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The Rest of the World Waits with Bated Breath
By: Byron George
Tags: Trump, Politics, Climate Change, Elections, Guns

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

As Joe Biden and Kamala Harris get closer to crossing the line the rest of us in the world wait in hope that they defeat the insane bullying neo-fascist Trump.

We worry when we see those armed men outside a courthouse, the threat obvious and encouraged by their President.

We worry when we see a campaign bus trailed and rammed by flag-waving Trumpers.

We worry when their crazy President cries foul and attempts to stop legitimate votes being counted, making the USA look like a tinpot African dictatorship.

We worry when he encourages his supporters to interfere with counters and make false claims of fraud.

We worry when we see his son making false claims about dumped ballots and is caught on camera and exposed.

What really makes us worry is that almost half of what was the leading country of the free world still votes for an obviously crazed Hitlerite caricature using the same playbook as Goebbels, Hitler and co. and doesn’t see that they are being manipulated in the same way as the German public were in the pre-war years.

Yes, Hitler’s policies turned their economy around, so they went along with it thinking it would all turn out ok. By the time they realised what had happened, their world was changed and the brownshirts and bully boys took their vengeance out on any opposition viewpoints. They had become a one-party state and even the ordinary German was conscripted and forced to fight. The bully boys become the enforcers, exactly like those outside that courthouse in Arizona.

The rest of the world wants to fight the biggest battle together. That of climate change and the environment.

Your petty local issues like abortion should be for the women to sort out between them, it is not a man’s place to dominate that argument, nor the Pope’s.

The next thing that most of the rest of the world can’t understand is your love of guns. Certain guns yes maybe ok, but those automatic assault rifles? They are for wars not for carrying around in public places.

Every foreigner I know who has been to the States mentions this as their biggest turn-off. It’s your country, but whatever your country does spreads across to us in the UK and elsewhere in the so-called Free World. There is the well-worn phrase that “if America sneezes, the UK catches a cold.”

Let us all breathe a sigh of relief and silence the tweeter-in-chief, but we all know that he will still try to stir up his basket of deplorables, the alt-right supporters. How are you going to silence him after this?

Will his crooked property deals, and fraudulent tax returns be exposed enough to have him imprisoned?

Oh, the irony of that would please many around the globe for putting all our lives at risk by selfishly pulling out of the Paris climate accord.

Come on the USA finish him off for the rest of our sakes, for we do love you and all you used to stand for.
What Shooting Guns With My Dad Taught Me About Life
By: Alexandra Rizzi
Tags: Self Love, Personal Growth, Life Lessons, Personal Development, Guns

When I first learned that he owned a gun, I pictured a hand-gun.

I have only seen a few hand-guns in my life and when I look at them, they make me want to cry. As it turns out, rifles, for whatever reason, do not carry the same energetic heaviness and I felt not much when he opened the bag.

I did as my dad gently and calmly instructed, which was to hold the gun, unloaded, and practice aiming at the target and pulling the trigger.

Click. Reload. Click. Reload. Click. Reload.

He showed me how to load the magazine into the gun and I asked him how loud it would be.

“Not very,” he said.

I asked him about the kickback.

“Minimal,” he said.

I trust my dad.

“I’d like to watch you shoot first,” I said.

Closely monitoring my internal state, I braced myself for the inevitable disruption of homeostasis.

He took his time, aimed, and fired.

“Booooooooooooom!”

A long, deep echo filled the air. And I still, to my surprise, felt balanced inside.

Surprisingly calm, albeit a tiny bit nervous because I knew it was my turn next.

He showed me once again where to place my hands. He showed me how the barrel is floating inside of a metal cage, so it is ok to put my hand there since it won’t get hot. He showed me how to flick the safety off and reminded me how to aim and asked me what I was aiming for.

“The middle of the right target,” I said.

My heart was pounding.

I looked through the scope and placed the crosshairs directly in the center of the target. I took a slow, deep breath and pulled the trigger.

“Boooooooooom!”

Looking through the scope again, I realized that I had hit the tiny red diamond in the middle of a target fifty yards away.

I looked up at my dad with an expression of happy surprise and he looked back at me the same way.

“That was almost a bullseye!” I said.

“Yup!”

I kept going and he kept telling me how great I was doing. He encouraged me to try for the clay pigeons sitting on the hill just behind the targets.

When I hit those, he told me to go for the little plastic spinner we stuck in the ground.

Each time he smiled and said, “holy shit, you’re good!”

He joked that we shouldn’t tell the other guys at the range since they are professional shooters and can’t shoot as well as I can.

Jokes, of course.

But it felt good. Not only to see my dad be so proud of me but also, to be proud and impressed with myself.

Aiming a gun requires stillness and presence in the face of something potentially scary.

It requires trust, not only in the person teaching you how to operate it properly but also in the person doing the shooting.

Trust in you.

And doing something outside your comfort zone is always a great reminder that whatever edges or ceilings or limits you believe to be solid, are truly just not real at all.

I encourage you to go be surprised and impressed by your very own self, whatever that looks like for you.

It’s a real thrill.

