Self Defense in MI

I haven't commented on the so called "road rage" shooting case in MI, since I know the defendant.  However, I feel that need to comment given today's development.  According to the Detroit Free Press, the jury was 9-3 in favor of acquittal.  Based on those I've spoken to about this case, I'd say the consensus is about right.  I personally feel that he should be acquitted, but I know those who feel otherwise and have good faith arguments.

It is a tough case, because it hinges on the jury trying to determine what the defendant's state of mind was at the time of the incident.  If he was angry, he is guilty, but if he was scared then he is innocent.  Based on the facts of the case, I think it is reasonable to assume that a person could be afraid in this circumstance.  Thus, he should walk.  I even think this supposed plea deal is too much, but probably better for him to take this than to roll the dice with the jury.

This all being said, the supposed victim in this case should also have been charged with assault, since he started the confrontation by leaving his vehicle.  We'll see what happens over the next few days, but this case should never have gone to trial in the first place.

2nd Amendment Applies to the States

Breaking news: Chicago's handgun ban has been struck down, the Supreme Court has ruled that the 2nd Amendment applies to the states.

Packing in some national parks OK on Monday

On Monday it will be legal to carry a concealed weapon in many national parks and sites, provided that the person carrying is authorized under state law.

I think this is a very good move, because currently someone driving within their state must take care to not transport a firearm through a national park, monument, battlefield, etc.

Some are afraid that this will lead to increased violence in the parks, but I don't see this happening.  Time and time again, when concealed carry laws are expanded there have not been increased shootings.

Obama Pro-Gun President so far

Some on the left are not happy with Obama's seemingly pro- or neutral-gun stance during his first year in office.

I think that the president doesn't have a very strong personal preference on the issue, and would rather not wade into this political trap, as Bill Clinton did.

The Year Of The Gun?

That's what MSNBC is calling 2009.  Many states passed laws making it easier for individuals to carry guns.  I don't have any problem with this, since CCW holders tend to be the most law abiding citizens around.

Evidence supports ban on lead ammo

As a former NRA member, I'm probably going to really piss off some current ones with this entry, but you can't fight facts: lead ammo needs to be banned in hunting application. A new study has shown that game meat contains a large amount of lead, so much that children and pregnant women should not be eating venison. What needs to be done is ban lead in ammo that is generally used outdoors for hunting. I think for now it is not necessary to ban lead ammo in handguns and in target rifles. But we need to protect the environment; lead is too dangerous let it get in anyone's food supply.

CCW Amendment Fails

Today an amendment to a defense bill that would have granted universal reciprocity for carrying concealed weapons was defeated. I am for the liberalization of concealed carry laws, as I believe that the 2nd amendment gives us the right to bear (and carry) arms.

However, this amendment would not have addressed one important issue: the lack of uniform state laws. Vermont allows anyone to carry with no permit. Virginia allows open carry with no permit, but a permit is required for concealed carry. Michigan requires you to inform any cop you interact with that you are carrying, or else. Ohio allows businesses to ban carrying if they post a sign; other states do not. These laws make it very confusing for anyone to travel between states, and what we need is a federal law that governs this issue. It could establish uniform standards for training and also established where people can and cannot carry.

Obama on banning guns: No

To all the right wing nutjob/Glenn Beck fans:

President Obama is not going to take away our guns. Get back to reality, and start helping our country.

Gun ban dead

Some people are angry.  I'm happy.  Despite the attorney general's comments in February, this Congress will not be passing any kind of assault weapon ban.

Environmentally friendly ammo

The NRA apparently does not like the new "green" bullets, which are made from copper instead of lead.  Not sure why they are all up in arms (pardon the pun) about this issue.  Using safer materials makes sense, even if the cost is slightly higher.

Not even Wal-Mart can beat this!

South Carolina is lifting the sales tax on guns for the biggest shopping day of the holiday season.

DC Gun Registration

Registering your gun in DC is such a pain that if I happened to live there I'd likely skip the whole process for now and wait a couple months for the permanent rules.  You need to complete a safety test, get fingerprinted, and kiss the Mayor's ass.  Maybe that last part is a joke, but they do seem to have a lot of discretion.  

The worst part?  A vision test.  So if you have trouble seeing, you cannot own a gun.  This would seem to violate many existing laws, such as the ADA act.  Just because someone is visually impaired does not mean they are prohibited from owning a gun.  Per federal law, only criminal acts and mental illnesses are barriers, not disabilities.  Make all the jokes you want about blind people and guns, but if you believe in the Constitution, they should be able to own them.

DC Mayor Says Semi-Autos are Illegal

To show the lack of understanding in the DC government, one must only go to their website, in which the mayor has released a statement that semi-automatic handguns will still "generally" be banned in the city.

For those who are not familiar with guns, many do not know what semi-automatic means.  It means one pull of the trigger is required for each shot.  These types of handguns used to actually be called "automatic" but once smaller machine guns came out the "semi" was added.  

Just about any handgun made in the last 100 years is a semi-auto, including revolvers and those fed with a magazine.

District of Columbia v. Heller

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

As promised, here is my best analysis after having read the Supreme Court decision.  I did not quite read it in its entirety, but I've read enough to know what this means: our gun rights are not in jeopardy no matter what happens over the next several years.

What the decision means now:

DC must begin issuing handgun permits ASAP and cannot require guns of any type to be stored locked and disassembled.  DC will likely become as permissive about guns as Illinois (excluding Chicago), requiring the person who buys a handgun to have a permit, submit to fingerprinting, and register their gun.  So law abiding citizens in DC will now be able to buy a gun and carry it loaded while in their homes.

