 18-year-old suspect was being treated for a wound to the shoulder. He and a 21-year-old accomplice were arrested and charged with burglary, according to police. http://www.wnbc.com/news/13371268/detail.html --- Rule Five Reminder: A police officer in Tacoma WA left behind a backpack containing a handgun after dining at a local restaurant. The backpack was found by a four-year-old child, whose grandmother discovered the handgun while trying to identify the pack's owner. (This is why I discourage off-body carry. Rule Five: Maintain control of your firearm.) http://www.komotv.com/news/7660877.html --- Ricochet Injury?: A police officer in Illinois sustained an injury to the leg when a fellow officer fired two or three rounds at a pit bull terrier that reportedly charged the officers as they served a warrant. (There has been some recent suggestion that frangible bullets, as are used in training where bullets will impact metal, may be a good choice for officers who need to fire toward pavement, to kill an injured animal. Such a scenario would allow time to swap ammunition. I am still reluctant to recommend pre-fragmented rounds, such as Glasers, for general carry, just to cover the type of scenario in this report.) http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/beaconnews/news/400928,2_1_AU25_OFFICER_S1.article --- Officer Who Shot Colleague Receives Medical Pension: Long-term list members may recall the unintentional fatal shooting of a Pennsylvania SWAT-team member by a colleague in the gun-cleaning room of their station. Mental health experts told an Easton police pension board that Matthew Renninger, 38, is permanently disabled following the March 2005 shooting, which killed fellow SWAT team member Jesse Sollman, 36. http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=18391638&BRD=2212&PAG=461&dept_id=465812&rfi=6 --- Meanwhile, In Georgia...: The south Georgia police officer involved in the accidental shooting death of a fellow officer has resigned...Bradford was cleaning his service weapon on May 4 at police headquarters when the .40-caliber Glock went off. The bullet struck Suarez, the assistant police chief, in the chest. http://www.dailyreportonline.com/Editorial/News/new_singleEdit.asp?individual_SQL=5%2F22%2F2007%4013415_Public_.htm --- British Teen Jailed For Shooting Burglar With Airgun: A teenager who shot a burglar who tried to break into his home was yesterday jailed for a year. The computing student had grabbed the airgun and a small fishing knife after Goldie - who was high on drugs - threw a bottle at his stepdad. http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/news/tm_headline=teenager-locked-up-for-shooting-burglar--&method=full&objectid=19168484&siteid=66633-name_page.html --- NRA-ILA Alerts: Alerts for the various states are posted on the NRA-ILA website. http://www.nraila.org/Legislation/State/ --- From GOA: The nascent immigration-reform bill contains language that would designate as "criminal gangs" any group of five or more people who commit two federal firearm felonies, such as a family of five that drives past two schools on the way to the movies with a gun in the glove box but no state permit to carry a firearm. http://www.gunowners.org/a052307.htm --- From CRKBA: The indictment of Jacob Nickels, son of Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels, on charges relating to a conspiracy to cheat casinos is enough to suggest that the anti-gun mayor - who supports laws that would treat all gun owners like criminals - perhaps should look closer to home to find someone who really needs his character scrutinized, the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms said today. http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/news_press_release,112088.shtml --- From AzCDL: After being pigeonholed for weeks, SB 1251 has finally been put on the House Committee of the Whole (COW) calendar for Tuesday, May 29th. SB 1251 strengthens the "public establishment or event" storage requirements that were passed last year. It defines "secure storage" and "readily accessible." It prohibits permanently recording information about the weapon or individual. If an "operator" doesn't comply, they can't prohibit weapons. Lobbyists for law enforcement groups, state agencies, cities, and towns, not to mention their willing accomplices in the media, have been putting on tremendous pressure to kill SB 1251 and, despite AzCDL's work to move it along, have been very effective in slowing it down. It passed out of the Senate on February 20th by a vote of 19-9-2. It quickly passed out of the House Government committee on March 13th, and then languished in the House Rules committee until May 9th, where it then dropped into a black hole, only to reappear now, near the end of the session. Please send a firm but polite note to House members urging them to vote for the passage of SB 1251. You can send your own message, or use the one provided here. Following the sample message are email lists of all Representatives in both semi-colon and comma separated formats. Use the one compatible with your email software. Subject: Vote YES on SB 1251 Dear Representative: The Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL) has