From The Wall Street Journal: Those watching Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation hearings this week didn't learn much about what she really thinks about judging. But they were treated to an Abbott and Costello legal moment on Thursday between the judge and South Carolina Republican Lindsey Graham. In the wake of the Supreme Court's recent decision in D.C. v. Heller recognizing an individual right to bear arms, Mr. Graham wondered what template Judge Sotomayor would use to determine whether that "fundamental right" also applies to the states? "The rule of law," Judge Sotomayor answered. So "isn't the rule of law, when it comes to what you consider to be a fundamental right, your opinion as to what is fundamental . . .?" Senator Graham asked. Or "is there sort of a legal cookbook that you can go to and say this is a fundamental right, A, and B is not?" No, the judge replied, no cookbook, but you hire judges "for the purpose of understanding whether they respect law, whether they respect precedent." Who's on first? ... http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124786955918160393.html#mod=djemEditorialPage --- For Those Who Can Read Spanish: A retired Mexican army captain was arrested on charges of selling weapons of the Secretariat of National Defense to the Beltrán Leyva brothers cartel, the office of the Attorney General of the Republic (PGR) reported Thursday. In the first known charge of the sale of army weapons to a drug-trafficking group, the PGR stated in a communiqué that retired Captain Mateo Juárez Váasquez, AKA Mateo Juárez Espinosa, is also reported to have trained active or retired military personnel so they could join the cartel as hitmen or bodyguards... (I have said all along that corruption within the Mexican military, not gun shops and gun shows in American border states, is the source of American-made military-grade weaponry in the hands of the Mexican drug cartels. It comes as no surprise to me that the arrest is of a retired, not an active-duty officer.) http://noticias.prodigy.msn.com/landing.aspx?cp-documentid=20773219 --- Intervention in Virginia - the Details: On Friday I received a surprise call from the gun owner who has been in the press this week for saving lives at a Richmond store. The gun owner used a replica 1875 Remington Army .45 Long Colt with a 7 1/2 inch barrel to stop a criminal who had shot the store's owner. He wanted to remain anonymous, but called so that the story could be set straight, as much of what was in the press wasn't accurate... The gun owner (GO) was in the store waiting in line to pay for an item when the bad guy (BG) came in wearing dark sunglasses and trying to cover up his face while brandishing a revolver. The BG yelled for everyone to get down and before anybody could react, immediately walked over to the store owner and in a cold-blooded fashion shot him twice. The owner then dropped down behind the counter. It wasn't more than 2 seconds after the BG first walked in the doors that he shot the store owner... Open carry was an advantage in this case because in the video I saw just how fast the GO managed to draw his gun and begin to return fire. You always hear about how open carry is so bad tactically - you'll be the first one shot, etc. Oh, yeah? The GO had a HUGE gun in plain sight and he was NOT shot. Who got shot first? An unarmed store owner... (I respectfully disagree with the last statement - the store owner was shot first because the robber was impaired by his own tunnel vision.) http://www2.vcdl.org/webapps/vcdl/vadetail.html?RECID=4520225 --- The Risks of Intervention: Boise Police de-escalated a petit theft that turned into a dangerous situation with four men and two handguns. Just after 1:15 p.m. Friday, Boise Police received a call of a man with a gun near Americana Boulevard and River Street. Multiple officers arrived on scene and found two men with handguns pointed at different people. Police de-escalated and sorted out the situation, according to a Friday release. Police said the original suspect, later identified as John Dickey, had allegedly stolen personal property from a victim at a nearby homeless shelter. The suspect fled on foot traveling east on River Street. As the victim chased on foot, a third man intervened the chase, produced a handgun and ordered the suspect to stop. The suspect was on the ground and held at gunpoint when another person, who also had a concealed weapons permit, saw the situation, intervened and demanded the other man drop his gun. Officers then arrived on scene, according to the release... (My CWP students are counseled that while they may use deadly force in defense of a third party, if the third party would be justified in using deadly force, they had better be sure that they fully understand the situation before making the decision to intervene. In most states, theft of personal property does not justify a threat of deadly force.) http://www.idahostatesman.com/newsupdates/story/837405.html A bizarre turn of events Friday afternoon in downtown Boise after a man steals another man's duffle bag. Two bystanders pulled their guns to stop the crime. Police say what started this was a case of petit theft. One man is now accused of stealing a bag from a homeless man near the corner of Americana Boulevard and River Street. It was after this occurred that Paul Brookhouse stepped in to make a citizens arrest. He now faces possible felony charges... Brookhouse pulled his car over and intervened. But in the heat of the moment this concealed weapons permit holder made an erroneous claim. "I