Ready, aim, fire.
The Eve of a New Dawn
By: Pene Hodge
Tags: Racism, America, Voting, Democracy, Guns

America today is November 3rd and it’s election day!

The lines are blurred. Charges of voter fraud, talk about mail-in ballots and the question of their validity.

In Harris County in Houston, a legal battle rages over the 127,000 already cast votes at drive-thru sites. The Republican Party seeks to have all prior voted invalidated and has been successful in the cessation of tents for votes. According to Business Insider, tents are not considered buildings on the Texas law.

Business Insider cites that the polls showed Biden and Trump in a tie in Texas: 48.1% to 48.1%.

The Republicans are doing everything they can to ensure that Trump takes the lead, even if that means blatant and shameless voter suppression — or that your democracy is annihilated!

85% of likely Black voters said they support Biden, compared to 10% for Trump.

52% of likely white voters said they support Trump, compared to 44% for Biden.

Photo by Unseen Histories on Unsplash

Be aware and be awake! Your right to vote is being surreptitiously taken away.
Covid-19 impact on Airsoft Guns Market Size To Reach $2.5 Billion By 2025
By: Rajesh Varma
Tags: Covid 19, Airsoft, Airsoft Guns, Global, Guns

Airsoft Guns Market Growth & Trends

The global airsoft guns market size is expected to reach USD 2.5 billion by 2025, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. It is anticipated to expand at CAGR of 6.8% over the forecast period. Growing consumers’ spending on adventure sports activities, coupled with increasing number of shooting clubs across the globe, is driving the market. Large number of baby boomers and generation X population prefers to purchase this product as it is a very popular sports activity to spend leisure time. These age groups use this product for target shooting, hunting, and adventure sports activities. Companies are coming up with airsoft fields to increase consumer engagement in adventure sports activities.

Handgun emerged as the largest product segment with a revenue of USD 645.5 million in 2018. The consumers prefer to purchase these guns due to their lightweight features. Moreover, it can be fired with one hand, which further drives the consumers to purchase airsoft handgun. Furthermore, these products can be used without a magazine, which will increase its use among the beginners over the next few years.

The online segment is expected to expand at the fastest CAGR of 8.2% from 2019 to 2025. Consumers can purchase products from diverse brands with this channel, irrespective of their geographic boundaries. Furthermore, membership offers, discounts, and easy product comparison with advanced searching tools on e-commerce websites are expected to attract the consumers to utilize this medium for purchasing airsoft guns.

North America was the largest market with a revenue of USD 601.1 million in 2018. Consumers’ preference for adventure sports activities is very high in this region. A large number of people spend on airsoft guns to participate in different shooting activities. Furthermore, increasing number of shooting clubs across U.S. and Canada is expected to play a key role in expanding the utility of airsoft guns over the next few years.

The market is fragmented in nature with the presence of many private level players. Some of the key players operating in this market are VALKEN SPORTS; Colt’s Manufacturing Company; ICS Airsoft, Inc.; Crosman Corporation; Lancer Tactical; Kriss USA; G&G ARMAMENT TAIWAN LTD; Ballistic Breakthru Gunnery Corporation; A&K Airsoft; and Tokyo Marui. Product innovation is expected to remain a key strategy among the industry participants in order to tap new markets over the next few years.

Request a free sample copy or view report summary:

Airsoft Guns Market Report

Airsoft Guns Market Report Highlights
American elections for Dummies
By: Jacob Jose
Tags: Marijuana, Election 2020, Republican Party, Democrats, Guns

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US Gun sales Skyrocket ahead of election
By: Christian Todd
Tags: Election 2020, Politics, Gun Control, Protest, Guns

A tipping point

This surge of sales that is boosted by political unrest is adding millions more firearms to a nation that already has more guns than humans. A study conducted by the Small Arms Survey in 2017 suggested that the number of guns in the US was approximately 393 million. Adding this figure to the gun sales in 2020, it downright dwarfs the 71 million in India and 50 million in China. Keep in mind as well, that India and China both have four times the population of the United States.

Apart from the rising unease on the streets, there is an extremely high chance that the violence will not end even after the presidential election.

“It is pretty clear that more guns equal more death” — David Hemenway, Professor at Harvard University

Hemenway’s rationale is based upon the fact that when more people have access to guns, the number of people who are carrying it will undoubtedly increase. In other words, shooting accidents, domestic violence, out-of-control arguments, and the risk of suicide will all contribute to a higher death rate.

Guns and ammunition that are listed on online auction sites have seen skyrocketing prices. Not only that, Vista Outdoor Inc also disclosed that ammunition is of an even more severe shortage. The CEO highlighted that “It’s the slimmest we have ever seen them in inventory” while noting that first-time gun buyers are particularly agitated at this fact.

The first-time gun owner

Dave Brown

A Dallas media producer who goes by the name Dave Brown underlined that the reason for his gun purchase was after seeing people smashing the windows of a restaurant near his apartment. The demonstrations lasted through midnight and the thought of not having anything to protect himself drove him to acquire his $450 9mm handgun plus a total of $100 for ammunition.

