The Paradox and Absurdities of Carbon-Fretting and Rewilding

Herschel Smith · 28 Jan 2024 · 4 Comments

The Bureau of Land Management is planning a truly boneheaded move, angering some conservationists over the affects to herd populations and migration routes.  From Field & Stream. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) recently released a draft plan outlining potential solar energy development in the West. The proposal is an update of the BLM’s 2012 Western Solar Plan. It adds five new states—Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming—to a list of 11 western states already earmarked…… [read more]

Cal State University San Bernardino Cop Pulls Gun On Fellow Officer Over Disagreement Over Enforcing Mask Rules

BY Herschel Smith
3 years, 4 months ago

News from California.

San Bernardino police are investigating an incident involving a Cal State University San Bernardino law enforcement officer shown on surveillance video pulling his gun and pointing it at a fellow officer.

The officer who the gun was pointed at has now hired a local attorney to represent him.

“When he told me the story, and I later realized it was on video, I could not believe it,” said attorney Tristan Pelayes, who said the officer in question is a sergeant with the department.

The incident is alleged to have happened on campus on Sept. 15. The surveillance video shows four police officers standing around having a discussion when one of them pulls his sidearm and points it toward one of the other officers. The gun was pointed at the other officer for approximately one second.

“Everybody had just gotten to work, and the sergeant in question was telling my client that the officers needed to enforce the (COVID-19) mask requirement on campus,” said Pelayes.

“My client questioned the authority for that. For instance, if we were to arrest somebody or escort somebody off the campus, what is our legal authority for that? Apparently, that conversation led to the sergeant losing his temper, and ultimately pulling a gun on my client.”

The video, provided by Pelayes, did not have any audio attached to it. Pelayes said his client accessed the surveillance video himself and used his cellphone to record a copy of it.

Pelayes said his client filed an internal complaint against his sergeant, and filed a report with San Bernardino police.

A San Bernardino police spokesperson verified that a report was taken and is being investigated as a misdemeanor charge for brandishing a weapon.

Pelayes said it should not be investigated as a misdemeanor, but rather as a felony charge for assault with a deadly weapon.

“For brandishing, I could have, for instance, a gun in my waistband. And (if) I lift up my shirt just to show you I have a gun, I just brandished a gun. But if I pull that gun out and actively point it at you, now that turns into an assault.”

A spokesperson for Cal State University San Bernardino issued a statement that read: “We are aware of the incident and an internal investigation is ongoing. Thus, we have no further comment at this time.”

Pelayes said what he saw on video is the most outrageous and egregious act that an officer can commit on a fellow officer.

Yea, stupid line.  Change it to “the most outrageous and egregious act that an officer can commit on any innocent man, woman or child.”

What a swell bunch of people.  Just marvelous.  Heroes of the community.

ATF Games Over Revoking Use Of CHPs For Gun Sales

BY Herschel Smith
3 years, 4 months ago

Ammoland.

Gun Owners of America recently filed a lawsuit against the ATF, after the agency blocked Alabama firearms dealers from allowing buyers to use their concealed handgun permits in place of going through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).

Federal law says that state concealed handgun permits (CHP) that meet or exceed the requirement of section 922(t)(3) of Title 18 can be used by dealers instead of requiring background checks. Alabama’s concealed firearms permit statute meets the federal requirements because sheriffs are supposed to run applicants through NICS before issuing a permit.

The ATF discovered that some sheriffs in Alabama were not using NICS. Some of these sheriffs were running applicants through The National Crime Information Center (NCIC) and other federal databases, but not NICS. Yet NCIC is the same database that NICS pulls its information from before returning with a denial or approval. The ATF decided to revoke dealers’ ability to use CHPs because of a few sheriffs’ actions.

[ … ]

… as ATF records show, multiple ATF employees decided it was worth the litigation risk because of “public safety.

Oh it has nothing at all to do with “public safety” and they know it.  That’s a smoke screen.

