Oleg Volk Sues to Recover Website: In December 2002, I founded The High Road forum dedicated to the advancement of responsible gun ownership. Recently, it was discovered that in 2006, the volunteer forum systems administrator, Derek Zeanah of Statesboro, Georgia, changed domain registration to himself. After he was confronted, Derek locked out all other staff from accessing the Web server administration and would not share even backup copies of its content. After failed attempts to peacefully resolve the dispute, it has become necessary for me to initiate a lawsuit against Derek Zeanah for the return of thehighroad.org domain name and the forum database. I am seeking and would greatly appreciate donations to help with the cost of litigation... http://olegvolk.livejournal.com/474369.html Oleg Volk is an RKBA activist well known for his downloadable posters. http://www.a-human-right.com/ --- Conservative Judges Criticize Scalia's Heller Decision: ...The judges, J. Harvie Wilkinson of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Va., and Richard Posner of the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago, take Scalia to task for engaging in the same sort of judicial activism he regularly disdains...Wilkinson said elected officials are in a better position to determine gun laws than the courts. He compared the gun case to Roe v. Wade, the abortion rights decision that conservatives consider among the court's worst... (Are elected officials in a better position to determine if defendants need protection against self-incrimination and unreasonable search and seizure in state courts? Is the issue in Roe v. Wade not that the Supremes created a right which is not mentioned in the Constitution?) http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/27/AR2008092701220.html --- Missouri Governor Replies to Obama Boosters: Following legal threats by Missouri state law-enforcement officials supporting Barack Obama against presidential campaign ads that appeared to be false or misleading, Gov. Matt Blunt today likened the intimidation to "police state tactics." ...The effort appeared to be part of a move by the Obama campaign to block advertisements to which it objects. The campaign also sent "threatening" letters to several news agencies in Pennsylvania and Ohio demanding they stop airing ads exposing Obama's gun stance, according to the National Rifle Association... http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=76438 --- NRA Defends Ad Campaign: ...NRA stands behind the accuracy of these ads, and NRA attorneys have responded to the Obama campaign's despicable and abusive attempt to trample on the First Amendment by sending a thorough rebuttal to station managers. This rebuttal clearly and conclusively refutes the Obama campaign's fallacious claims that the ads are inaccurate...A copy of the NRA's letter to station, written by its counsel Cleta Mitchell, follows below.. http://www.newsmax.com/politics/Obama_Wants_NRA_Ads_Banne/2008/09/27/135118.html --- Spotlight Returns to Alleged NRA Mole: The day the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the D.C. gun ban, leading gun control advocates dialed into a nationwide conference call to coordinate how the movement should frame its reaction to the media. Listening in was Mary McFate, a longtime board member of a Pennsylvania gun safety group. Although McFate had been a familiar face in gun safety circles for more than a decade, the other activists on the line were unaware that she once had a career as a corporate spy infiltrating activist groups... (Article contains mostly old news. It's not clear why it was published at this time.) http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/27/AR2008092702662.html --- Jury Acquits Texas Homeowner: A Laredo man charged with murder after shooting and killing an unarmed teenager who broke into the man's mobile home with three other juveniles was acquitted late Friday.Eight men and four women found Jose Luis Gonzalez, 63, not guilty of murdering Francisco Anguiano, who was 13 last July when he and his friends illegally entered Gonzalez's mobile home to take what they said were just sodas and snacks. Gonzalez said he had the juveniles on the ground and was trying to keep them at bay with a shotgun when Anguiano made a sudden movement toward his feet. Gonzalez perceived the teen to be lunging for him, he testified, and fired the weapon into Anguiano's back, claiming he feared for his life... http://www.lmtonline.com/articles/2008/09/27/news/doc48de2587143d1330059454.txt --- From John Farnam: 23 Sept 08 Modifications to Springfield Armory's XD/M Pistol: I've been carrying my copy of the XD/M for several months now and have had the opportunity to shoot it many times during Courses, as have my students. Like my copy of the conventional SA/XD, it continues to run fine. I notice that, when the disassembly-lever on the XD/M is in the "up" position, the pistol will not fire. This is a new "safety" feature, as the conventional XD will fire under the same circumstances. I'm sure it is a reaction to unsophisticated owners, who, on at least a few occasions, sent their slides flying downrange, along with the bullet, while attempting to shoot with the lever "up!" Again, it is not a product-upgrade that is particularly important to me, but it does indicate that SA actively communicates with its customers, even dull ones! I asked my gunsmith to make two minor modifications to my XD/M: (1) I took the "hump" out of the trigger-guard. (2) I reduced the protrusion of the right-side portion of the ambidextrous magazine-release button. I