Brown also added:

“No one knows what’s going to happen around town the next day, it feels like. So a lot of people are nervous and terrified.”

Eugene Buff

The Jewish innovation consultant who is currently living in Boston and politically conservative received a similar response as he posted on his social media channels that he was a professional firearms instructor. Immediately, he was booked by numerous Jewish senior citizens who are also anxious about their own safety because of the looting and the violent protests.

Buff emphasized that almost all of them didn’t like guns and feared them, but because of the current state of affairs, they had no choice but to purchase one and learn how to use it just in case. Their fear for their own safety has greatly outweighed their fear of guns.
“‘After I signed up to be a poll worker, the first thing I did was buy a gun’”
By: Amanda Sakuma
Tags: Maga, Election 2020, Politics, Election Anxiety, Guns

Poll Worker: ‘I Bought a Gun for Election Day’

Why Election Anxiety Is Making Everyone Crazy — and What To Do About It
I have a question for Republicans
Tags: Politics, Debate, Immigration, Guns

One of the points I have heard over the years about the issue of guns is that “guns don’t kill people, people kill people.” The key point being that it isn’t the responsible gun owners that are to blame, so the government shouldn’t take the guns away from them. Rather, it is the people that use guns in nefarious ways who should be punished. As a result, fair minded people can argue about gun philosophy, but can’t deny that that core point makes logical sense.

So when chatting about kids in cages, why do Republicans keep saying “don’t blame Trump, Obama built the cages.”

Isn’t there a corollary here? Instead of blaming Obama, shouldn’t we also blame the person who uses the cages in nefarious ways?

Asking for a friend…
I see what you are saying.
By: Rachel Rogers
Tags: 2nd Amendment, Weapons, Guns

I see what you are saying. I guess that is why I objected so much, it sounded very anti-gun. The idea of a person owning a gun without being fully comfortable with it, scares me. I understand now. I am more used to the gun talk from “gun nuts”. Lived with one for 20 years. They generally have a comfort and purpose that instills security when talking about their weapon. Actually now that you say it, a different perspective from a gun owner is probably much needed in the conversation about the 2nd amendment. You do not sound like you love your weapon. We all want the same outcome — safety. We all have different backgrounds. Perhaps the dangers we face together in society against those that wish to do harm can help bridge the gap between no guns and the right to bear arms.
I’m not with you on this, and frankly am surprised how many are.
Tags: Guns

I’m not with you on this, and frankly am surprised how many are. Fear-mongering is just as damaging as all the other harms coming our way in 2020.

These people will crawl back into their holes once they realize the right wing propaganda machine betrayed them and they weren’t even close to a second term.

(And if for some senseless reason they do win the election, I’m gone!)
I could hardly get past the first paragraph, but I did.
By: Rachel Rogers
Tags: 2nd Amendment, Self Defense, Weapons, Guns

I could hardly get past the first paragraph, but I did. No responsible gun owner looks at his self defense weapon as being able to “kill” a certain number of times. First — That is not accurate, second — not why you own a weapon and third — completely reckless thought. That is the fantasy talk of mass shooters. Your weapon would be used against in a time of crisis if you do not learn more about being a gun owner. As much as I like emotional descriptions, this does the 2nd amendment a disservice, guns are serious.
John Bocker — FFL Consultants
By: Rob Mcnealy
Tags: 2a, John Bocker, Cryptocurrency, Ffl Consultants, Guns

John Bocker talks with Rob McNealy about TUSC and the compliance challenges that FFLs face with government regulations and how to avoid them.

About John Bocker

John Bocker is the Managing Director and co-founder of FFL Consultants and provides expert guidance to firearms dealers around the country on various topics including physical security, ATF compliance, profitability and retail operations. John is an independent consultant for the National Shooting Sports Foundation and serves as an FFL subject matter expert, speaker and author. For more information visit FFLConsultants.com or call John @ 720–336–0028.

Audio Interview: https://robmcnealy.com/podcast/john-bocker-ffl-consultants/

Video Interview: https://robmcnealy.com/john-bocker-ffl-consultants-video/

Interview Transcript: https://robmcnealy.com/john-bocker-ffl-consultants-transcripts/

Please subscribe to The Rob McNealy Program at https://RobMcNealy.com.
Item’s For Defense Without Gun’s
By: Thomas Johnson
Tags: Prepper, Protection, Guns

Most people when they think of preppers, off-grid living, or survivalism they think of crazy people with stockpiles of firearms and ammo. But, I find that a lot of preppers do not own firearms but have other sources of weapons for protection.



I find that many people that were brought up in rural communities that were used to having guns around for hunting these people feel very strongly about having guns whereas people that were not around guns as a youth for one reason or another don’t have guns for their protection.



When it comes to feeling threatened every one of us will find some sort of weapon to defend themselves and their families. Of course, for most of us, we feel that a firearm is the first line of defense but weapons have been around way before firearms were ever made. The list of weapons is endless but here are a few ideas to get you thinking in the correct direction of what to have on hand.



