Articles by Herschel Smith

News from Texas.

The 12-foot alligator’s first mistake: crossing a Texas grandma with a Winchester .22 Magnum.

From the Houston Chronicle on Tuesday came a tale as Texan as they come. Judy B. Cochran – mayor of Livingston in East Texas; a great-grandmother called Nana by her family – had long held a suspicion that a massive alligator had killed her miniature horse three years ago. As she told the Chronicle:

“We think this is the gator that ate one of our miniature horses several years ago, as big as this gator was, he could’ve easily eaten it. Typically the gators don’t bother us, but we’ve been looking for (this one).”

The horse might have been smaller than the average horse, but this 580-pound reptile came a little larger than standard issue. According to the Chronicle, Cochran got the gator right where she wanted it after handlers caught it in a pond using a seasoned raccoon …

Fox 4 reports that Cochran was in a meeting when she was notified that the gator had been got. She took him out on her Goodrich ranch with just one shot, the Chronicle reports. Nine years ago, according to the Chronicle, Cochran’s then-5-year-old grandson killed an 800-pound alligator from the same pond.

According to the Dallas Morning News, Polk County (where Goodrich and Livingston sit) is “one of only 12 in Texas with an alligator hunting season,” giving Cochran a 20-day timeframe (and specific requirements about hunting permits and methods) to settle her score.

Just because the gator is off the hook literally doesn’t mean it’s off the hook metaphorically. The Chronicle reports that Cochran plans to eat the animal’s meat, have its head mounted and display part of its tail in her office.

Nana definitely plans to wear some alligator-skin boots once all is said and done.

Lessons: Texas.  ‘Nuff said.  Alligators.  At least Texas doesn’t have the love for the beasts that Florida apparently does, not in 12 counties.  What’s the problems with those other ones?

.22 Magnum.  Good for a lot of things.  But she must have hit it exactly where it counts.  Finally, raccoon.  Never eaten one, don’t want to, but apparently the gator was interested.  I’m wondering about WiscoDave?

News from Wisconsin:

Yes, a lot less people were killed or injured because the cops got there.  Not because poor victims are asking the question, “Do you hide or do you run?”  Rather than saying, “Remember, unholster, proper grip technique, ensure round is chambered, find perp, present, get good sight picture, discharge.”

Well, she did what all of America has been trained to do.

DFP:

Davis’ “bullet bill” ordinance would build a new structure for purchasing ammunition around law enforcement approval. Potential buyers would need to undergo a mental illness background check with their local police department or the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office. They would also need approval for each purchase – except at gun shows, where showing a certificate of a previous mental illness check would be sufficient.

Finally, the ordinance would raise taxes on ammunition and use the funds for gun safety and gun rights education – teaching “about the second amendment, about how to use a gun safely and about gun violence,” Davis said.

[ … ]

If he gets the ordinance passed in Wayne County, Davis said, he would like to see it implemented at the state and, eventually, federal level.

Since they haven’t been as successful as they would like in gun control, they want ammunition control, gun manufacturer bank account control, and mental state control.  Because controllers got to control.  It’s who they are.

I expect the statists will do this at the federal level as soon as the power structure changes just a little bit in Washington.  At it will, soon enough.  These are trial balloons at the local and state level right now.  Expect this to expand.

I don’t believe anyone who proposes such a bill should ever be able to get a “certificate of mental wellness.”

Via Knuckledraggin’, this news:

Sturm, Ruger & Co., Inc. (NYSE: RGR) mourns the loss of William B. Ruger, Jr., former Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Ruger. Mr. Ruger, who was the second CEO of the Company and the son of the Company’s founder, passed away this past weekend.

“We are deeply saddened by the passing of Bill, who was integral to the foundation and early success of this company,” said Chris Killoy, President and CEO of Ruger. “Bill’s 42 years of loyal service to the Company has had a lasting impact that is still felt today. We will sincerely miss him and our thoughts and prayers are with his family.”

I have no idea what that means for the company.  Probably not much if he wasn’t at the helm of the ship.

From American Rifleman.

