Tangentially Related: The announcement this week that Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer served as an early reminder of the weighty judicial choices ahead for President Obama, who must fill urgent vacancies on appeals courts and federal trial courts as well as potential seats on the nation's highest court... Ginsburg's plan to return so quickly signals that she is recovering well from the surgery and that she probably avoided a more extensive type of operation that is sometimes needed for pancreatic tumors, said Sarah Thayer, a surgeon at Massachusetts General Hospital... Word of the justice's illness, however, resurrected discussions from the campaign about who Obama should appoint should there be a vacancy at the Supreme Court. Ginsburg could decide to step aside eventually of her own accord or remain on the bench while fighting her illness, as did the late Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist. It is also possible that another justice could announce a departure after the court completes its work in June... (The urgency to fill vacancies in federal trial and appellate courts did not seem as great when the Senate was asked to confirm Bush appointees, many of whom were left dangling indefinitely.) http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/06/AR2009020603726.html --- Big Brother May Relieve Kansas of Anti-RKBA Governor: Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius was very near the top of President Barack Obama's list of candidates to head the Health and Human Services Department, a senior administration official said Saturday. The source, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss private administration deliberations, said no decision was imminent and that other candidates remain in the mix. But the official added the former Kansas insurance commissioner was rising as Obama considers prospective candidates, in no small part on the strength of her close relationship with the president... (Kansans got lawful concealed carry only after their legislators overrode Sebelius's veto of their second attempt to pass enabling legislation.) http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/07/AR2009020701510.html?hpid=sec-health http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2009/02/08/20090208ObamaHHS0208.html --- Rumor Control from the NRA: Lately, the rumor mills have been running at full capacity. Among other things, we've heard phony tales circulating about such things as guns being banned for the elderly, ammunition with expiration dates, and a prohibition on gun and ammunition imports. This sort of scuttlebutt is nothing new, but let's try to shed some light on these dark assertions. "Guns to be Banned for Elderly" was the cry. The "report" assured readers that Deputy Attorney General Designate David Ogden has circulated a draft of an executive order in which "firearms possession would be severely limited to people over 60." This report is bogus and, in fact, it was labeled as "satire" on the website where it first appeared. There was an isolated case last year in which an 81-year-old Delaware woman was initially delayed in receiving approval to purchase a firearm based on her age and gender. The delay on the approval was eventually lifted--10 days after the initial application and after significant pressure was brought to bear by NRA... Additional rumors have recently been circulating about stopping gun and/or ammunition imports. And once again, NRA and representatives of firearm importers know of no real measures proposing this, yet. It is important to note that the President does have broad power with respect to imports; we've obviously seen that power expressed in the 1989 and 1998 import bans on various semi-auto rifles, and the 1993 "assault pistol" import ban. But President Obama has yet to propose any new import ban (though that would certainly not be out of the question)... http://www.nraila.org/Legislation/Federal/Read.aspx?id=4404 --- Off-Duty Officers Resemble Private Citizens: ...As a matter of discussion, let's look at the downside of off-duty police intervention. Many times on-duty officers may be responding to the call and don't know you are an off-duty officer. If they see you with a firearm, they might think you are the perpetrator. Officers in larger departments or neighboring police agencies don't always know everyone on the department or those on other departments. You may look like a crook if you are working in an undercover capacity. A main problem is you don't have all the resources that you have as an on-duty officer. You may not have your handcuffs, you don't have a police radio, you don't have any backup and you don't have a red light and siren. The worse part is not everyone knows you are an officer because you are not wearing a uniform. Another consideration is for your family if they are with you. They need to be schooled about potential hazards of any off-duty involvement... (Much of the tactics some of us teach in CCW courses comes from the experience of departments that have learned from off-duty incident.) http://www.waytogo.net/newsletter-2-2009.htm#article-1 --- NRA-ILA Alerts: List members are encouraged to check this week's alerts on the NRA-ILA website. http://www.nraila.org/GrassrootsAlerts/read.aspx --- From John Farnam: 2 Feb 09 Political Considerations...: In 2009, we're conducting a record number of Urban Rifle Courses, spread out across the Country. Students typically bring AR-15s, RA/XCRs, DSA/FALs, Kahr M1 Carbines, SA/M1As, Ruger/Mini-14s, and various other military rifles. In most states, these rifles