Fixed blade knivesPepper sprayMacheteHatchetAxBaseball batPitchforkGolf clubSwordPipe WrenchesLarge adjustable wrenchRoofing hammerWalking stickSlingshotEtc.



As I said, the list is endless and can be modified to whatever situation you find yourself in. The key to self-defense is knowing how to use handle the situation, be on defense, and know what you’re getting yourself into.



Just like firearms, practice and more practice is needed to make whatever you pick for a self-defense weapon. Without practice, the weapon will be useless.
American Cop Ethics
By: Christina Meier Ph.D
Tags: Cops, Murder, Conduct, Ethics, Guns

CULTURE

American Cop Ethics

Photo by Martin Jernberg on Unsplash

George Floyd’s executioner has been released on bail. It makes me furious because I know that in America it is better to be white and guilty than to be black and innocent.

That cop is guilty as all get out. I hope he gets life.

I was writing the other day when I heard the word ethic on the radio. I paused and listened with both ears. An American cop was talking about Ethics in policing. He was talking specifically about pairs who are called out to different scenarios. He said if someone resists arrest and one cop gets angry, the other one should diffuse the situation. This might be by handcuffing that person himself, rather than the angry one, or by telling an irate cop that he was needed to reply to someone on the patrol car radio.

I wondered how no one succeeded in getting the cop’s knee off George Floyd’s neck.

In the UK, we are policed by consent. That means that our cops have a code of conduct that they must follow. It means that there is a complaints procedure if our police do not conform to that code. For instance, they must be respectful. They may not use disproportionate force. And so on. They must disclose if they are wearing a camera.

If a policeman discharges a gun, it makes the national news and that officer is immediately suspended while the shooting is investigated and deemed the necessary course of action.

Armed police are specially trained. Most police will never use a gun. Britain seems to be alone in this, but I am glad. We don’t have bullets flying around like in other countries, and our streets are much safer.

If American police are trained in ethics, I have to say it doesn’t really show. I know we only hear bad news, but there is far too much of that coming out of the U.S. Ahmaud Arbery’s killer is a former cop.

For all the good cops everywhere, I salute you.
The Day Protesters Invaded My Tiny Town
By: Prickly Pam
Tags: Protests Turn Violent, Gun Violence, Anti Racism, BlackLivesMatter, Guns

The Day Protesters Invaded My Tiny Town

The very scary march organizer. Photo by Patrice Fowler

Note: All photos used with permission of the photographers

A few weeks ago the Indivisible group in my small Pennsylvania town scheduled an anti-racism march. The event was called “Racism Has No Home Here.”

Greg Hayes, a candidate for the state House, got wind of it somehow. He posted on his Facebook campaign page that we were “busing in” Black Lives Matter protesters.

Greg Hayes, the candidate himself, at the march. Look closely (if you can stomach it) and you will see a handgun stuffed down the front of his pants. That caused much mirth. Photo by Patrice Fowler

Oh, my, did he rile up the local gun nuts! There were comments that they were “locked and loaded” and that they were going to “have some fun.” What do you suppose that meant?

They speculated that we were coming in “luxury buses.” That the dreaded “antifa” would be coming! That violence would be perpetrated by those who “tag along” with BLM protesters!

Of course, these folks would never admit that those who start the violence could just as easily be white supremacists.

Some folks advised others to watch for people filling containers with gasoline. We were going to burn down the town and loot its small businesses!

One man, an old friend of mine, even posted the personal phone number of the young organizer. A friend no longer, needless to say.
Great Idea!
By: Brian Connelly
Tags: Probition, War On Drugs, Guns

Great Idea!

Let’s not stop there, we should outlaw alcohol, have a war on drugs, make all guns illegal, we have already made murder illegal so we are on the road to utopia!
EVANGEMERICA: THE CENTER CANNOT HOLD
By: Rebecca English
Tags: Religion, Liberals Vs Conservatives, Politics, Evangelicals And Trump, Guns

I think the world wishes to God they could have their old Jesus back. They kind of liked mocking him, that affable underdog of underdogs, that silly Jesus, who got himself killed.

I think, somewhere buried very deep, unbeknownst to them, certainly, I sense, I feel, that there was some hope in that old cornball of a Jesus. That goody-two-shoes, do-gooder, lovey-dovey, willowy, dreamy, drapey Jesus. I think somewhere, in their unthought thoughts, they held out some hope, that if, in the end, they cried out to Him, he might, a billion to one odds; actually be there.

I think they might be just a teeny bit heart-broken it was all smoke and mirrors after all, if you are what there is to go by. The entire world is laser- focused on your brand of Jesus.

Your Jesus is a football playing Jesus, with an arsenal, and biceps like a tree; a bro, with four on the floor and a V8. He is a badass, spoiling for a fight, and he will shame you into next Christmas, and sneer, and deride, and call you unspeakable names on social media.

Your Jesus is a bully, who keeps track of every word, thought and deed, to shame and condemn the accursed Lefty swine, and he lies like a sailor on leave.

Your Jesus is just a tad out of control, and makes sure everyone knows it. Nothing type B about your guy.

