The good news as we woke up yesterday morning was: Congress, unwilling to watch the markets drop 20% on Wednesday, cobbled together and passed a bill to keep the government running.
The bad news as we woke up yesterday morning was: Congress,
unwilling to watch the markets drop 20% on Wednesday, cobbled together
and passed a bill to keep the government running.
On another note, Mr. and Mrs. OS purchased a new automobile late last week, and drove to the dealership to pick it up, in a suburban location north of Nashville. Typical suburban small-town, gas station followed by restaurant followed by hardware store followed by gun shop.
Gun shop. Holy cow. The parking lot is jammed, and the store is filled...
Holy Cow.
Bob Owens, a knowledgeable writer on the subject of firearms and firearms law, etc. posted much the same report. Only he went into the store, to find it had been cleaned out by purchasers.
Gulp.
In a related incident, OS visited a pawn shop in Louisville a few weeks ago, before the Newtown atrocity, to find people from the poor black neighborhood nearby purchasing inexpensive 9 mm pistols for home defense. One 60+ year-old gent explaining, 'I've got to protect my little grandbaby from the home invaders'. The salesman explained that, with a pistol at that sub-200 dollar price point, reliability may be a big issue, which could prove very dangerous for the purchaser. The old gent replied, 'I can't afford that four-hundred dollar model, I'll have to take my chances.'
Holy Moly.
OS fears bloodshed, the operative word being 'fears'. All nerves seem to be on edge, from all corners.
If you are one of those new gun owners, OS urges four things:
1. Join the NRA. Today. Even if you don't own a gun, join to support those millions of responsible owners.
2. Get training, both in markmanship, behavior, and the law. Every county in every state with a concealed-carry-permit law has several good law enforcement officers who offer training. No excuse not to get trained. It is a safety issue, for you and everyone around you. The TV shows make pistol marksmanship look easy, but that is pure fiction. It is not an easy thing to place a group of shots in an acceptably tight circle from twenty yards, or ten, or five--especially for a novice in a stressful situation. Bullets that miss hit people.
3. Practice. Regularly. Preferably at a range with an instructor.This is a learned skill, not a magic trick. Read, stay informed. And practice. If you are not willing to practice, you are not a good candidate for ownership.
4. Safety first. One of OS's early childhood memories is of his next-door neighbor, a police detective with two young boys in the home. Every evening, he would come home, unholster his service revolver, empty the chamber. The shells went into a dish above the reach of the boys on the mantle, and the revolver was placed in a closed china cabinet, out of reach of the boys. 'Nuff said?
And finally--there are people who should never be allowed to handle deadly weapons. OS can immediately think of five homes where no guns should be in residence. Period.
Your home may be one of them.