What is no longer allowed?

Outright bans of "common" guns such as handguns, rifles, shotguns and the requirement that they be unloaded when stored in the home.

So what is still OK?

This will likely be hashed out over the next decade, but it appears now that gun registration, bans of specific guns (like machine guns), and many other federal laws will remain untouched.  Crazy people will still not be able to buy guns, and neither will felons, at least legally.

What did SCOTUS say of the 2nd Amendment in general?

They said it means we have the individual right to own guns.  This right does not require us to be in a militia.  They did say that the first clause and second clause of the amendment are related, in that giving us the right to own guns individually would allow us to form a militia should the government get out of control.  The American Revolution was not well organized, but we still won.  Scalia also remarked that the 2nd Amendment could be modified to read "Because a well regulated militia is necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed."

What does "bear arms" mean?

This is another question that remains unresolved.  Scalia's opinion indicates that he likely would have opted to allow carrying of a gun.  The opinion does, however, explicitly say that concealed carry can be regulated/prohibited.  They court was silent on open carry, so that may very well be OK, but we will need a test case.  Will someone please volunteer to walk around DC with a shotgun strapped to your back?

What laws are likely to be challenged?

Many of them.  I'm sure prohibitions on concealed carry will be challenged even though I don't think these will necessarily be overturned.  I think there is a decent chance that assault weapon bans in states like California could be in danger.  Chicago's gun ban will likely be overturned quickly, as it was very similar to DCs.  

Who won?

Freedom.

Who lost?

DC Mayor Fenti, who was so adamant in sending this case to the Supreme Court despite the mayors of other cities warning him that it would foil all of their efforts.  His stock just dropped.

Bitter Americans? You bet.

Barack Obama is taking some heat today due to remarks that some small-town Americans are "bitter" and sometimes will only vote for a candidate based on one issue, be it guns, gay marriage, religion, etc.  

While I can't speak for all Americans, I can tell you that there are a lot of people in my former home state of Michigan who are very bitter.  Their economy is in the tank, and both democrats and republicans have caused their economy to tank.  

I try to not vote only on one issue, unless a candidate is a total loon when it comes to that issue.  I even disagreed with Ron Paul on a few issues yet I still supported him vehemently until he practically dropped out of the race.  

Below is the video where Obama explains the bitterness.

The end of gun control?

An interesting tidbit that I learned about from the VCDL.  During the last democrat debate, Hillary Clinton stated that she know longer believed in having a national gun registry.  Here is just one more instance in which she has toned down her liberal past to adopt a more moderate rhetoric.  

Which is the real Clinton?  The Goldwater supporter from the 60's?  The hardcore liberal of the 90's?  Or the supposed realist of the 00's?  Nobody knows.  And that's why she's not getting my vote, though I do think she would be less damaging to the country than Rudy, McCain, or Obama.

New Toy

The CZ 75 P-01 is quickly becoming well known as one of the best 9mm pistols in production. I picked one up over the weekend and must say that I am very impressed with it so far.



CZ 75 P-01

For those of you who aren't familiar with CZ firearms, Česká zbrojovka a.s., Uherský Brod was founded almost 70 years ago in the Czech Republic and continues to make pistols, shotguns, and rifles to this day. The CZ P-01 is based upon the CZ 75, the most copied pistol ever, which was introduced in (you guessed it) 1975. They were very hard to obtain for Americans until 1991 when the Iron Curtain fell and importation from former Warsaw Pact countries became normalized. CZ pistols are now imported by CZ-USA.



The CZ 75 P-01 is a 9mm DA/SA compact semi-automatic pistol introduced in 2001. It is considered to be a "third generation" CZ 75 (the second generation being the 75B). Unlike the original CZ 75, it features a decocking lever instead of a manual safety, so it can (and should) be carried in DA mode. I think that this is tactically better than 1911 style weapons with a safety, because in a time-critical situation, additional levers to manipulate can spell the difference between life and death. Not to mention the fact that I simply don't trust safeties, no matter how much they have been used in the past. Not that this gun lacks safeties; it has a firing pin block, half-cock notch, and an inertial firing pin. It features an M3 rail to accept lasers or lights, such as those made by Surefire. The barrel is made from aircraft grade aluminum and is covered with a chemical resistant black polycoat finish that also looks really cool. The grip is a checkered rubber that feels great; it really fits well in my hand. Also, according to CZ, this is also the only NATO spec pistol that is available to the public in the same form as used in the military (NSN 1005-16-000-8619 for all of you NATO commanders out there). Also, now that the Clinton gun ban has expired (and I don't live in one of those DEEP BLUE states like California), mine came with 2, 14-round magazines (meaning I can carry 15 roundsif I choose to).

The CZ 75 P-01 has also gone through very rigorous quality tests that included thousands of dry-firings, decockings, disassemblies, drop tests (from 3 meters). It was also frozen, submerged in mud, sand, and ice. After all these tests it was able to keep functioning properly.

Considering the brand reputation, the multitude of tests it endured, and the endless favorable reviews, at $450-$550, this pistol is probably the best bargain out there.


This pistol is compact enough to be carried concealed, although there are not too many holster options yet. However, there are enough accessories that this should not be a deterrent to purchasing a P-01.

My first time shooting the P-01 was this weekend at Anthony Arms, a very good range in the Pittsburgh area. I shot 200 rounds through the gun without any failures. The recoil was small and manageable, and the gun was far more accurate than me.

All in all, it is a very impressive looking gun, and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a quality compact 9mm.

For a more detailed review, I recommend reading this article by Mad Ogre in Concealed Carry Magazine.