Your Jesus hates people. A lot of people. Half of everyone in our country, which is what all those guns are about, and don’t even get me started on anyone from over the border. And Europe, certainly. Jesus really hates godless Europe.

BOTH OF THESE ANTHROPOMORPHISMS are cartoonish and in error, but at least the former is loving, if pathetic and benign, while the latter is venal, and loaded for bear.

If the Left has finally stopped playing nice, after losing a finger every time they tried to reach across the aisle, remember that you started this fight. You were also the accelerant, and this enemy you have made is just a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Sin with abandon, do your worst, but stop dragging God into it. If you claim to be Christian, that comes with certain responsibilities, based on promises you yourself made.

You can put all the lipstick on this pig that you want, but it’s still a pig. I know about bad guys lying seamlessly, right to your face, and twisting the truth so much, you all but disbelieve what you have seen with your own eyes.

All the answers are in the book. The book slaps down every argument which can be made. The Seven Mountains Theory ain’t in the book. A lot of things aren’t, which are trotted out as if they are. Don’t let the herd sweep you over the cliff with them.

Jump ship before the choice is taken from you. If you simply cannot believe all those teachers and leaders could all be wrong, or worse, fleecing you, at least step back. If you cannot vote for what you have been indoctrinated against, don’t vote at all. If you have already voted, at least get your heart right.

What you are choosing has eternal implications. And that is my point. Capiche?

https://ahillworthdyingonbadreligion.wordpress.com
Most people have been buying guns to protect themselves from the violence of BLM, Black Bloc…
By: Caleb Mars
Tags: Antifa, Trump, BlackLivesMatter, Voter Suppression Laws, Guns

Most people have been buying guns to protect themselves from the violence of BLM, Black Bloc Antifa, and Revolutionary Leftist factions. Those are the groups that have been instigating riots for two months. No doubt, they have plans to stoke mayhem during and after the election. Democrat Mayors and Governors have been reticent to maintain order. They have defunded the police, instituted cashless bail, and promulgated a host of criminal friendly measures. People are also buying guns to protect themselves from criminals.

I was having trouble connecting all the different threads you brought into the argument. How will your buying a gun in New York stop Proud Boys from suppressing voters in Texas who are already suppressed by Republican trickery? Will Trump order Right-wing zealots to attack New York City and suppress voting? It would help your case to spell out a few scenarios in more detail. Or maybe you would see it is Leftist violence that is the more realistic threat compelling prudent citizens to arm themselves.
A Pacifist Walks Into a Gun Store
By: Gun-Totin
Tags: Gun Culture, Second Amendment, Self Defense, Gun Control, Guns

It sounds like the start of a joke, but it wasn’t. A life-long pacifist, I was standing in a gun store for the first time in my life. More than that I was standing in a lane of the firing range attached to the gun store. What. The. Actual.

It began with a late night conversation. Actually more than one. The initial ones were with my partner and were hard discussions about how white supremacist and right-wing militias are becoming increasingly emboldened to display guns in public as an intimidation tactic; moreover that they are inching toward and have already used their guns against people who politically oppose them and have the courage to stand up to them. We started to discuss if we needed to seriously consider buying guns for self defense.

The final conversation which precipitated our first ever visit to a gun range was with our neighbor. She is solidly liberal (sans the pacifism), owns several handguns, and has shot competitively. That conversation ended with an impromptu, intro-to-(unloaded)handguns 101; this was the first time my partner and I had held handguns. The plan was to go with our neighbor to a local gun range that weekend. It was all slightly surreal, but no less so than recent news reports.

That weekend, on a Sunday to be precise, a pacifist did indeed walk into a gun store and fired more than a few rounds on the gun range. Since that experience, I have watched a number of videos in which someone describes how their appreciation and support of guns arose out of the excitement of their first time at a shooting range or from an aesthetic appreciation for the material object of the firearm as if it were a work of art. That is not my experience. Despite all that has happened since walking into that gun store, I do not support guns one iota more; I do not oppose the Second Amendment one iota less. This is despite the now firm conviction that the need for effective self-defense against armed right-wing militias is now a necessity.

A pacifist walked out of the gun store that weekend having purchased a handgun. This was far from an impulsive or cavalier action, and I have already written in brief about the reasons I did this. I now have a handgun, but I find nothing at all redeeming about that handgun. And all I have found in that gun store (for I have been back repeatedly already) is the depressing amazement that the human species still dedicates itself to crafting ever more sophisticated objects by which to kill each other.
Practice Tips to Improve Your Shooting
By: David Kenik
Tags: Firearms, David Kenik, Firearm Training, Guns

Firing a rifle entails more than just pulling the trigger. It requires a lot of practice. A regular dry fire routine is essential to improve shooting skills and helps make one more comfortable with a gun.

Here are a few tips to help improve shooting skills.

Position and Balance

Proper body positioning is fundamental to improving shooting skills. The proper beginner stance is to have your feet shoulder-width apart, and, for right-hand shooters, the left foot slightly forward and the right foot slightly backward. Balance is also vital in a shooting range. It ensures a comfortable position to fire. With proper balance, you maintain control and stability. Good positioning and balance are essential skills beginners should learn.