pulled my weapon and I told the gentleman, I made a mistake here, I said, "Boise Police. Stop. You're under arrest." So, he did, I asked him to get on the ground, we did all the hands behind your back thing. I frisked him and then held him at gun point until the police department got here," Brookhouse said... http://www.ktvb.com/news/localnews/stories/ktvbn-jul1709-citizen_arrest.4e0b1fd0.html --- Propping up Hollywood: The phone rang recently at Weapons Specialists, a SoHo-based company that supplies prop firearms to the entertainment industry. Bruce Willis, who was in town shooting the action comedy "A Couple of Dicks," wanted a left-handed ankle holster for his back-up gun, pronto if not sooner, reported the anxious caller from the movie's set. Or maybe - who's to say? - the Glock wouldn't be the only thing to get fired. Let others sweat bullets. Weapons Specialists founder and top gun Rick Washburn, 63, remained cool. "I don't know yet what I'm going to do, but we have to provide it. Maybe I'll make something in the shop," he said, referring to the basement workroom. "We do little bitty miracles every day. That's why they come to us." ..."Fort Knox" reads the sign on the door of what Mr. Washburn calls the showroom vault. Firearms line the walls, arranged by type and chronology, all modified in accordance with New York City regulations to fire blanks only. Over here: submachine guns, machine guns, rocket launchers and assault rifles. Across the way: revolvers, shotguns, sporting weapons and semiautomatic pistols... http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204423804574290180095564944.html --- Product Alert: Many revolver users are familiar with Bianchi Speed Strips, which are used to carry spare .38 Special or .357 Magnum ammunition in a device that, being flat, is much more concealable than a speedloader. Tuff Products offers a very similar Quick Strip. Unlike Bianchi, Tuff offers their strips in a wide variety of common and exotic calibers, with some available in more than one size. Of note, Tuff has figured out that the strips can be used to carry some rimless cartidges as well as rimmed ones. Thus, for the true revolver fan who owns a S&W Model 547, a revolver that fires 9x19 mm rounds without the use of a moon clip, the Quick Strip designed for the .327 Magnum can also be used to carry reloads for that gun. Similarly, several Quick Strips can be used for rifle rounds, a useful option for rifles that don't use detachable magazines. (As an aside, I was recently surpised to have a couple of Speed Strips tear under use. The strips in question are many years old and have probably had a significant exposure to sunlight as they often sit in the upper tray of the toolbox I use to carry shooting gear. This toolbox is usually left opent while I am teaching.) http://www.tuffproducts.com/home.php?cat=265 --- NRA-ILA Alerts: List members are encouraged to check the alerts for the week, posted on the NRA-ILA website. http://www.nraila.org/GrassrootsAlerts/read.aspx --- From John Farnam: 12 July 09 Indoor range fire, from a friend in TX: "We experienced a range fire at a popular, commercial, indoor range last week during a pistol match. To say the fire got out of control fast would be an under-statement! Polyethylene (PE) foam had been sprayed on downrange walls for sound abatement, and it had, over a year, much accumulated unburned powder impregnated into it. A small flame spontaneously erupted on the floor, in a crack where unburnt propellant had accumulated. An ember went airborne and made contact with the PE foam on the wall. Ten seconds passed from the moment of ignition of the powder on the floor to ignition of the entire PE-foamed wall. Within fifteen seconds, flames raced across the foam-covered ceiling to the opposite wall, also covered in powder-impregnated PE foam! A volume of heavy, black smoke immediately filled the range. It was noxious and blinding! One shooter did locate, and attempt to use, a large, dry-agent extinguisher. However, this extinguisher proved useless, as the fire was already out of control. This range had removed all PE foam some time ago, because of fire danger. But, range 'management' changed a few months later, and someone made the decision to put foam back on walls and ceiling. No one was hurt, but the range and building are extensively damaged." Comment: Foam may be marketed as "non-flammable," but that status changes when it is impregnated with unburnt propellant! Unburnt propellant needs to be regularly removed from indoor ranges. When it is allowed to accumulate, disaster awaits, as we see! /John (I witnessed a minor fire on an indoor range when a shooter was firing Magnum rounds loaded with a slow-burning powder [2400?] from a Pistol Perch which was sitting on a range-provided carpet mat on the shelf at the front of the firing booth. After several rounds had sprinkled the mat with unburned grains of powder, blown through the barrel-cylinder gap, a subsequent flash from the barrel-cylinder gap ignited them. I would not expect a dry-powder extinguisher to work on a smokeless-powder fire since gunpowders contain their own supply of oxygen.) 