They were using a 16.125″ barrel.  Isn’t it interesting that slowing the round down just a bit and making it a wee bit heavier reduced the spread by more than one inch?  Also, remember that published 5.56mm muzzle velocities in the range of 3100+ FPS are for a 22″ barrel, not a 14.5″, 16″, 18″ or even 20″ barrel.

I expect advocates of heavier 5.56mm rounds to make hay over this.

The barrel had a 1:8 twist (which is about optimum for a wide range of weights).  I would have expected a little better accuracy with the lighter rounds than 2.3″.  And yet, this is still good.  I’m also willing to bet that if they had used a better ammunition (like Hornady) for the lighter rounds, they would have gotten better accuracy.

Via WoG, GRNC responds to the credit poachers.

As GRNC volunteers continue to diligently monitor the state for “State of Emergency (SOE) Gun Bans,” it seems that other organizations are taking credit for our successes. No one, not credit poachers like the Firearms Policy Foundation, nor any other organization that “sends a letter” can claim credit for the work GRNC has been doing for years—work that made SOE Gun Bans unlawful and forced government entities to repeal these bans.

GRNC has now added Littleton, NC to our list of hurricane Florence successes. This morning, we were alerted to a declaration of an unconstitutional SOE gun ban in Littleton and our volunteers immediately contacted them, citing the law. Before Littleton, it was Leland, Carolina Beach and Roanoke Rapids. Fortunately, and in nearly all of these cases so far, discussions with municipal leaders have been cordial, and they were happy to correct the problem once they understood the illegality of their declaration. Kudos to Carolina Beach and Littleton for being particularly receptive during our discussions with them.

As a local organization, we are happy to say that our relationships with these municipalities remain properly cordial as we help the municipalities identify and correct these problems.

I’ve met the good folks of GRNC at a gun show in Charlotte and talked extensively with them.  I like them and want to remain cordial with them, and I’m glad they take this approach (perhaps there is something to the notion that a message is received better when delivered with honey instead of vinegar).

And I never thought that a letter from the FPF or FPC did the trick.  My post preceded the letter, and I didn’t think my post did the trick either.  But I simply cannot consider the folks in Leland allies or friends.  They are enemies of liberty because of what they did.

Had they not been stopped by GRNC, they would have put peaceable and good men on the road with road robbers, highway thieves and murderers, and nefarious men of all kinds who could have done their family harm.  Hopefully, no one obeyed their immoral and illegal edicts.

They showed their predilections and predispositions with this edict.  Their beliefs run contrary to moral and Godly thought.  Their actions ran afoul of state law, and thus they are either criminally culpable or negligent in their ignorance to the point of malfeasance in office.  They should be in prison.

Postscript: It isn’t clear to me whether GRNC should be referring to Leland rather than Littleton, or I shouldn’t have connected this to Leland (although the FPF letter was sent to Leland).

Prior:

Update On Leland, North Carolina, Prohibition Of Weapons During Hurricane Florence

Leland, North Carolina, Prohibits Transport Or Possession Of Weapons Outside Of Private Premises Ahead Of Hurricane Florence

Via WoG, a cougar attack.

Authorities say a dead hiker whose body was recovered this week was likely killed by a cougar, marking the first fatal attack by a wild cougar in Oregon and the second in the Pacific Northwest this year. Search and rescue teams found the body of Diana Bober, 55, on Monday off a trail in the Mount Hood National Forest in Welches, about 40 miles southeast of Portland. Her body was several miles from where searchers found her car last week near a ranger station. Bober, an avid hiker who often trekked in the Mount Hood and Columbia River Gorge area, was last heard from by family and friends on Aug. 29, the AP reports. She was reported missing on Friday and it’s still unclear when she started her hike, said Sgt. Brian Jensen of the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office.

Her body had injuries consistent with a cougar attack and a medical examiner ruled out the possibility that she was mauled after she died of another cause, Jensen said.

The article title is amusing: “Unprecedented Event.”  David has something to say about that.

I’m reminded of another cougar attack on bikers in Washington.

A former Topekan was attacked and killed by a cougar Saturday in North Bend, Wash., while biking on a remote, dirt road.

SJ Brooks, who was known in Topeka as Sonja Brooks while attending Topeka High School, according to a yearbook, was with a friend when the attack occurred.