Familiarity with Your Weapon

It is essential to get acquainted with your weapon. Get familiar with the controls of the gun. The essence of this is to get more comfortable with the firearm. Be sure you can locate the safety and trigger. Try indoor or outdoor dry-firearm shooting ranges. Also, practice how to load and offload the gun.

Invest in your weapons first and master them before trying out other types of firearms. It’s also advisable to get your ear and eye protection gear.

Try Shooting Drills

A good shot doesn’t mean you are a good marksman. It might be beginners luck. Achieving good shots requires continual practice. Try shooting by using the ball and dummy drill. This drill is an easy way to see how your sights are improving as you pull the trigger. Shoot the target until you get better shots. Doing this will develop a better consistent trigger press.

Focus on Accuracy

By enhancing your accuracy, you improve your overall shooting skills. Always set a target and keep eyes on it when shooting. Then consistently hit the target over and over, while changing the distance margins. For a start, try short ranges before moving further to long ranges. With time, your overall accuracy will improve.

Handling firearms requires persistence and patience. The overall key point to note is practice regularly to improve shooting skills. Make sure you’re interested. The more you practice, the more experience you get, and the better you become.
How far behind is Africa compared to the west?
By: Dave Partner
Tags: Africa, Military, War, Economy, Guns

It’s hard to calculate how far behind in years Nigeria is compared to the US, but let’s make a try.

We need a yardstick for the measurement, we could use economic advancement, religious orientation etc but I’d prefer we use technological advancement.

More specifically, military technological advancements. The reason is that military might is a good way to measure how advanced a city-state is because it tells a lot about their ability to step into any region on earth and mine its resources for their own use.

The Kardashev’s scale proposes that human technological advancement can be measured in their ability to mine needed resources at scale.

So, which piece of technology should we use? The airplane comes to mind, the Wright brothers invented the airplane in 1903. That’s 117 years ago.

Since Nigeria has not been able to invent the airplane to date, we can safely say that Nigeria is at least 117 years behind the west.

Follow me on Medium: medium.com/@daveapartner

There is better technology: the gun. Our local blacksmith manufactures illegal guns but none has ever been able to come up with a machine gun. So we can use the machine gun for our measurement, the machine gun was invented in 1884, that’s about 136 years ago.

In the 17th century, Cornelius Drebbel, a Dutch polymath inventor invented the submarine under the employ of British King James I. That’s about 400 years ago!

Given that the submarine is one of the most powerful military tech still in use today, and Nigeria has not been able to invent one, it is safe to say that Nigeria is at least 400 years behind the West in technological advancement.

That is, for a powerful African country like Nigeria to be able to stand the West in an armed conflict, we need to advance 400 years at least, while their advancement pauses during the period.

It is left to be debated what causes Africa to fall so far behind.

Wu tif awa pant?

Follow me on medium: medium.com/@daveapartner
A Beginning?
By: Paroma Sen
Tags: Writing, Short Story, Fiction, Flash Fiction, Guns

A Beginning?

Photo by Hana Mara from Pexels

Pigeons flying around a town square. A hauntingly evocative image. I am reminded of the homeless pigeon lady scene in Home Alone. There’s something melancholic about a person who has nothing of their own yet wants to be a caregiver to birds.

I walk across the courtyard, thinking of anything but what I should be thinking about. Avoiding the thought at all cost.

Pigeons aren’t clean birds. They crap everywhere. Did they crap on the pigeon lady’s arms too, as they landed on her? Did their familiarity extend to hygiene?

There’s a guy on a scooter ahead of me. Smile, little man, smile on, I think. Soon you shall scuttle, like the pigeons.

Familiarity, for birds, does not lead to contempt. No, the transience of feelings is so much more human. You feel today. It’s gone tomorrow.

Gone, like a thousand pigeons flying. Scattering in multiple dimensions. Like a gunshot explosion.

You are onto something new. Something exciting. Something that will become history soon after. And so it goes. On and on and on. Endlessly.

Birds flying from a town square though. There’s joy in that. Birdseed thrown. A burst of hope. An explosion of joy.

A possibility of change. Starting afresh.

I reach my class. It’s full of university kids. Chattering. Oh the incessant chattering. I draw my breath and reach into my backpack for the gun I stole earlier today.

A beginning.
App astray; mockingbirds avenged; junk shot
By: High Country News
Tags: Logic, Birds, Navigation, Humor, Guns

Mishaps and mayhem from around the region.

