Sean (and his brother) did the right thing. They told the instructor that he was doing something unsafe, and when the instructor refused to stop, he left the class. First of all, big congratulations to him for doing the right thing. It’s had to stand up in a room full of people and say “Hey, you are doing something wrong!” and yet, that’s exactly what needs to happen.

If you hang around gun guys for a while, you will at some point see a strange ritual. Someone will take out a pistol, and check to see if it is unloaded. They will hand it to the next person, who will check to see if it is unloaded, and so on down the line. No one takes it for granted that the ammo fairies haven’t snuck a round in while no one was watching. Why? Because we are building habits.

When I became an pistol instructor, we went through elaborate practice to make sure that when we handled firearms, we didn’t muzzle anyone. It’s not that easy. It requires attention to what you are doing. You have to think about where your safe zones were, and soft of pre-plan your movements in advance. Oh, and by the way, these were blue guns. Inert pieces of plastic. Why did we worry about inert pieces of plastic? Because we were forming habits, and we were learning how to teach. And because safety is that important.

As a teacher, you communicate to your students not just by your content, but by your attitude, your body language, and your entire demeanor. So, what did the students from that class learn? They learned that we have “rules” that don’t mean anything. They learned that if you see a safety violation you shouldn’t say anything, because the instructor will ignore it at best and make fun of you at worst.

I will close with a personal admission. I’ve muzzled someone before. In fact, I did it in front of Sean. We were putting sight black on our sights, and I pointed my (unloaded) gun in the wrong direction. A quick, stupid error from training too long on ranges where no one was downrange. I had built bad habits. The person involved just said “Hey man!” and looked at me. I was embarrassed, said “Oh my God, sorry!” I holstered my gun, felt my face burn, and made sure I didn’t make that mistake again. If he had asked me to leave, I would not have complained. I was wrong.

If you make a mistake, admit it, and learn from it. If you see a safety problem, speak up. And if you are at the range, or a class, or a match and someone is being unsafe, be strong enough to leave.

Two key takeaways from this incident.  First, when the forces of darkeness try to tell you that you don’t need to have a firearm for self defense, or that no one needs standard capacity magazines, be sure to reference the “crazy terrorist bomber running through the countryside” exception.

Second…the news media has degenerated to the point that it is no longer a benefit to the Republic.  Their reporting throughout this entire incident has been positively terrible.  The latest gem from ABC news:

A senior Justice Department official told ABC News that federal law enforcement officials are invoking the public safety exception to the Miranda rights, so that Tsarnaev will be questioned immediately without having Miranda rights issued to him.

First, folks, rights are not “issued.” Rights are what we have as citizens of the United States. That same news outlet, ABC news, is also reporting that Tsarnaev is a naturalized citizen. So therefore, Tsarnaev is entitled to the same rights as any other US citizen.

Second…”Mirandizing” a citizen doesn’t do anything other then inform the suspect what his right ALREADY ARE under the law. Whether or not Tsarnaev is informed of the fact, he has the absolute right to shut his mouth and say absolutely nothing. The “public safety” exception doesn’t compel Tsarnaev to do anything at all. The only thing that the “public safety” exception allows officers to do is ask him questions of a public safety nature (“Where are the bombs?”) without reading his rights, waiting for an attorney, etc. Should the police learn anything of an incriminating nature (“We made two more and they are over there.”), the State can then use that information at trial. Inasmuch as the suspect is at last report unconscious and unresponsive, I can’t see how this is relevant at this point.

If there is one thing I have learned in the post 9/11 world…when someone tells you that you have an emergency and that we have to suspend Constitutional protections right now…that is the precise time that we need to put on the brakes. That, and most of my fellow citizens don’t know much about the constitution or their rights.

• Gun control goes down in the Senate.  Kay Hagan sells out NC gun owners.  Guess now we know what she thinks “reasonable restrictions” are.  We won’t forget, Kay.  I hope one of the things you got to talk about on that boat was your retirement options.
• Barry throws a temper tantrum.  Politico runs articles on what a drag it is to be president when you can’t dictate.  Boo hoo.
• Bomb goes off in Boston.  Media beclowns themselves with their “reporting.”  Same stuff, different day.
• It amazes me how quickly people are wiling to give up their rights.  On Tuesday, I heard an earnest conversation on the news about whether or not we would have to mirandize a “terrorist.”  News flash: terrorists on domestic soil are criminals, and we treat them as such.
• This morning, I read that the police have killed one suspect and are chasing another.  They are searching door to door in Watertown.  As a test, I asked the kid: “Honey, what would you do if the police came and wanted to search the house?”  Without missing a beat she said: “I’d ask if they had a warrant.”  That’s my good girl!