Brooks, who identified with the pronoun they, encountered a cougar, which began stalking the bikers during the ride. The cougar first attacked Brooks’ friend, Issac Sederbaum, after an attempt to scare off the cougar by swinging his bike at it. The cougar latched onto Sederbaum’s head and Brooks took off into the woods, according to The Associated Press.

The cougar then ran after Brooks and attacked them. Brooks was severely mauled and suffered wounds to the legs, head, face and neck, The Seattle Times reported.

I like this thing of identifying any way you want.  I’ve never really liked my name.  So I’d like my readers to know that henceforth, I identify as “Brutus Maximus, The Destroyer.”

Buckrail:

WYOMING – A backpacker was injured after a surprise encounter with two bears resulted in his being flown to an area hospital where he is receiving medical treatment.

Park County Sheriff’s Office notified Wyoming Game and Fish Department Sunday that a man had been injured by a bear while backpacking in the Beartooth Mountains near the Wyoming-Montana border. The injured male was flown by helicopter to an area hospital where he is receiving treatment.

Upon notification, Game and Fish immediately responded to the area to provide assistance to the victim and other party members. WGFD began an investigation on the attack that included interviews with the victim and members of his party.

The investigation is ongoing—WGFD personnel are still on-scene gathering further details today—but based on the initial investigation, it appears to be a surprise encounter between the individual and two bears.

The injured man is described only as an out-of-state recreationist. He was backpacking with three other people on the Shoshone National Forest near Granite Lake. The victim was apparently hiking ahead of the group when he encountered two bears at close range. The encounter happened too suddenly for him to deploy bear spray he was carrying.

Here is an update.  Most encounters like this are going to be “surprise encounters at close range.”  Be prepared.  Carry guns, easily accessible.  Forget about deploying spray.

In the Tetons, there is this worse outcome.

Two hunters were involved in a bear attack Friday, September 14, in the Teton Wilderness while field dressing an elk near Terrace Mountain, approximately 5.8 miles northeast of the Turpin Meadow Trailhead.

Florida resident Corey Chubon shot an elk during a guided bow hunt late Thursday afternoon. He and his guide, Mark Uptain of Martin Outfitters, were unable to locate the wounded animal before nightfall. The pair returned Friday morning to locate and remove the elk. They found the undisturbed carcass in the early afternoon and were preparing to pack out the elk when they were aggressively charged by two large bears.

Chubon was able to run to his pack a few yards away and retrieve a pistol but was unable to safely fire a shot at the bear that had pounced upon Uptain. The attacking bear then spun, charged Chubon, grabbed his foot and dragged him to the ground. He sustained injuries to his leg, chest, and arm, but was able to throw the gun to Uptain and get loose before running from the scene to phone for help.

[ … ]

An interagency helicopter was dispatched to the scene to assist with transport of the injured hunters. Chubon was taken to St. John’s Medical Center for treatment to his wounds. Search and Rescue personnel were unable to locate Uptain before the search was suspended for the evening.

What a shame he didn’t have a pistol on his belt.

As best as I understand the appeals court ruling for Hawaii open carry, they determined that open carry cannot legally be prohibited if concealed carry is also prohibited.  Of course, if I had made the ruling, I would have determined that no man can legally or morally dictate to another man how or where he can carry his weapons.  But Hawaii is appealing that decision.

The state and Hawaii County filed a petition today asking the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to reconsider a three-judge panel’s ruling that Hawaii’s legal requirement for getting a license to carry a firearm in public violates the U.S. Constitution’s Second Amendment right to bear arms for self-defense.

The three-judge panel of the court handed down a 2-1 opinion in July in the case of a Hilo man’s lawsuit against the state and the Hawaii Police Department. George K. Young Jr. sued in 2012 after then-Hawaii Police Chief Harry Kubojiri twice rejected his application for a license to carry a firearm.

State firearm laws prohibit carrying a firearm in public except to transport it to and from places where it can be purchased and used legally, such as from a gun shop to your home or to the police department for registration. The firearm must be unloaded and in an enclosed container.

The chief of police of each county is responsible for handling firearm registrations and issuing firearm licenses. The law allows for the chief, in exceptional cases, to grant a license to carry a loaded revolver or pistol to an applicant who shows reason to fear injury to himself or his property.