THE WEST

Every day, about 20 carloads of befuddled-looking travelers straggle down the roads of a small rural subdivision on the Idaho-Wyoming border, much to the locals’ annoyance. “Is this Yellowstone National Park?” the drivers plaintively ask. Unfortunately, no; Yellowstone is about two hours away. It seems one bad app can spoil a whole getaway. If you hit the red pin instead of the green pine tree icon on your iPhone’s Apple Maps app, reports the Jackson Hole News & Guide, you will be sorry: “Hundreds of people are going to Yellowstone and finding out it’s a mailbox,” said Suzanne Arden, a resident. Her neighbor, Carol Gregory, tried to help by painting some rocks yellow at the subdivision’s entrance and posting a sign telling tourists they’d been led astray. Gregory said she’d notified Apple of the problem several times, but the app remained unchanged in late August. She did succeed in getting a sympathetic response from a customer rep named Vivian: “I completely get where you’re coming from,” Vivian said. “That’s something I definitely would want to get taken care of. If I was going to Yellowstone, I would not want to show up at your doorstep.” Meanwhile, Eugenio Bautista from Chicago was among the many hapless wanderers this summer who found himself in a housing development somewhere outside of Driggs, Idaho. There he found pleasant homes, but not a geyser in sight — not even a friendly elk or bison to photograph. “This is not it,” he concluded. “And now we wasted two hours already.”

See the rest of the shenanigans at: https://www.hcn.org/issues/52.10/humor-app-astray-mockingbirds-avenged-junk-shot

Tips and photos of Western oddities are appreciated and often shared in this column. Write betsym@hcn.org, tag photos #heardaroundthewest on Instagram or submit a letter to the editor.
Sounds all too familiar unfortunately.
Tags: Guns

Sounds all too familiar unfortunately.

I guess we all get to certain junctions where it’s a left or right decision, and some of us choose that wrong turn a few times too frequently, and suddenly we’re a casualty.

Thanks for sharing.
A Black Man Who’s Afraid of What He’d Do With a Gun
By: Momentum Blog Team
Tags: Racism, Black Lives Matter, Guns

A Black Man Who’s Afraid of What He’d Do With a Gun

For Gay Mag, professor and author Kiese Laymon discusses the history of race and guns in America, with powerful personal anecdotes.

“I wonder every day if my grandmama, my mama, my friends will find invisible guns next to my big black bullet-riddled body,” he writes. “I wonder who I’m really protecting by never, ever buying or borrowing a gun.”
My Brothers Have Been Waiting for This Upcoming Civil War
By: Savannah Stjohn
Tags: Civil War, Life, Dysfunctional Family, Politics, Guns

My Brothers Have Been Waiting for This Upcoming Civil War

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

I hope my Southern brothers and ancient father are not Proud Boys, but they sure love that Alt Right stuff. They’ve been collecting and polishing guns for a few decades now, standing by for the coming civil war. They love Westerns too. They thrive on fear.

Brother007 started sending Dad right wing anti-Muslim, anti-Black emails during the last presidency. What does it matter they are both “well” educated by modern standards with stellar career histories? Many science degrees between them, and both are former naval officers. They had to find someone to blame all the ills of society upon. In the limited vocabulary of their great leader, “Sad.”

They recruited two of my three other brothers to join their philosophy over the years. One, crippled from lifelong bone and joint problems, purchased an uzi last decade. He had me help him carry the heavy thing into his new digs. He’s the one that could have become an artist, and thus by definition, perhaps a free thinker. But no, he chose to be part of the posse and obtain a military weapon he can’t even lift.

My baby brother also joined their ranks. Drinking the Kool-aid was the admission price for staying in the tribe and becoming a possible recipient of the silver and gold coins the family has converted some of their estate into, waiting for the new civil war, up on a rural mountain top, stocking up on canned goods and beef jerky. Pirates in Appalachia. Great. Just what the world needs.

Mother joined in the festivities too, sending out an obscene email forwarded to her about what should be done with the private parts of one vulnerable group of minorities. It was from one of her many hick neighbors. I asked her if she understood what she had sent out, hoping she did not. I did not bother to open any more emails from her after that. And that was years ago already.

Hooray for you pirate brothers! You must be thrilled your day has finally come! Your Chief has issued the battle cry! Just what you’ve been waiting for over a decade. When you’re shooting ’em up as this bloody Autumn rolls on, double check who you’re pointing those phallic things of y’alls at, pirates.

I am Savannah St. John and this is what has happened.

“If your people will but stop and think, they must see that in the end you will surely fail.”

William Tecumseh Sherman, December 1860
U.S. Police Should Not Carry Guns
By: Patsy Fergusson
Tags: Public Safety, Politics, USA, Police, Guns

U.S. Police Should Not Carry Guns

Photo by Maria Lysenko on Unsplash

One of many scenes that stood out for me in the excellent HBO science fiction series Watchmen was when a police officer asked permission from headquarters to use his gun. The gun was held in a locking device in his car and couldn’t be unlocked without approval. Because of a glitch, the lock didn’t release and he was killed by the white supremacist he had pulled over.

Could that happen? Of course. But in the real world, police officers are killing citizens at an alarming rate — not the other way around.

To understand how out of proportion police use of deadly force is in the United States, take a look at this chart I created with data from the Wikipedia page Police Firearm Use by Country.

Chart by author from data on the Wikipedia page Police Firearm Use by Country.

It doesn’t look pretty because it’s hard to represent such disparate numbers in a graph. In 2018, according to Fatal Force, police officers in the U.S. killed 1,165 people. In England and Wales, they killed 8. In Northern Ireland, 1.

