After the success of last week, I thought it would be a hard act to follow. But boy was I pleasantly surprised to see yet again a plethora of premium posts. And now we begin:
We begin this week with a repeat of our early entry. Kevin of The Smallest Minority does an excellent job connecting the dots as CNN breaks gun laws. I guess illegally purchasing the same weapons the liberals want banned is OK when it's in the name of First Amendment journalism. Damn hypocrites.
Of course, if Denise from The Ten Ring had her way, then CNN would have been able to buy their guns without breaking the law. While I like the idea of rolling back gun laws, a dark part of my insides fears the day when journalists can buy guns unchecked... But seriously, she raises good points. Most importantly, she does a good job of prioritizing the gun laws which need to be changed right away, and those we can live with (for now).
But do we just need better laws? Or do we need to change the culture of gun ownership? What does it mean to own a firearm? Why do we do it?
Mastiff, of the cleverly-named Critical Mastiff, asks us:
Looking out at the political landscape today, one wonders: what will the most important policy struggle be for the next decade or so?
To answer the question, he first examines his own evolution into a firearms enthusiast and Second Amendment supporter, and how it relates to the American psyche. Read the whole essay here.
Chris of The Anarchangel makes no bones about the fact that he carries a gun. In this post, he explains why he carries a gun.
I just wanted to point out a few things about this essay that really grabbed my attention:
First, he talks about the experience of debating self-defense with his (now ex-) girlfriend. I hear the same "logic" she expresses from people (mostly women) all the time. Somehow, it is "ok" when a policeman shoots a bad guy, but it is unacceptable when an honest, law-abiding citizen in the exact same situation shoots the exact same criminal. In either case, the victim is saved and the criminal is thwarted. The outcome is identical. Why do some people in our society fail to see this?
Second, he makes an excellent point comparing those who would refuse to fight in a war, but would willingly stand back and let others join the military and fight for our freedom to those who would never defend themselves with force but are happy to let the police do it for them. It makes me think.
But mostly, I like this quote:
I carry a gun not because I expect trouble, but because I can. If I was expecting trouble I'd carry a 12ga.
Way to say it, Chris!
And speaking of a 12 ga. and a handgun:
"I would have used a shotgun, but I had just had new countertops done and I didn't want to tear up the kitchen." She opted for a .357 revolver to shoot an intruder who was caught by the cops laying in a yard a few blocks away complaining about abdominal pain.
No, that's not just an argument in favor of owning multiple firearms for different occasions (although it is a great argument). It's an example of a defensive mindset. Publicola writes this week about the capture of a notorious and dangerous criminal in Denver, and the difference between letting the police come to your rescue and taking responsibility for your own self-defense. It's a great essay, filled with useful links to other great sources, like Jeff Cooper's color codes.
Speaking of a .357, time to transition from philosophy to guns, gadgets, and stuff. Are you handy with hand tools? Do you wish you had the perfect bore-light for your .357? Look no further:
Wadcutter has the details. And plenty of great "how-to" photos. I'll leave the "how-to" to him and fast-forward to the product in use:
There's one gadget we all need... and with this blue-print down, it shouldn't be too hard to modify the plans to make lights in other chamberings, like .44 Magnum or .30-'06.
From gadgets to stuff:
This is a product that apparently has been around for some time, but somehow managed to escape my notice. I want to thank Mark and Ogre for bringing Microlon Gun Juice to my attention! And they tell me Microlon is great when it comes to customer service. Apparently, Microlon donated a whole case of this product to Ogre. I like companies that like their customers.
And now to guns! It wouldn't be a carnival without a post about the guns themselves. Cowboy Blob comes through with his discussion of what he calls "Chinese junk." But he isn't critical; indeed, he sounds like he really loves his little Norinco clone of the Tokarev. He even has a nice color photo of his "museum piece."
Now we finish on a serious note: it looks like a major blow to individual rights in Israel. Gunner of No Quarters has the scoop. I hope he doesn't mind if I paste the whole story here:
Evacuation is not the right word.
Without getting into the whole Israel-Palestine debate I find this article rather enlightening. The Israeli government has decided to give up the Gaza strip for peace. The fact that they gave up the Sinai two times for peace and never got it worries me, but they have the right to fall down again.
It seems some "settlers" may resist, so what does the government do? Guess?
Public Security Minister Gideon Ezra said Tuesday that police will confiscate arms of people whom the General Security Service determines are "dangerous." Most residents of Judea, Samaria and Gaza (Yesha) have either private handguns or rifles from the army for guard duty in their communities and for reserve duty.
I like the label of "dangerous." Not because they are a danger to the people around them, but because those weapons in private hands are a danger to the governments plan to force you out of their home for some far off political reason.
The Israeli government has come to the realization that their people may not want to be forced around. What better way to deal with them then to label the people that are a problem with the title of dangerous. I feel everyone should be dangerous to government abuse and bully tactics. But that's just my belief. The gun-grabbers here in the US have slowly been labeling you and I. How many times have you heard the term "gun-nut"? Sometimes in life titles can move the populous to believe something that is not true. Labeling people as wing-nuts and moonbats seem to be a subtle way to demean people.
Ezra said police will take the weapons from certain residents before implementation of the evacuation.
For me evacuation means that you make the choice whether to stay or leave. When forced you are being herded like mindless animals. Cattle do not have weapons.
So the Israeli government has taken the first step to taking the rights of their own people away. But remember, it is always for your own good. Doesn't that make you feel safer?
Folks, I never thought this kind of madness would come to Israel. Let's hope this is not the beginning of a new trend towards liberal disarmament in a land where "militia" takes on a whole new meaning.
That wraps up this week's Carnival of Cordite. Thank you all for participating. And if you are new to Resistance is futile! be sure to check out the rest of my page.
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I dig the quotation regarding a 12 gauge. Personal experience has taught me that it is the tool of choice when dealing with rogue milk jugs. http://doktor-x.spymac.net/26May2004/26May2004-Pages/Image5.html
Posted by: doktor x | Saturday, 26 February 2005 at 08:10 PM
Great post. And I love your site. As I keep having to explain to people, our founding fathers did not give us the right to keep and bear arms. They required that each man of voting age own a shoulder arm, side arm, equipment and ammunition requisite with serving as a soldier of the line. Further more, that said individuals be organized and participate in militia drill at regular intervals. Not because you feel like it, not because you want to. Because it is our duty as voting citizens. Since the majority of people are lazy slugs, who do not wish to be responsible for their own actions, much less defense, we find ourselves in the current position of a tiny minority screeching about how no one should be allowed to defend themselves or even possess firearms. Thus endeth the sermon. Later on, Bro.
Posted by: 2Hotel9 | Sunday, 27 February 2005 at 03:25 PM