No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.394 / Virus Database: 268.10.5/403 - Release Date: 7/28/2006 Better Late Than Never: I finally received a link to the article about the Queens (NYC borough) DA retracting his erroneous statement about the FN Five-seveN pistol being involved in the deaths of 425 officers since 1994. Note that my imperfect recollection has been fine-tuned - the gun became available commercially in the US in 2004. http://www.timesledger.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=16970649&BRD=2676&PAG=461&dept_id=573700&rfi=6 --- Jihadi Shootings - Israel And Thailand Compared To Seattle: In the first paragraph, David Kopel contrasts the arming of guardian adults in the former nations with the mass-shooting incident at the Jewish Foundation of Greater Seattle. http://www.volokh.com/archives/archive_2006_07_23-2006_07_29.shtml#1154195719 Details Of The Incident: (I have highlighted this incident because I feel that it emphasizes the folly of relying on "professionals" for one's security, particularly when one is at increased risk.) http://www.washtimes.com/national/20060730-120040-6148r.htm --- Terror-Watch-List Story: A Colorado attorney has filed a federal lawsuit because he has been stopped and detained in three states due to his name being placed on a terrorist watch list. This man actually fled the US in 1973 after a warrant was issued for him for sending letter bombs. He has, however, been cleared of all charges in court. (Many prohibitionists have called for blocking legal sales of firearms to anyone whose name appears on such lists.) http://www.denverpost.com/nationworld/ci_4104440 --- Marine Sniper: 20 Confirmed Kills: Article provides an interesting look at 21-year-old Galen Wilson, currently serving in Iraq. "Guns have long been part of Wilson's life. His father was a sniper in the Navy SEALS. He remembers first firing a sniper rifle at age 6." http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/0730marksman0730.html --- From John Farnam: 24 July 06 On Wet Glocks, from a friend who is an engineer: "All polymers absorb moisture and expand as a result, to one degree or another. In fact, plastic pellets used in molding, must go through a dryer to remove moisture before being melted, lest they explode like popcorn. I'll bet rain-induced expansion, combined with suction, made those South-African Glock magazines stick in the magazine well to a greater degree than expected." /John (I received some requests for further information or photos, in response to last Sunday's mailing, concerning the "scallop" left in place when I had Robar do the grip reduction on my own 9mm Glock. Two days later, the pistol was back in my hands, allowing me to be more specific. The Glock pistol came with these scallops at the bottom of the front and rear surfaces of the magazine well; the one at the rear is within the cavity enclosed by the original back strap and would be blocked by insertion of the aftermarket plug that some people find necessary to stick into that cavity [http://dillonprecision.com/template/p.cfm?maj=55&min=2&dyn=1&]. Robar's $150 "back strap modification" offers the option of extending the modified back strap downward, flush with the magazine base plate, a cosmetic feature that denies a second gripping surface on a magazine that may not drop readily from the magazine well. I have a significant collection of S&W revolvers in one of my safes; none are engraved, inlaid nor otherwise adorned with non-functional features. I doubt that even the Glock-lovers on the list consider Gaston's pistols so beautiful as to merit compromising a functional feature, such as that scallop, with a cosmetic one that compromises function.) 25 July 06 Belgium going the same way as SA and the UK, from a friend and student who lives there: "Five weeks ago, a murder was committed in Belgium. The perpetrator used a rifle whose sale did not require a permit. As a consequence, the gun bill that has been pending here for the last ten years was voted into law in three days! The atmosphere in the Parliament was tense, and there was huge pressure from the Minister of Justice to vote for this bill. Among our weenie politicians (like yours), nobody dared vote against it. >From now on: All guns owned by citizens require a permit, issued by the central government at their whim. Permits can be arbitrarily denied and, for all practical purposes, there is no recourse. 'Legitimate motive' now must be listed, which includes hunting and competition, but self-protection is specifically excluded. Anyone who even mentions that subject will be automatically denied. Old permits are no longer valid. All must be turned in, and new ones applied for, requiring the payment of new fees. The process must be repeated every five years, including a rejustification of the motives for owning firearms. Permit holders must take an 'examination' by an 'approved' doctor, who must certify that the person is mentally competent to own firearms. This cannot be done by any doctor, but only one from a list of gun-haters imposed by the Minister of Justice. No right of inheritance. Even legally-owned firearms must be turned into the government upon the death of the owner. We are appealing, but you know how that goes!" Comment: Legislation like this is always rammed through with an emotional catalyst. So long a logic and common sense can be suspended, politicians can deceive a naive public into believing that the denial of the capacity for independent action, by some magic conjuration, protects them from criminals. You can be sure, politicians, their families, friends, and big contributors have been specifically exempted. While they seize guns from hapless peons, they heavily arm themselves! Hypocrisy? /John 26 July 06 Another dreary, media leftist published an article in today's Wall Street Journal, entitled, "How New, Deadly Pocket knives Became a $1 Billion Business." The article sensationalizes this non-issue by stating, "These knives are faster than a switchblade, yet still legal!" It also makes vague reference to a mysterious "FBI bulletin" that cites an "emerging threat" (we apparently don't get to know to whom) posed by knives. The author continues, "... laws across the US are a mishmash because (legislators) really don't know anything about knives". Now, that part is actually true! Legislators know precious little about anything, nor do they make an effort to educate themselves, but that never dissuades them from doing their best to regulate us, and everything we own and use, to death. Happily, in most parts of the Country, knives are essentially unregulated. Even laws prohibiting this or that kind or size of knife are largely unenforced, and, with a little imagination, one can pretty much get and carry any kind of knife he wants, laws and regulations on the subject notwithstanding. But, of course, the paranoid media, as always looking desperately for something of which they can be frightened, suddenly sees knives as a "new" menace, knives that have been around since long before most of them were born! Not content to merely advocate the elimination of the private ownership of guns, the media, evidently considering that battle mostly won, has now turned their fickle attention to blades. And, as with anti-gun hysteria, they offer no facts, no legitimately persuasive contestation, just shallow, emotional trumpery, hoping to frighten their readership into suspending common sense. They are a disgrace to their profession and deserve to be shunned. /John (Most list members will recall a link to a reprint of the WSJ article, which I shared several days ago. I have two comments on John's observations: 1. Many cities in California have municipal restrictions on the length of blades of knives that would otherwise be legal to carry openly. Such ordinances are enforced, selectively! They are used when officers or deputies have no other charges they can file against someone whom they consider an undesirable. 2. It's ironic that the WSJ has lent its pages for this tripe when it is a major voice against stricter standards for immigration. One aspect of illegal immigration, which will likely be carried over into looser standards for "guest workers," is the disproportionate number of violent crimes committed by some of these immigrants. Even more ironic is that a great many of these criminals are culturally predisposed to use knives of various sizes, up to and including machetes, in the commission of those crimes.) -- Stephen P. Wenger Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info .