 |
Several of the simple home-built derringers seized by police. |
 |
A LAKE Macquarie man who was making handguns that fell into the hands of Newcastle drug dealers was jailed on Monday for four years and six months. |
List of guns proposed to be banned in 2013
|
Well, the genius Diane Feinstein has made public the list of guns that she thinks should be banned. As expected, all types of AR and AK rifles are on the list, but there are also some guns that surprised me. For instance, the Armalite M15 .22LR. Really? A .22LR rifle on the banned list? This just proves that the people proposing this new legislation truly have no idea what they are talking about. |
A few examples from an article posted here briefly providing an overview of several criminally manufactured and modified firearms seized in Ukraine. |
Chechen “dogs” – a simple but effective weapon. Made, as far as I know, at the cannery. Judging by the serial numbers several thousand have been manufactured. The barrel is of poor quality, it is often jammed with a bullet, thus can be unscrewed and replaced. In Ukraine, such submachine guns are seized most in the Odessa, Donetsk and Chernivtsi regions, where Chechen criminal gangs are active.” |
A creative rethinking of a Mosin Nagant rifle. Homemade wire butt, pistol grip and front sight. The classic criminal weapon for concealed carry – with shortened barrel.” |
“A poorly thought-out design of a sub-machine gun. It literally falls into pieces when handled (used?). The designer was clearly limited to the materials at hand, and would not know the technology. Shop too much: It needs a very strong spring, but then the last cartridge is guaranteed to jam.” |
“A rough imitation of a Makarov pistol. Visually the copy looks very good: in the dark or from a distance it could easily be mistaken for the original.” |
Washington DC shooting: Aaron Alexis named as navy yard gunman – as it happened
• 13 deaths after Washington naval yard shootings
• DC police confirm one gunman dead at scene • Of two further suspects, one is ruled out • Officials say incident is fluid and ongoing  |
| 13 people, including a gunman, are dead after a shooting at the US navy yard in Washington DC. The city's mayor, Vincent Gray, confirmed the death toll at a press conference on Monday afternoon. Gray said there is "no known motive at this stage". He said officials "do not have any reason at this stage to suspect terrorism".• The gunman has been identified as Aaron Alexis, a 34-year-old military contractor. The FBI appealed for people to come forward with details on Alexis, who had recently been living in Fort Worth, Texas. "No piece of information is too small. We are looking to learn everything we can about his movements and his associates," said assistant Valerie Parlave. • The FBI are still hunting a potential second suspect in the shooting, authorities said. Authorities said they were trying to locate a man seen at the navy yard this morning "to determine what if any involvement he may have had". The man is described as a black male wearing an olive military–style uniform. He is between 40 and 50-years-old, approximately 5'10" with grey sideburns, according to police. • Authorities are yet to identify any of those killed. A police officer was among those injured. He suffered injuries to "bones and blood vessels in his legs" and was in surgery on Monday afternoon, a spokeswoman from MedStar Washington Hospital Center said. The other two MedStar patients were female. One had been shot in her shoulder, the other in her head and hand. All were expected to survive. • Alexis was remembered as a "sweet" man by customers at a thai restaurant where he worked in Fort Worth. But police in Seattle and Texas said he had been arrested twice in recent years for gun violations. In Seattle in 2004 he shot out the tyres of a vehicle in an "anger-fuelled blackout" police said. He had also been arrested in Texas after shooting a gun through the ceiling of his apartment. • President Obama said the victims had faced "unimaginable violence" and offered his condolences to their families. "We will honour their service to the nation we helped to make great," Obama said. "Obviously we will investigate thoroughly what has happened, as we have so many of these shootings that has happened sadly." The president issued a proclamation which ordered for flags to be lowered to half-staff at all public buildings and military posts. |
| Sights for the Glock 19
Categories:
|
| Sights for the Glock 19: So, I just finally got around to shooting my new Glock 19 (gen 3) for the first time yesterday. I really like the gun a lot, and it shoots fantastically. But, after shooting about 2 magazines through it I clearly realized that I need to get some different sights for this Glock 19. The factory sights do work, however they are not adjustable and I’m just not crazy about the U shaped white outline on the rear sight. I know a lot of people will disagree with me on this, but hey, it’s a matter of personal preference. Anyway, I’ve been reading a lot of reviews for Glock 19 sights  , and I wanted to share some of the ones that I’m looking at as I narrow down my list on which sights I will actually buy. Cost is a factor for me, and I’m not looking to buy the BEST sights in the world. What I’m looking for is the best sights for the money. So without further introduction, here are the Glock 19 sights that have made it into my top five. Feel free to click on each and read the specs and reviews for yourself. Any thoughts or recommendations are greatly appreciated. Thanks |
How many teachers have to be slain before Americans take action?
Colleen Ritzer and Michael Landsberry were heroes. It's unbelievable that most of the public has already moved on
 |
Danvers high school teacher Colleen Ritzer is seen in this undated photo provided by her family. Photograph: AP
When I was 16, I was put on what police call a "School Hit List". A student, one year younger than me, ranked and ordered 10 of us in terms of killing priority. I don't remember much more about that traumatizing time except that I was number 7 on that list and one of my favorite teachers was target no 1.