Statistics aren’t straightforward because some countries keep them and others don’t. Some release them and others don’t. But this chart from Prison Policy Initiative makes the comparison clear.
My name is Ace.
By: Ace D P
Tags: Enby, Nonbinary, Name Change

My name is Ace. I was not born with this name. Although I truly believe it has always been mine for the taking. I have fought for it. I paid for it. I made it legal. When I die this is the name that all history of me will have. When I was born my parents named me Kandace. They love that name and have many wonderful memories with that name. As I’m sure many do. I respect that name. And because of respect I will never tell my parents or grandparents to call me Ace. There should be no doubt though that when anyone calls me Kandace I cringe. It hurts a little. Just a small sting like someone is pinching me. I am not Kandace. I am Ace. When someone calls me Ace I feel seen and loved. For that reason whenever someone calls me Kandace from now on I will gently remind them, it’s Ace.
Degendering your language: An infographic
By: Clio Hartzer
Tags: Nonbinary, Lgbtqia, Education

I designed this for teachers who prefer a visual summary of the key ideas on degendering language. I also have longer text-based pieces for those who want more details: Non-Binary Students; Non-Binary “They” and Style Guides; Non-Binary Students and Pronouns

A separate issue: “Parents” can be problematic because not all of your students will have or live with their parents. So please be mindful of that as well.

(Infographic last revised 1/16/21.)
Fazia Poesia
By: Pablo Pessoa
Tags: Genre, Literatura, Fluid, Nonbinary, Poesia Brasileira

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Oliver,
By: Mx. Marie Chase Lewis, They She
Tags: Nonbinary, Transgender

Oliver,

Interested in a show that provides (what I consider)a perfect example of how a character’s being trans should be handled? There’s a recent (2020 release) movie called Bit (a Grrrl power vampire movie) with Nicole Maines. The closest her character gets to saying she’s Trans is when she asks “Even girls like me?” of the head of the vampire coven. There’s a little bit of a flashback to treatment by her brother without specifically saying why he treated her like that. Those two scenes are the ONLY places that her being trans is at all a factor in the movie. Not really my genre of films, but I think Nicole Maines is pretty awesome so that’s why I watched it. Overall, I really like how her being Trans is handled in Supergirl, too.

And then Star Trek Discovery. Adira (Blu Del Barrio) being Nonbinary was pretty much limited to them saying (words to the effect of) “They, please. I’ve never felt like a girl.” And I don’t think that Gray (Ian Alexander) has been identified as a Trans man at all. His voice and height are about the only ways to clock him.

It does get better. And isn’t it awesome that since Elliot Page came out the most famous trans person isn’t named Jenner? 😉

Marie (They/She). Transfeminine Demigirl.
no. 26 — Painted Shut by Hop Along
By: Jenna Sylvester
Tags: Album Review, Nonbinary, Music, Hop Along, Personal Essay

Technically, Hop Along is a band from Philly, but because the lead singer went to MICA, I think of them as a Baltimore band. I also think of them this way because all my Baltimore friends love them. I feel like Hop Along belongs to me and my friends as a collective; they aren’t just a band that’s shaped my life and my music tastes, they’re a band that have been the soundtrack to many of my relationships.

If we’re still going chronologically to my own life (we are) Painted Shut was the album that had come out when I first heard of Hop Along. It was an instant hit in the way Hop Along’s music always is. Frances Quinlan, the lead singer, writes the kind of lyrics that make you work just a little to decipher. Her voice distorts words in a raspy, melodic cadence that is both contagiously sweet and disarming. I find myself singing along, but unless I look up the lyrics, I can’t be sure I know what I’m saying. When I do finally look up the lyrics, I find a poem, decoded to find an intricate narrative steeped in musical history and literature.

Hop Along makes the kind of music I don’t seem to hear anywhere else. Sure, they have roots in rock and indie and folk, but they push and intertwine those boundaries with each song. Some have strings, others have sing-along style choruses, and others could easily incite mosh pits. Some of their songs are purposefully choppy, melodies and choruses halting right when you’re halfway through getting into their groove, switching up in a sudden, alarming way. The albums feel cohesive regardless of this scope of genres and refrains, looped together by familiar riffs, repeating lyrics, and, ultimately, Hop Along’s fantastic skill in constructing songs.

I don’t know if this is really something that makes sense, but listening to Hop Along makes me feel smart. In the sense that reading The Odyssey and Pablo Neruda and actually understanding it without going on spark notes, listening to Hop Along feels similar. It feels like a band I can be proud of loving without pretention[1]. Maybe it’s just that I feel like a cool Art Kid who can pull off a beanie[2] when I play their albums. Maybe it’s that I’m an English Major and listened to Painted Shut while reading Moby Dick, therefore always associating the two with each other. Maybe it’s that I have a crush on Frances Quinlan for being smart and funny and cool and pretty and good at music. Probably, it’s a combination of all of those things. But mostly, I think I like Hop Along because they’re just Good, which doesn’t need any further justification.

I also really love their newest album, Bark Your Head Off, Dog. And their older album, Get Disowned. Painted Shut is the middle child of these three, and I feel like they intertwine with each other, making conversation across the years. Listen to Hop Along here.