But it does go to show just how much the ATF is feeling its oats.

My Client Gets Shot By Police Through His Closed Front Door!

BY Herschel Smith
3 years, 4 months ago

This has happened before in Greenville, S.C.  Now it has happened in West Virginia.

This officer is a sociopath.  He should be in prison.

The Sorry State Of The Academy

BY Herschel Smith
3 years, 4 months ago

News from California.

“The very idea that somehow, the Constitution legitimates rebellion against a democratically-elected government is absurd on its face,” he said. “Certainly, protest and demonstration are very much protected by the First Amendment, but there is no constitutional right to intimidate someone with a threat of violence.”

This is Michael Latner, professor of political science at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

He says this about the very amendment to the constitution intended for the amelioration of tyranny, by the very fathers of the country who rebelled with arms against the tyrant and his sycophants who controlled them.

Thus you know that the academy has failed, and miserably so.

Or maybe they haven’t, and ignorance is the state they seek.

Washington, D.C., Is As Much Of A Crap Hole As Any Other Major City

BY Herschel Smith
3 years, 4 months ago

Politics Tags:

Sportsman’s Guide Sucks: Muzzle-Loaders.com Does Not

BY Herschel Smith
3 years, 4 months ago

A brief user experience for those who care.

I had intended to go black powder deer hunting in my home state when season opens, and ordered a muzzle loader from Sportsman’s Guide.

It occurred to me that it hadn’t arrived after about three weeks of waiting, and I had not looked at shipping information.  I called and could never reach anyone live.

My wife called and finally reached someone who helped to track down the fact that the gun was in a warehouse awaiting shipment.

The lady talked to another “manager” who incorrectly thought that it was supposed to ship as powder and that it had to be sent to another warehouse.

When that fiasco got fixed, they decided that it could ship by a couple of weeks from the date of the call, but not before.  For whatever reason.

We cancelled the order and I contacted Muzzle-Loaders.com.  They were quick, their web site was effective, I talked to someone live, and they handled my order immediately.  The best part is that it arrived when they said it would.

If you need a muzzle loaders, I recommend them.  Not Sportsman’s Guide.  To Sportsman’s Guide you’re a number.  To Muzzle-Loaders.com, you’re a person.

The Natives Are Restless

BY Herschel Smith
3 years, 4 months ago

Because stealing stuff makes everything better.

Politics Tags:

Brownells: AR-15 Receiver Forging Marks

BY Herschel Smith
3 years, 4 months ago

Kimber Finally Turns Southward

BY Herschel Smith
3 years, 4 months ago

Many times I’ve asked to know why firearms manufacturers would continue to do business in states that hate their business, fleece them with taxes, and force them to deal with collective bargaining.  I’ve specifically mentioned Kimber, among other manufacturers.

It appears that Kimber finally figured it out.

Kimber Manufacturing, a company that makes a variety of firearms and ammunition, is transitioning its corporate headquarters from New York to its facility in Troy, Alabama.

The decision to change the location of the company’s headquarters was first announced last week, and much of the work has already been completed.

A release from the company notes that “leadership, R&D and manufacturing resources” are now in place at the 225,000 square-foot facility in Troy.

Kimber is now “adding staff across all departments” to complete the transition.

The gunmaker’s massive presence in the Wiregrass is still relatively new. Governor Kay Ivey first announced it in her state of the state address in 2018. At the time, it was described as a manufacturing capacity expansion, not a new headquarters, but the executives at Kimber appear to have grown fond of the Yellowhammer State.

The gunmaker was founded in Yonkers, New York, in 1979 and remained headquartered there until its recent transition to Alabama.

The company says it completed an exhaustive search for its new headquarters, and Troy stood out for its “proximity to top-tier engineering schools as well as gun- and business-friendly support from the city of Troy and the great state of Alabama.”