informed me that SB 1251 will be debated in the House Committee of the Whole (COW) on May 29, 2007. I urge you to vote for SB 1251 both in COW and on Third Read, should it progress to that point. SB 1251 further clarifies the "public establishment or event" storage requirements that were passed last year. Compliance with this legislation by State agencies and municipalities has been uneven. Law-abiding citizens never know what to expect when they approach a "public establishment." Will they be allowed in? Will they be turned away? Will they be treated as if they were a criminal being jailed? How will their weapon be safeguarded? How many times will it be handled? Are safety procedures being followed? Is information about them and their weapon being recorded in a database? Smart agencies and municipalities have solved the problem by simply taking down their "No Weapons" signs. Others have provided bus-depot style lockers, minimizing unsafe weapons handling by third parties. With the rest, it's a hodge-podge of malicious compliance with the law, ranging from badgering citizens to go away, to unsafely tossing our weapons in drawers or bags. This has got to end! All we want is consistent compliance with the mandate of the Legislature. SB 1251 brings us closer to that goal. Again, I urge you to vote for the passage of SB 1251. Sincerely, Your Name Street Address City, State, zip-code telephone number House members in semi-colon format: eableser@azleg.gov; kadams@azleg.gov; malvarez@azleg.gov; manderson@azleg.gov; rbarnes@azleg.gov; nbarto@azleg.gov; abiggs@azleg.gov; tboone@azleg.gov; dbradley@azleg.gov; jbrown@azleg.gov; jburges@azleg.gov; jburns@azleg.gov; ocajerobedford@azleg.gov; chcampbell@azleg.gov; clcampbell@azleg.gov; dclark@azleg.gov; rcrandall@azleg.gov; scrump@azleg.gov; mdesimone@azleg.gov; adriggs@azleg.gov; sfarley@azleg.gov; efarnsworth@azleg.gov; sgallardo@azleg.gov; mgarcia@azleg.gov; tgroe@azleg.gov; phershberger@azleg.gov; jkavanagh@azleg.gov; akirkpatrick@azleg.gov; bkonopnicki@azleg.gov; plopes@azleg.gov; llopez@azleg.gov; dlujan@azleg.gov; lmason@azleg.gov; mmcclure@azleg.gov; jmccomish@azleg.gov; bmcguire@azleg.gov; nmclain@azleg.gov; rmeza@azleg.gov; bmiranda@azleg.gov; rmurphy@azleg.gov; jnelson@azleg.gov; wnichols@azleg.gov; lpancrazi@azleg.gov; jpaton@azleg.gov; rpearce@azleg.gov; tprezelski@azleg.gov; mreagan@azleg.gov; prios@azleg.gov; brobson@azleg.gov; lsaradnik@azleg.gov; dschapira@azleg.gov; ksinema@azleg.gov; bstump@azleg.gov; jthrasher@azleg.gov; atobin@azleg.gov; atom@azleg.gov; tulmer@azleg.gov; jweiers@azleg.gov; jpweiers@azleg.gov; syarbrough@azleg.gov House members in comma format: eableser@azleg.gov; kadams@azleg.gov; malvarez@azleg.gov; manderson@azleg.gov; rbarnes@azleg.gov; nbarto@azleg.gov; abiggs@azleg.gov; tboone@azleg.gov; dbradley@azleg.gov; jbrown@azleg.gov; jburges@azleg.gov; jburns@azleg.gov; ocajerobedford@azleg.gov; chcampbell@azleg.gov; clcampbell@azleg.gov; dclark@azleg.gov; rcrandall@azleg.gov; scrump@azleg.gov; mdesimone@azleg.gov; adriggs@azleg.gov, sfarley@azleg.gov, efarnsworth@azleg.gov, sgallardo@azleg.gov, mgarcia@azleg.gov, tgroe@azleg.gov, phershberger@azleg.gov, jkavanagh@azleg.gov, akirkpatrick@azleg.gov, bkonopnicki@azleg.gov, plopes@azleg.gov, llopez@azleg.gov, dlujan@azleg.gov, lmason@azleg.gov, mmcclure@azleg.gov, jmccomish@azleg.gov, bmcguire@azleg.gov, nmclain@azleg.gov, rmeza@azleg.gov, bmiranda@azleg.gov, rmurphy@azleg.gov, jnelson@azleg.gov, wnichols@azleg.gov, lpancrazi@azleg.gov, jpaton@azleg.gov, rpearce@azleg.gov, tprezelski@azleg.gov, mreagan@azleg.gov, prios@azleg.gov, brobson@azleg.gov, lsaradnik@azleg.gov, dschapira@azleg.gov, ksinema@azleg.gov, bstump@azleg.gov, jthrasher@azleg.gov, atobin@azleg.gov, atom@azleg.gov, tulmer@azleg.gov, jweiers@azleg.gov, jpweiers@azleg.gov, syarbrough@azleg.gov Information on this and other bills can be found at the AzCDL website: http://www.azcdl.org/html/legislation.html These alerts are a project of the Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL), an all volunteer, non-profit, non-partisan grassroots organization. Join today! AzCDL - Protecting Your Freedom http://www.azcdl.org/html/join_us_.html Copyright © 2007 Arizona Citizens Defense League, Inc., all rights reserved. --- From John Farnam: 21 May 07 On dangerous dogs, from a friend in the dog-training business: "I am often asked about the best strategy when one is confronted by a menacing dog that is not restrained. The only universal verbal command most dogs (with any kind of training) will understand is 'Sit!' Last weekend I had the opportunity to put this theory to the test. While walking through my residential neighborhood, a pit bull charged me from across the street, bearing his teeth, barking, and growling all the while. I moved behind a parked car and drew my pistol. I yelled 'Sit' twice. The dog immediately stopped and sat down! Shortly thereafter, its owner came out his front door with a leash to take his dog back inside. He laughed, referring his dog as a 'good boy.' He barely acknowledged my presence, much less apologized. I didn't let the idiot know how close his dimpled darling came to getting his head blown off!" Comment: Injuries from dog attacks are at least