13 July 09 Why we routinely carry at least one spare pistol magazine, from a friend in FL: "Yesterday, while attending a music program at an open-air amphitheater, I shifted in my seat and experienced a catastrophic failure of the magazine inserted in my G27, which I was carrying concealed in an IWB holster. The magazine base-cap broke and fell off. The magazine spring and follower mmediately fell out, along with several rounds. The rest of the rounds remained within the magazine shell, still locked in the pistol's magazine well. Happily, the only two people aware of the problem were me and my oldest daughter, who was sitting directly behind me. As discreetly as possible, I removed the shell, and remaining loose rounds from the pistol, and, with my wife's assistance, recovered the spring and follower, all as I remained seated, trying to look as normal as possible. My G27 stayed in the holster. With the shell and loose rounds cleared from the magazine well, I quietly inserted my spare magazine. Ultimately, only two people, besides me, knew what had happened. We enjoyed the rest of the concert and returned home without further incident." Lesson: Always carry at least one spare magazine, not only so that you can reload, but also so that you can get your pistol back into service when the magazine that is already in it, breaks! "We carried our weapons with us at all times, even when we went for water" Nehemiah, Chapter 4, Verse 23b /John (I counsel my students to carry at least two spare magazines for a bottom-feeding pistol because approximately 99% of mechanical malfunctions can be corrected by reloading.) 14 July 09 Sales trends, from a large retailer in the Midwest: "Gun sales have moderated but are still strong. Ammunition remains in short supply, particularly 380Auto! Snubbie revolvers remain our top seller! Likewise, small 380s (Kahr, Ruger, SIG, and Kel-Tec) sell as fast as we can get them in! We're selling lots of G17s and G21s, S&W M&Ps, and XDMs to local cops. The Department recently gave up on their long-issued G22s. G22s with the issued, mounted weapon-light ran fine, but, with some other brands of weapon-lights, they don't run well at all. The Department finally decided to move away from the G22 altogether. They now issue G17s and G21s. M&Ps and XDs are also approved (9mm and 45ACP) for carry when personally procured." Comment: Owing to current political trends, domestic and worldwide, there are more American gun-owners than ever before. A small percentage will even seek training! /John (The unusual scarcity of .380 [9x17 mm] ammo might be even one more argument against selecting this round when the option of the more powerful 9x19 mm round is available. Kahr produces pistols in the latter chambering that are smaller than many in the former. I remain wary of Glocks in chamberings other than 9x19 mm. The .40-caliber G22 has seen many problems in law enforcement, particularly when lights have been mounted on its integral rails. There have also been some inadequately explained catastrophic case failures [kaBoom!'s] in the .45-caliber G21.) 16 July 09 On Glock magazines, from a friend overseas: "... what I failed to do was drop-test a loaded magazine (with the after-market base-cap) on a hard surface. So, here I am stopping my vehicle and getting out to relieve myself at the side of the road, and my spare magazine falls out, hitting the asphalt. The base plate spontaneously sprung loose, and rounds scattered! And, there I am, trying to police them up all over the road, with a lot of people driving by looking at me strangely. At least no one stopped to help! I've use the standard Glock (OEM) base-plate ever since. Jimmy had the same thing happen to him in a dark basement during an operation in Mindanao. He related that policing up loose rounds using a flashlight, when he was supposed to be in 'low-profile mode,' was far from entertaining!" Comment: After-market base-caps for Glock magazines, like most after-market additions, are not recommended. Precious few of those advocating such things have never been around violent death, and even fewer seem to grasp how confused, dirty, crude, dangerous and terrifying real life becomes... with overwhelming speed! You need simple stuff that works, not complicated "wonder-gadgets" that are marketed on the dubious premise that they provide you with some ill-defined, but none-the-less insurmountable, advantage. How many men are dead because they had too many options? /John (This is not the first report I have seen of this sort of failure with "+2" floor plates for Glock magazines. I have to wonder if that was the culprit in the report from Florida. Some people favor extensions on magazines in order to give the little finger something to grasp. I am in the opposite school of thought - if the little finger slides under the magazine or bottom strap, it cannot "milk" the shot low if it reflexively grips tighter during the trigger stroke.) 16 July 09 New book by my friend and colleague, Mike Conti: Some time ago, Mike Conti wrote: Police Pistolcraft, where he pointed out to all of us the necessity of looking at the requirements of the job of policing and letting those requirements, and history, drive our firearms training. His new book, The Officer's Guide to Police Pistolcraft, has just hit the market. It is a thorough treatment of contemporary police pistol training, and Mike is the probably one person most qualified to write it! A copy should be in the hands of every young police officer! See it at _www.sabergroup.com_ (http://www.sabergroup.com) /John (I have not yet received my copy of Mike's latest book but Police Pistolcraft reminded me of the role that Mike played in my own process of re-evaluating the role of point shooting. I am gratified to see John endorse Mike's book as I had not known John to advocate anything other than sighted fire. As an aside, if the book should be read by young officers, why not by older ones?) -- Stephen P. Wenger, KE7QBY Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info .