The 2-1 opinion said the exceptional case requirement impinges on the right of a responsible, law-abiding citizen to carry a firearm openly for self-defense outside of his home.

According to the state and county’s joint petition, the panel’s ruling is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of Hawaii law. The panel, it says, invalidated Hawaii’s law on the ground that it limits open-carry license to security guards and other people whose jobs require protecting life and property.

“But that is just wrong,” the filing says. The law makes open-carry license available to any qualified individual who “sufficiently indicates” an “urgency” or “need” to carry a firearm and who is “engaged in the protection of life and property.”

Hawaii Attorney General Russell Suzuki has issued an opinion that clarifies that the law extends to private individuals as well as security officers and that it advises the police chiefs that victims of domestic violence, anyone who faces a credible threat of armed robbery or violent crime may be eligible for open-carry licenses.

But attorneys for Young said today that the reality is that the state rarely issues any open-carry licenses — only four in the last 18 years.

“The bottom line is that the state doesn’t issue permits,” attorney Alan Beck said.

Let’s be clear.  Everyone faces a credible threat because of the sinfulness of mankind.  Anyone, at any time, in any location, may be the victim of a crime against their person.

They know that and don’t care.

To satisfy these requirements, an applicant must demonstrate, among other things, that he or she has a need for protection that substantially exceeds that held by ordinary law-abiding citizens.

“Substantially.”  Not by a little, but substantially.  Note that most of the folks who hold this view believe in the protection of various animal life and the environment.  Humans aren’t good enough for protection.  So says the communists in Hawaii.  And no, the police aren’t there to protect you.  That’s just a children’s fairy tale.

The Federalist:

… the Nazis were firmly on the left. National Socialism was a collectivist authoritarian movement run by “social justice warriors.” This brand of “justice” benefited only some based on immutable characteristics, which perfectly aligns with the modern brand. The Nazi ideal embraced identity politics based on the primacy of the people, or volk, and invoked state-based solutions for every possible problem. It was nation-based socialism—the nation being especially important to those who bled in the Great War.

The Nazi charter published a year later and coauthored by Hitler is socialist in almost every aspect. It calls for “equality of rights for the German people”; the subjugation of the individual to the state; breaking of “rent slavery”; “confiscation of war profits”; the nationalization of industry; profit-sharing in heavy industry; large-scale social security; the “communalization of the great warehouses and their being leased at low costs to small firms”; the “free expropriation of land for the purpose of public utility”; the abolition of “materialistic” Roman Law; nationalizing education; nationalizing the army; state regulation of the press; and strong central power in the Reich. It was also racist and anti-immigrant.

In some areas, the Nazis followed their charter faithfully. They treated children as property of the state from the earliest age and indoctrinated them at government schools and clubs. The individual had limited rights outside the volk. German lives were for the betterment of the people and state. One’s group identity determined his rights and social hierarchy.

[ … ]

When told of Schutzstaffel (SS) Chief Heinrich Himmler’s flirtation with the occult, Hitler fumed: “What nonsense! Here we have at last reached an age that has left all mysticism behind it, and now he wants to start that all over again. We might just as well have stayed with the church. At least it had tradition. To think that I may some day be turned into an SS saint! Can you imagine it? I would turn over in my grave…”

[ … ]

“Once I have settled my other problems,” he occasionally declared, “I’ll have my reckoning with the church. I’ll have it reeling on the ropes.”

It wasn’t only theoretical. Hitler repeatedly praised Marx privately, stating he had “learned a great deal from Marxism.” The trouble with the Weimar Republic, he said, was that its politicians “had never even read Marx.” He also stated his differences with communists were that they were intellectual types passing out pamphlets, whereas “I have put into practice what these peddlers and pen pushers have timidly begun.”

The Nazis were statists of the highest and worst caliber.  Of interesting note, Richard Spencer said this.

“No individual has a right outside of a collective community. You have rights, not eternally or given by God, or by nature.”

I don’t align myself with men.  I don’t join clubs.  I don’t join movements.  I don’t call myself by names, except Christian.  And everyone who believes in the collective doesn’t believe in God.  And vice versa.