State Representative Wes Allen (R-Troy) praised the move in a statement sent to Yellowhammer News on Monday afternoon.

“I am very proud that Kimber is moving their headquarters from New York to Troy, AL. Kimber recognizes our business friendly environment, our strong support of the 2nd Amendment & our hard working people,” he remarked.

“This is a testament to the conservative leadership of Mayor Jason Reeves & the Troy City Council & the Pike County Commission,” Allen added in his statement.

As for the many positions that Kimber is now seeking to fill, the company lists “CNC technicians, machinists, quality control specialists, lean technicians, design engineers, compliance analysts, customer service representatives, materials planners, maintenance technicians, finishing operators, and assembly technicians,” as among the available jobs.

“Kimber is a great place to work, especially if you love firearms,” promised Pedi Gega, Kimber’s director of assembly and product finishing, in a statement.

“We have two indoor gun ranges, one outdoor range, a state-of-the-art design and prototype fabrication center, and a dynamic team of professionals who pride themselves in producing firearms with unmatched attention to detail, design and performance,” Gega continued.

Those interested in applying for a job at Kimber Manufacturing can do so here.

Give it time.  I predict there will be little left in New York.  Alabama and New York had a contest.  Alabama won.

Prior: Gun Valley Moves South

ATF Interpretive Change Restricts Handgun Imports And May Require NFA Registration

BY Herschel Smith
3 years, 4 months ago

Wiley Law.

Despite ATF previously stating that there is no limit to how long or heavy a handgun should be to qualify as “sporting” under section 925(d)(3), ATF private classification letters issued within the past few months indicate that the agency has shifted course by reinterpreting what constitutes a “handgun.” In company-specific letters, ATF takes the position that if a submitted firearm is too long or too heavy, it fails to meet the definition of “handgun” under the Gun Control Act, as it is not “designed to be held and fired by the use of a single hand.” The Firearms and Ammunition Technology Division (FATD) of ATF—which conducts importability evaluations—says that it is taking a subjective approach to the statute by allowing individual examiners to determine if he or she can fire the weapon with one hand without difficulty.

This approach is resulting in inconsistent determinations, of which the regulated community should take note. Within the past few months, at least one HK91 pistol-style submission as light as 8 pounds, with a barrel length of 8-3/4 inches and an overall length of 21-3/4 inches, has been determined to fall outside the definition of “handgun.” This is a change from previous determinations where firearms weighing over 8 pounds, with 20-inch barrels, and an overall length of approximately 31-1/2 inches were held by FATD to be “handguns.” Since the letters are not publicly available, it is impossible for regulated companies to know the full range of FATD’s determinations. This has serious implications for regulated businesses.

In some of the new letters, ATF has begun listing the following “objective design features” when making its evaluations:

  • Incorporation of rifle sights;
  • Utilization of “rifle caliber ammunition” (both 5.56mm and 7.62mm have been considered as such);
  • Incorporation of “rifle-length barrel;”1
  • The “weapon’s heavy weight;”
  • Ability to accept magazines that range in capacity from 20 rounds to 100 rounds, “which will contribute to the overall weight of the firearm”; and
  • Overall length of the weapon which “creates a front-heavy imbalance when held in one hand.”

However, ATF also noted in the most recent private ruling that the above design features are “neither binding on future classifications nor is any factor individually determinative[.]” ATF explained without elaboration that “the statutory and regulatory definitions provide the appropriate standard in classifying the firearm.” ATF concluded that “a firearm that is too large, too heavy or . . . otherwise not designed to be held and fired in one hand (as demonstrated by the objective features) cannot be a handgun under the statutory definition and cannot be subject to importation criteria governing handguns.” In light of ATF’s subjective and inconsistent analysis of size and weight, it is difficult to predict how the agency will classify any given firearm under this standard.

As was always the intent.  The bureaucratic state is always the implementing organ of communism, and law enforcement is always the underwriter of its rules and regulations.


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