don't like "square" trigger-guards. The "hump" has been rounded off on all my Glocks too! I don't like ambidextrous manual safety-levers (on 1911s), nor do I like ambidextrous magazine-release buttons. I know SA wants to appeal to left-handed customers, but critical controls on any pistol should not be facing to the outside as the pistol is carried. The problem manifests itself when you find yourself rolling around on the deck, only to discover that the magazine supposedly locked within your pistol has spontaneously released itself! My solution is simply to reduce the length of the magazine-release button on the right side of the pistol (for right-handers). It is still useable, but no longer sticks out far enough to cause concern. My gunsmith deftly performed both tasks in a single afternoon, and I was back on-line the same day. There is nothing else on the pistol that needs tweaking, in my opinion. The XD/M is on my "Recommended List." It is a seventeen-shooter (40S&W) that is eminently carryable and wonderfully reliable. It features variable grip-geometry too. I'm carrying my copy every day! The 9mm version is a twenty-shooter! /John (I am more impressed by John's argument against ambidextrous magazine releases than against ambidextrous safety levers. I feel strongly that my firearms should be operable in either hand [or off either shoulder]. A left-handed shooter can usually operate a magazine-release button with the trigger or middle finger, when it is on the left side of a pistol. Left-handed operation of a safety lever on the left side of a pistol is typically an entirely different matter.) 23 Sept 08 This current advice, from a friend in Houston, TX who sat out Hurricane "Ike": "I'm finally back on line! Our part of Houston was hard hit by strong winds and heavy rain. Lots of damage to buildings and infrastructure, including my house. We had no public services for nearly a week. Roads were blocked, and we had no access to food nor fuel, not to mention a thousand other items we daily take for granted. Our power has just been restored today! I'm now the 'expert' I never wanted to be! Here is what I learned about widespread disaster, mostly the hard way: Weapons. Stick with weapons that are simple, hardy, and run under all conditions. You'll need more than just one. When they break, you won't be able to get them fixed any time soon. You'll need high-capacity, military rifles, not just pistols! Remember, any position can be taken, providing the attacker is willing to pay the price. We have many street gangs here, and they were out, roaming. In an armed confrontation , you may die anyway, but make them work for it! Heavily armed, we confronted several groups of looters, at gunpoint, and quickly ran them off. They weren't particularly heroic! Ammunition. Starting hoarding it now! Have an adequate supply on hand. More than one neighbor frantically came to me and asked if I had any of this caliber or that! Battery-Operated Radios: The only contact we had with the outside world was via radio. We were isolated, but at least we had access to news and weather reports. Portable generators are wonderful, but they require lots of fuel, and power output is minimal. Trauma Kits: Learn how to treat traumatic injuries and have the appropriate equipment on hand. I had to suture my wife's foot with four stitches. I had no pain killer, but I still had to do it. We had no access to hospitals, nor ambulances, nor medical care of any kind. We had to treat our own injuries. Have plenty of IBDs, alcohol, medical scissors, wide-spectrum, oral antibiotics, decongestants, and bandaids. You're going to need it all! Food: Have a good supply of water, MREs, as well as canned goods, like corn, beans, rice. You'll need non-perishables aplenty. You're going to have to feed yourself and perhaps others. Who don't eat regularly, quickly become run down and despondent. Fuel and warm clothing: Though is was not an issue for us (this time), you need a way to keep warm. Hypothermia is extremely dangerous and insidious. Finally, and most important: Don't wait to be rescued, and don't expect help any time soon. Make appropriate preparations now, and, when disaster strikes, act immediately! Don't sit around expecting someone else to feed you, get you to a safe place, keep you warm, treat your injuries, nor protect you from evil-doers. Who do are naive and self-deceptive, and typically don't live through it! There is no "Book of Rules" that applies to situations like this. My neighbors and I are good and decent people, and we know right from wrong. We were not afraid to do what needed to be done to get us all through this. We are now in the middle of putting our lives and possessions back in order, as best we can. We're toughing it out, separating wants from needs, and going forward!" Comment: None of us can know what fate has in store for us. To be willfully unprepared and naive is the ultimate personal irresponsibility! Pandering politicians love to assure us, particularly in election years, that they plan on legislating all the uncertainties out of life. Never believe it. You're on your own! /John (Observant list members noted the appearance of my amateur-radio call sign in the signature block last December. While it took me a few years to get around to doing it, getting licensed was a decision I made on September 12, 2001. For those who would appreciate this backup mode of communication, all Morse code testing requirements for American licenses were eliminated in February 2007.) -- Stephen P. Wenger, KE7QBY Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info .