are no more regulated than are commercial/recreational ones, and, though currently in short supply, are generally available to any citizen who is otherwise legally entitled to own firearms. But, not in all states! In CA, for example, military rifles are heaped into a "special" category, and are so highly regulated that one can say they are unavailable to most citizens. In the current frenzy, on the part of many formally-unarmed Americans, to become armed, those unfortunate enough to live in CA thus have severely limited opportunities. Enter the shotgun! In places where military rifles are highly regulated, shotguns are nearly unregulated, and, unlike, military rifles, generally available wherever guns are sold! While most shotguns (even those used for military purposes) are little more than permutations of fowling pieces and don't meet military standards for drop-safety and hardiness, in both twelve and twenty gauge, they still represent a powerful, intimidating, and eminently effective weapon for domestic self-defense. I have one next to my bed, and I sleep better for it! I thus encourage students who are, for political reasons, unable to legally acquire military rifles to look at shotguns for defense of their home and vehicle. I recommend the Remington 870, the Mossberg 590/500, and the Benelli Supernova pump-action shotguns, and the Remington 11-87, The Benelli M2 and M4 (1014), and the Benelli Exrema II autoloaders... /John (Some of my own thoughts on shotguns versus rifles are posted at http://www.spw-duf.info/longgun.html. California does, in fact, ban a few specific models of shotguns, along with any semiautomatic shotgun with a folding or telescoping stock, a pistol grip, thumbhole stock or vertical handgrip, or a detachable magazine, as well as any shotgun with a revolving cylinder. [http://ag.ca.gov/firearms/forms/pdf/awguide.pdf] While some American military rifles of the WWII era, such as the M1 Rifle and M1 Carbine, are semiautomatic, a great many later ones, American and foreign, are capable of fully automatic fire. Thus it would be wiser to refer to the later semiautomatic versions as "military-style" or "military look-alike" rifles.) 5 Feb 09 Good Show on the part of my students in South Africa, from a friend and student there: "Tuesday afternoon, a gang of eight armed-robbery suspects, fleeing police in a pick-up truck (called a "bakkie" in SA), were all shot to death by police officers from several agencies near Durban. This armed gang had just robbed a local grocery store in Durban, and then fled. When police gave chase, gang members, using both pistols and rifles, fired at pursuing police vehicles. Courageous police continued the chase, but did not return fire while they were in motion. A non-involved motorist was struck in the shoulder by the gang's gunfire, and a pedestrian was also slightly injured in his hand, probably from a ricochet. The driver of the suspect vehicle finally lost control and ran off the road, stalling in a ditch. Five of the suspects immediately jumped off the back of the vehicle and tried to escape on foot, while still firing at police. They didn't get far! All five were speedily gunned down. The other three suspects, still inside the truck, also turned their guns on police, and died shortly thereafter! Using their own vehicles for cover, police employed their iron-sighted R5s (SA's copy of the Galil, in 223) with deadly effect. One officer suffered a minor injury to his hand from glass shards. No other police were injured. Two bystanders were injured, one seriously, as noted above. All eight suspects were DRT! This gang is suspected of being involved in a number of recent robberies in our area. Their collective careers abruptly ended Tuesday. Victory!" Lessons: Nothing magic nor revolutionary here: (1) Police need rifles in their vehicles! Shotguns may have also done the job, but military rifles have the capacity and range to see the fight through to the finish. When confronting armed and desperate men, don't screw around. Use your rifle! (2) Don't panic! Use your sights. Aim your shots. Take it easy on your trigger. All that power represents scant benefit to you, when the only thing your bullets are doing is digging up dirt! (3) Stay in the fight. Any suspect, wounded or not, who still represents a threat, obviously hasn't been shot enough! (4) Use cover! Present your opponents with the most difficult target possible. Provide them with no advantages, no opportunities. (5) Stay in motion. Keep them guessing! Make sure they never know exactly where you are, until it's too late! (6) Have a plan. Spin your OODA faster than your opponents. Think ahead. Identify approaching opportunities. Act decisively at the critical moment, with cunning, ruthlessness, speed, power, and precision! I hope what little contribution I made to these officers' training was helpful to them. Good show, Guys! /John (While a 12-gauge slug will often penetrate auto bodies, as the distance increases, rifles are often a better choice than shotguns. While military-style rifles have advantages, with appropriate tactics, such as wise use of cover, a lever-action or even a bolt-action rifle works just fine - they are just a bit faster to require a reload and a bit slower to reload. The lever gun can usually be topped off without disabling the action. The OODA loop, for those unfamiliar with the term, is a dictum originally developed for fighter pilots - Observe, Orient, Decide, Act. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OODA_Loop]) -- Stephen P. Wenger, KE7QBY Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info .