It's hard to believe that event had little bearing on my choice to enter the educational profession, but 15 years later (and in my 8th year as a teacher), I occasionally look out into the masses of current and former students and wonder – could something like that ever happen again? And, better yet, could it happen to me? These thoughts and questions were dredged from the depths of my memory this week – two days, two teachers murdered. The first of these tragedies occurred on Monday. Mr Michael Landsberry's is a story of heroism, as he lived a life of being "in the line of duty". While on recess duty, eyewitnesses reported gun shots rang out from a 9mm handgun, injuring two students. Most fled for safety, but Landsberry, an 8th grade math teacher, casually approached the shooter to reason with him. Minutes later, he was tragically shot. After serving his country in the armed forces for most of his life, he was gunned down by a 12-year-old boy on an outdoor basketball court at Sparks Middle School, Nevada. Mr Landsberry is my hero; if something like that ever happened at the middle school I teach at – one not too different from his – I'd hope to have half the courage and composure he exhibited not just on that day, but for his profession, his students, and his ultimate sacrifice. On Wednesday, Massachusetts experienced a similar loss. Ms Colleen Ritzer was allegedly murdered by a 14-year-old student in her last class of the day. This young man stabbed her to death in the school's bathroom with a box knife, dragged her body out of the school in a recycling bin, and dumped her remains in a nearby forest. According to the local CBS affiliate, Ritzer asked the boy to stay after class to talk about how he was struggling with his math. Ms Ritzer's beaming smile seemed only to be overshadowed by her kindness towards students and her love of math. She was an avid Twitter user (@MsRitzerMath), and her tweets seem indicative of her fondness for her profession. One from 11 August is telling |
Stand against stand-your-ground laws
Many states empower ordinary citizens to act as vigilantes using lethal force. Do we really want to be a nation of Dirty Harrys
 |
'Make my day': stand-your-ground laws mesh with America's gun culture – with lethal consequences. Photograph: Rex Feature/Everett Collection
United States Senator Richard Durbin had intended to hold a Senate judiciary committee hearing on 17 September on "Stand Your Ground Laws: Civil Rights and Public Safety Implications of the Expanded Use of Deadly Force". Sadly, that hearing about gun violence was postponed … because of yet more gun violence.
The day before the hearing, another apparently disturbed person with a gun killed innocent Americans. This time, it occurred at the naval yard in Washington, DC, throwing the Senate office buildings into lockdown. Welcome to America in 2013, where the culture of violence has taken over – so much so that Senate hearings on gun violence cannot proceed unimpeded by another mass shooting and the resulting senseless deaths of ordinary citizens who merely got up and went to work in the country's capital city. Senator Durbin's delayed hearing was rescheduled and, barring any further incident, God forbid, will be held starting Tuesday. While stand-your-ground laws are not directly related to the naval yard shootings, they are yet another indicator of how over-the-top our gun culture has become. Not only does the US refuse to mandate universal background checks, but in some states, we empower vigilantes to shoot first. Yes, in stand-your-ground states, the Dirty Harry "make my day" mentality is not only acceptable, but is statute: ordinary citizens are encouraged to take the law into their own hands – with deadly consequences. It is time to break the culture of violence, and the seeming acceptance of it by our laws. Getting rid of stand-your-ground laws is a good place to start. Fortunately, my state, Connecticut, is not a stand-your-ground state. Connecticut adheres to the traditional common law "castle doctrine", which provides that an individual does not have a duty to retreat when in his or her home, or "castle", and may use reasonable force, including deadly force, to defend his or her property, person, or another. In certain circumstances, the law permits one to attack an intruder and use a firearm instead of first retreating. Forty-six states currently follow the castle doctrine. Despite its basis in the common law, there is a problem with the castle doctrine, in fact – where the law permits a person's "castle" to be converted into mini military fortress. In addition to reviewing stand-your-ground, Congress must also revisit a ban on military-style weapons and high-capacity magazines even inside one's "castle". Congress must also enact expanded universal background checks and a strong federal trafficking law. These measures are constitutional, would reduce gun violence and, at the same time, allow for self-defense consistent with the US supreme court's interpretation of the second amendment. Even though the castle doctrine allows for the use of reasonable force inside one's home, outside, an individual has a duty to retreat, if able to do so, before using force. Stand-your-ground laws remove the common law requirement to retreat when a person is outside the castle, allowing that person to use deadly force in self-defense when there is reasonable belief of a threat. Approximately 20 states have adopted some form of stand-your-ground. Under Florida law: [A person] has the right to stand his or her ground and meet force with force, including deadly force if he or she reasonably believes it is necessary to do so to prevent death or great bodily harm to himself or herself or another or to prevent the commission of a forcible felony.I am encouraged that, in the wake of the Trayvon Martin case, Florida will be revisiting stand-your-ground. I hope it will eventually revert to the traditional castle doctrine. The combination of expanding open-carry laws, the ease in many states of obtaining an open-carry permit, the proliferation of firearms of all shapes and sizes in our communities, the failure to require universal background checks, and more, all result in a greater risk of gun violence in our communities, where the victims may well be innocent bystanders. In essence, these laws are empowering ordinary citizens to fire their deadly weapons in public places – even though they do not have a fraction of the training that police officers must have in deciding when it is appropriate to shoot first, or how to engage someone with a gun, or even a threat of one.
We have created a society where ordinary citizens can feel and act like Dirty Harry, and get away with it. And we give them immunity even when they are wrong, and when retreating and calling for real trained police officers would be a viable option.
The upshot of stand-your-ground is that we are encouraging gun battles in our streets, in our stores and malls, and on our football and soccer fields. Emboldened citizens with no police training will continue to take matters into their own hands, resulting not only in the deaths of their intended targets or themselves, but also in the deaths or significant injuries of innocent bystanders, including children caught in crossfire.If we are going to really reverse the trend of gun violence, we have to start by changing the culture. So, let's celebrate champions of peace, love and hope – and eliminate laws that enable armed vigilantes like George Zimmerman. Here, in Sandy Hook, Connecticut, we choose love. Let's enact laws with that message in mind. |