I’ve known Sean Sorrentino from NC Gun Blog for a few years now. This most recent report from behind enemy lines does not surprise me.
Sean has consistently been on the front lines here in NC. He does the unglamorous, boring, and absolutely necessary work. His simply showing up, on a week night, to provide a counterweight to the MAIG vigil, a point of view that otherwise would not have gotten out. On GRNC rally day, Sean spent most of the morning teaching other people how to lobby. He presents a thoughtful, intelligent, reasonable perspective on gun rights.

Kudos, brother. I’m glad you are on our side.

An AP article examining some of the history of Nazi gun control. The article itself is fairly balanced, but there are some wacky quotes. Like this:

Paulsson said it is possible that if Polish Jews had limited their resistance, Nazi troops might not have destroyed the ghetto, allowing more to survive in hiding or escape. When armed Jews shot at mobs or troops at other times in 1930s and 1940s Poland, it incited more vicious counter-attacks, he said.

Right…because we saw how well non-resistance worked in the rest of Europe.

Folks, the fight in Colorado is the fight for all the marbles.  If we are successful in turning back the ban there, then I believe that the worst is over.  Bloomberg, who is evil as Satan, but no dummy, chose Colorado for his offensive very carefully.  In many ways, it was the ideal state for a ban: a largely blue state where a highly publicized act of mass murder took place.  If they can pass a ban in a state that is historically fairly gun friendly, then it sends a message to the rest of the country: gun control is no longer the political third rail that everyone assumes.  If we can stop them, then they will have taken their best shot and it will have failed.  The whole issue goes away, again.

Our friends in Colorado have done a great job stalling the bill and sending the message that passing a ban is not without consequence.  Magpul, as everyone knows by now, has said that they will leave Colorado if the ban passes.  Micheal has said that he will stop producing his shows in Colorado if the ban passes.

If you are not in Colorado, there is still something that you can do.  Hunting is a $1.5 billion business in Colorado.  Make sure that legislators in Colorado know if they pass this bill, you will take your hunting dollars elsewhere.

Senate Judiciary Committee:

Senator Lucia Guzman (Chair)
303-866-4862
Lucia.guzman.senate@state.co.us

Senator Jessie Ulibarri (Vice Chair)
303-866-4857
Jessie.ulibarri.senate@state.co.us

Senator Irene Aguilar
303-866-4852
irene.aguilar.senate@state.co.us

Senator Steve King
303-866-3077
Steve.king.senate@state.co.us

Senator Kevin Lundberg
303-866-4853
Kevin@kevinlundberg.com

Senate State, Veterans, and Military Affairs Committee:

Senator Angela Giron (Chair)
303-866-4878
Angela.giron.senate@state.co.us

Senator Matt Jones (Vice-Chair)
303-866-5291
senatormattjones@gmail.com

Senator Ted Harvey
303-866-4881
ted.harvey.senate@state.co.us

Senator Evie Hudak
303-866-4840
senatorhudak@gmail.com

Senator Larry Crowder
303-866-4875
larry.crowder.senate@state.co.us

Friday, I took a few hours off from work and took a tour of the local gun shops.  The cases were pretty bare, but there were guns to be found.  In my favorite shop, I found and bought a Ruger SR22.  Great little pistol; I had hoped that it would fit the kid’s hands well, and it does perfectly.  And the model that I got came with a threaded barrel for a suppressor, which is on my buy list soon.

I’ve known the guys in the shop for years, and we had a long talk about the current state of the industry.  Here’s what they told me:

• They are getting the same amounts of guns and ammo that they always have; it just goes out the door just as quick.
• The majority of the demand is new people.  They are getting a ton of new gun owners and people who have owned guns before, but not in a long while.
• This rush is much, much bigger than 2008.  Their suppliers are saying 18 months to two years to refill the pipeline.
• They had several ARs, and a bunch of lowers in stock.
• Pistols were not to be found.  No M&Ps, no Glocks, although oddly enough, every shop I went into had a Glock 29.  Guess sub compact 10mm isn’t selling too well.  Gander Mountain had a bunch of XDs.  You could find Taurus and a few Kahrs

So that’s the situation, at least in the Charlotte area.

Law enforcement agencies have begun adopting a new policy on so-called “active shooters,” encouraging civilians to take safety into their own hands and take down gunmen who threaten them at work or school.

So we have finally realized that the tactics have to change. Great! Now isn’t the next logical step ensuring that the people have the tools to do what you have asked them to do?