as common as injuries from VCAs, and all of us should have a plan we can smoothly execute when such attacks occur. Getting bitten is no fun! /John 21 May 07 Shooting in LA: "Last night, we responded to a gang-related shooting that turned into a homicide, as the victim was DRT. Victim was easily identified as a gang-member, as his gang name was tattooed across his torso. He was walking through a parking lot when he came face-to-face with a member of a rival gang. The deceased was well known to us, and his reputation was that he always carried at 1911 pistol in 45ACP. Rival gang-member quickly pulls a pistol (G22) and shoots, seriously wounding the victim. Range is less than three meters. The shooter then runs to an awaiting car and starts his escape. Victim's brother comes out of nowhere, takes the 1911 from the soon-to-be-deceased, runs after the now-accelerating vehicle, and fires at it until empty. No one in the vehicle was hit. We found one live 40S&W round and one live 45ACP round at the scene, both hardball. In addition, we found numerous expended shell cases in both calibers. Our detectives concluded that both shooters racked the slides of their autoloading pistols before firing, and both pistols already had a round chambered. Such idiocy is not surprising, since these imbeciles garner all their firearms training from watching TV. Whenever we view surveillance videos of armed robberies committed by this trash, we are ever horrified at the suspects' poor gun-handling and utter lack of proficiency. Here is yet another example." Comment: Much as we righteously despise Hollywood twits and leftists, maybe they're actually doing us a favor! Their arrogant and willful ignorance of our Art insures that cretins who vacuously take in all the sewage they pump over the wire will, at the critical moment, be no match for us! /John (I suspect that "LA" means "Los Angeles," not "Louisiana." While it's nice to think of our enemies as nitwits, it may also be dangerous. While the general public receives most of its firearms "training" via the entertainment media, gangs are known to send members with clean records into the military, explicitly to bring back the weapons and tactics training upon their intentionally provoked early discharges or desertions.) 23 May 07 IALEFI, San Antonio, TX I'm here at the IALEFI Annual Conference in San Antonio, TX. I had a chance today and yesterday to sample some of the many wonderful classes, and I assisted my friend and colleague, Henk Iverson, as he presented his excellent CQB Class. I also attended friend and colleague, John Krupa's class on the tactical use of DSA's wonderful FAL Rifle. John remorselessly put us all through our paces, and I learned a great deal about the FAL's gas regulation system, something with which all owners of these rifles should be familiar. One student had his rifle set up with a 1.5X ACOG, rear-mounted on the top rail. I used it in several exercises, as I waned to compare it with my forward-mounted EOTech and Aimpoint. I was mightily disappointed! Eye alignment with the ACOG is so critical, I kept losing the image as I fired multiple shots. I was compelled to continuously move my face around, trying desperately to recapture the downrange image. Much time was thus squandered just trying to stay in the scope and on target. I don't like close-eye-relief optics, and the ACOG cannot be forward-mounted. In any event, I continue to believe that EOTechs and Aimpoints, when forward-mounted, are vastly superior for our kind of shooting. /John 24 May 07 Comments on ACOG, from a LEO friend in TN: "ACOG's TA11 is vastly superior to the TA31 that you used in San Antonio. TA11's eye relief is longer, but magnification is greater too. I get good service from my copy, but it is mounted on a 223 AR, not a 308 FAL! For close work, nothing beats an EOTech or Aimpoint. But, when the range is beyond one hundred meters, magnified optics come into their own. As you noted, they don't make you shoot better, but they do enable you to see better, making our important details not discernable otherwise. Both EOTech and Aimpoint now offer optional magnification, but the feature adds considerable bulk, involves close eye relief, and thus would seem to negate the very features we admire." Comment: You can't have it both ways. Choose your seat and sit down! /John 25 May 07 Sage advice on powered rifle optics, from an old-time friend and colleague: "I'm persuaded powered optics are valuable when you get them out of your face and incessantly plan around battery failure. Correctly-adjusted iron sights must always be present and readily available to be seamlessly pressed into service. Best power source is AA batteries. Under nearly any circumstance, you can kick down a door, locate a TV remote, replace your dead batteries, then rejoin the fight. Such 'Exigent-Acquisition' is neither taught nor thought about much in this country, but we need to start!" Comment: "Foraging" for critical supplies is indeed a lost art in Western Civilization, particularly in our military culture, but it will surely enjoy an enthusiastic renaissance under the right circumstances! /John -- Stephen P. Wenger Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info .