Having declared in 2008 (District of Columbia vs. Heller) that the federal government may not prohibit gun ownership, the Supreme Court has agreed to hear McDonald vs. Chicago, which will decide whether states and cities can just say no to guns. We should get a decision from the Supremes in June, and it appears right now that they will rule, 5-4, that Mr. McDonald may buy a handgun and keep it in his home. This will be good for all gun owners, because it will not only affect Chicago, but will enable challenges to other gun-strangling laws in other municipalities.

(Chicago is the city where, in October of last year, four high school students killed a teenager from a rival school with their feet, fists, and some boards that came to hand. Chicago’s Mayor Daley, who is a bitter foe of gun ownership, did not say what he planned to do about the city’s board-control problem.)

The really interesting part of the decision will regard whatever “reasonable” controls the Supreme Court may deem consistent with the right to bear arms. The Court may well come up with some kind of baseline as to what states can and cannot do to limit firearms ownership.

And... [ Read Full Post ]

From the Chicago Tribune:

Among the many groups that opposed Barack Obama’s presidential race, few were more
certain or vehement than gun-rights organizations. "Barack Obama would be the most anti-gun president in American history," the National Rifle Association announced. . . .

So it's no stunner that after a year in office, the president is getting hammered by people who have no use for his policy on firearms. The surprise is that the people attacking him are those who favor gun control, not those who oppose it.
. . .

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We’ve been following the story of 17-year-old California student Gary Tudesko, who was expelled by the Willis Unified School District for having unloaded shotguns in his truck, despite the fact that the vehicle was not parked on school property. Now, Tudesko’s expulsion has been overturned.

Here’s the latest, from the Sacramento Bee:

In the end, the case . . . became a question of whether the authority of school officials to enforce the state's Education Code extended to the school fence – or a sidewalk's width beyond it.

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From The Journal Times:

[Frank Hannan-Rock of Racine,] who was arrested while openly carrying a gun on his porch Sept. 9[,] filed a lawsuit Friday against the city and two members of the police department.

The lawsuit. . . challenges Wisconsin's Gun Free School Zone Act, claiming it "unconstitutionally deprives plaintiffs of a meaningful opportunity to bear arms. . . ."

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As a citizen and voter, I expect a minimum level of common sense and pragmatism from the people elected to represent me. After so many years of bitter disappointment, I have no idea why.
 
For example, my home state of Oklahoma has the dubious honor of having the largest state budget deficit in the nation. A reasonable person might assume our elected representatives are at this very minute hard at work trying to solve this urgent problem. A reasonable person would be wrong.
 
Two Democratic state lawmakers want a sales tax holiday on the purchase of guns. Sen. John Sparks, and Rep. Wes Hilliard, of Sulphur, have introduced Senate Bill 1322, also called the Second Amendment Weekend Sales Tax Holiday Act. It would set a sales tax break on handguns, rifles or shotguns starting at 12:01 a.m. on the third Friday in August until midnight the following Sunday. Oklahoma is facing a revenue failure for the current fiscal year and expects to have 20 percent less to spend next fiscal year due to declining state revenue.

"I thought it was a perfect way to reduce the barrier to exercising our Second Amendment rights and saw no reason... [ Read Full Post ]

From the Examiner:
In a November survey, the Consumer Reports Money and Shopping Blog  . . . revealed a number of items new to the [poll] that gifts respondents said they’d be ‘thrilled’ to receive: boots, purses (designer, no doubt), pajamas and guns.

“It's a feeling of confidence, like having a shield,” Tony Orifici, a salesman at Dunedin's Florida Survivalist gun shop, told the St. Petersburg Times. “Grandpa wants a shotgun. Mom wants a revolver. ... We had a family come in and buy an AR-15, a shotgun and two handguns, one for each of them . . . .”

But unlike trendy toys and gadgets, there are no fashionable brands of armaments.
“It's like a candy store. You come in and decide what flavor you want,” one gun store manager told the Times. “You might like Fords. I might like Chevys.”

So, what flavor do you want? [ Read Full Post ]

CSU is one of a very few universities in the U.S. that permits concealed carry on campus—but that may soon change.

From the Denver Post:
Colorado State University may be closer to banning concealed weapons on campus after the school's board of governors this morning voted unanimously for a weapons policy. . . .

"We respect there are many differing opinions on this issue," said board chairman Patrick McConathy, "but members of the CSU System Board believe this a reasonable, rational and responsible decision for our system. . . ."

Debate on the issue highlighted schisms between faculty and students at CSU-Fort Collins as well as CSU-Pueblo.

"A concealed weapon empowers the powerless," said CSU-Fort Collins student body president Dan Gearheart. . . .

But CSU-Pueblo student body president Steven Titus saw differently, saying concealed weapons would disrupt learning. "If I see a girl sitting next to me with a gun in her purse . . . I'd get up and leave and maybe call security on her." [ Read Full Post ]

You read that right, off campus. In the latest no-tolerance outrage, a California school has expelled a 16-year-old hunter for having two unloaded shotguns in his vehicle parked off campus. If this keeps up, school administrators are just going to take to the field en mass, confiscate guns from any and all student hunters, and promptly kick them out of school.

From the Chico Enterprise Record:

The Willows Unified School District board of trustees has expelled a 16-year-old for having unloaded shotguns in his pickup parked just off the Willows High School campus.

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A note to all you Gun Nuts: The photo below (and three more, which you can see by clicking here) came into my inbox attached to the following caption:

"For those of you who load your own ammunition...
 
A guy came into our department the other day to ask a favor. He had a Smith & Wesson Model 629 that he wanted to dispose of after a mishap at the range. He said there was a loud bang when he tested his new load and the gun smacked him in the forehead, leaving a nice gash. When the tweety birds cleared, this is what he saw..."

Rather than comment on these photos myself, I decided they were serious enough that they deserved something intelligent said about them, so I sent them to my friend and ace pistolsmith John Blauvelt. Here's what he had to say.  --David Petzal

Begin forwarded message:
From: JC Blauvelt
Date: October 30, 2009 8:09:43 PM EST
To: Dave Petzal

Subject: BANG

Dave, Well you asked for it. I hope you find this useful. Thank you for the opportunity.

A graphic reminder of the art of home pressure testing. What I see... [ Read Full Post ]

It is for a growing number of hunters. Ironically, ever since Jim Zumbo infamously blogged that black guns have no place in hunting, their popularity among hunters has surged.

From the Twin Cities’ Pioneer Press:

"Last fall, we couldn't keep these rifles in stock," said [Joe’s Sporting Goods gunsmith Bob] Everson. . . ..

Whether Zumbo was treated fairly or not for his opinion is still debated, but what isn't disputed is the popularity of AR rifles. Big-name rifle makers like Remington and Ruger have jumped into the game of making AR rifles (named after the Armalite company that first developed them in the 1950s). . . .

Jim Rauscher, president of Joe's Sporting Goods, said bolt-action rifles are still the most popular style among his deer-hunting customers. But AR rifles appeal to certain segment of hunters. . . .

"There is the guy who still likes the four-door sedan," Rauscher said, "and there are the guys who like the large, jacked-up pickup trucks."

So how about you? Can you see yourself hunting deer with an AR? [ Read Full Post ]

In case you were living under a rock last year, in the landmark District of Columbia v. Heller case, the Supreme Court ruled that the 2nd Amendment protects an individual’s right to own a gun for private use, thus striking down the district’s handgun ban. But D.C. is a federal enclave. The question of whether the amendment protects a broad constitutional right and should therefore override state and local gun-control ordinances, such as Chicago’s handgun ban, is still up in the air—but not for long.

From the Los Angeles Times:
The Supreme Court set the stage for a historic ruling on gun rights and the 2nd Amendment by agreeing today to hear a challenge to Chicago's ban on handguns. . . .

A ruling on the issue, due by next summer, could open the door to legal challenges to various gun control measures in cities and states across the nation. . . .

Lawyers for the gun owners argued that "the right of the people to keep and bear arms" set out in the 2nd Amendment is "incorporated" into the 14th Amendment and thereby applies to states and localities.

Be sure to check out the full article, and then... [ Read Full Post ]

From The New York Times:

[Henry Repeating Arms’ newest print ad shows a man wearing] a holster with a gun on one side and a Bible on the other.

“There is nothing wrong with clinging to your guns and religion,” the headline reads, quoting Anthony Imperato, president at Henry, in a clear reference to a remark last year by Barack Obama before he was elected president. . . .

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