Colorado Universities Vary In CCW Policies: Police at the University of Northern Colorado and the University of Colorado say allowing concealed weapons on campus is more trouble than its worth, but Colorado State University is sticking to its policy that allows permit-holders to carry their guns... http://www.9news.com/news/article.aspx?storyid=69940 --- Finding A Gun At The Scene Of A Gunfight: A New Hampshire man who came upon the scene of a fatal shooting of a police officer picked up the officer's handgun and used it to fatally shoot the officer's assailant. (This is why some instructors of large classes conduct drills in which each student has to pick up someone else's firearm and use it. I am partial to the concept of mastering and carrying one model of handgun but agree that it's useful to be competent with many.) http://www.foxnews.com/story/0%2C2933%2C271853%2C00.html --- Florida Man Arrested For Beating Burglar: A Broward County man, frustrated with the inability of the sheriff's department to control burglaries in his neighborhood, got a bit vigorous in his attempts to recover items stolen from the home of his estranged wife and children. He now faces charges of kidnapping and aggravated assault. The burglar has already been released from custody. http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-cburglary11may12%2C0%2C4637370.story?coll=sfla-home-headlines --- In The Washington Times?: A former surgery professor from southern California uses space in The Washington Times to expound a bunch of misinformation about the Second Amendment. (Many of his claims are thoroughly debunked in Clayton Cramer's recent book Armed America: The Story of How and Why Guns Became as American as Apple Pie.) http://www.washtimes.com/commentary/20070512-102003-3818r.htm --- Profiting Off Tragedy: ...Take, for instance, Fred McChesney, a gun control supporter who, according to the Associated Press, bought up dozens of domain names with frightening connotations such as CampusKillings.com, VirginiaTechMurders.com, and SlaughterInVirginia.com... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/NathanTabor/2007/05/13/capitalizing_on_an_american_tragedy --- From John Farnam: 8 May 07 Battery-powered optics, from an LEO friend and Range Officer: "I've had an EOTech on my duty-AR for over a year. It has run just fine all that time, serving me well. During a range exercise last week, the illuminated reticle my EOTech started blinking, indicating low power. I routinely carry spare batteries, so I popped in two new ones. To my dismay, the sight would now not even turn on! On the way home, I was deciding how to ship my EOTech back to the factory for repair, figuring it was inevitable. However, when I got home I decided to check all my batteries. The original two were a year old, and, sure enough, on my battery tester they showed themselves to be nearly dead. Not surprising. What was surprising was that nearly all my spares tested mostly dead also, including the two with which I had replaced the original two! Bottom line was that my entire supply of "spare" batteries was stone dead, and I never suspected it! Such a simple thing could have had serious ramifications under the right circumstances. I learned, and we all should know, that, just because batteries are not being used doesn't mean they are retaining power. Old batteries, even when still in the original packing, may be just as dead as batteries that have been in constant use." Lesson: TEST; DON'T GUESS! It has been said that the next great world conflagration will be won by the civilization with the best battery technology. I suspect that is profoundly true. Batteries are the weak point of all powered optics, and one must know, not just hope, that "spare" batteries are good to go. "Old" batteries is bad news, even when they've done nothing but sit on a shelf! I am persuaded that many of the "problems" that have been reported with EOTechs and Aimpoints are actually battery related. /John (Not to belittle the point about batteries but I once had a LaserGrip fail while teaching in the high desert of Arizona. Replacing the battery failed to correct the problem, which later resolved, using the original battery. It appears that extremely low humidity can create issues with static electricity that may influence devices that use microcurrents, such as my Oehler chronograph. I don't know if sighting devices may be similarly affected. I just checked the EOTech website and noted that some of their devices use N alkaline batteries while the two that use AA batteries can use alkaline, rechargeable or lithium batteries. The latter are reported to have excellent shelf life, while NiMH rechargeable batteries hold their charges poorly. John's friend failed to provide EOTech model and battery type. Comments are welcome.) 8 May 07 Important tactical lessons, from my instructors in SA: "We conducted in-service, force-on-force training with our patrol officers yesterday. We set up high-risk vehicle stop scenarios, ranging from high-jackings, to stolen vehicles, to armed robbery suspects. Students were given information as would have been received by radio dispatch, and thus had some insight into what they were facing. It was a humbling experience for most! Here are important lesson all learned and some had to relearn: (1) AS ONE GETS CLOSER TO THE THREAT, OPTIONS PROGRESSIVELY DRY UP! Smart officers stayed back and behind cover as they gathered information. Foolish ones broke cover and timidly approached dangerous suspects. Most died within two or three meters of the bad guy(s). The obvious lesson: STAY BACK. STAY COVERED. PRESERVE YOUR OPTIONS. (2) PANIC IS A LUXURY ENJOYED (at least for a short time) ONLY BY LOSERS. Panicked officers promptly forgot their training, forgot their sights, and fired wildly, hitting nothing they wanted to hit but succeeding in hitting a great many objects they didn't want to hit! The lesson is: DON'T ALLOW YOURSELF TO PANIC. USE YOUR SIGHTS. AIM YOUR SHOTS. HIT YOUR TARGET AND NOTHING ELSE. If there must be a gunfight, let's end it quickly and decisively! (3) IN ORDER TO WORK EFFECTIVELY TOGETHER, WE MUST COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY. Clearly, many of our officers had seldom worked as part of a team. Team brevity codes and well-drilled SOPs made the difference between a coordinated, synergistic team effort and a group of confused officers that resembled a gaggle of stray chickens! Most kinds a training does not fry brain-cells as does force-on-force exercises. It is tedious and time consuming, but few other forms of training so plainly reveal our weak points!" /John (These points are well taken. However, private citizens (and some officers) may not have advance knowledge of "the problem" and may not have the luxury of being able to draw a firearm legally, in advance of having the justification to fire it. This is why, despite the theoretical advantage of aimed fire, I have increasingly emphasized a continuum of point shooting in the training I offer. While it may be best to maintain distance and cover and to use your sights, when trouble comes to you suddenly and at close range. it's nice to have the means to counter it.) 9 May 07 "Unarmed Forces?" The recent break-up of a plot to gun down unsuspecting American soldiers at Ft Dix, NJ, once again, has many thinking about personal preparedness. The conspicuously obvious solution is that every American officer and staff NCO needs to carry a loaded pistol, on base and off, every waking minute of the day. This will insure armed and competent men and women will always be nearby when a security emergency erupts, and it will serve notice to all who intend us harm that we mean business and that we're not all "good, little victims." Of course, there are risks inherent with the concept of treating staff NCOs and officers like adults. But, there are also risks in continuing to maintain large concentrations of easily-identified, unarmed, defenseless American soldiers in vulnerable places, where existing security forces can be easily overwhelmed. Unfortunately, the current command structure has made the term, "Armed Forces," the latest oxymoron! In any setting, we must maintain our own personal, individual state of readiness. Don't feel like putting on your gun or wearing attire that can conceal it? Don't want to be bothered putting your rifle in the trunk? Is your TTGSW kit in your car? Where is your blade, flashlight? Worried about violating some stupid decree intended to insure that you are a perpetually helpless, frightened victim? These decisions are yours, and your very life depends on them. Unfortunately, some (legal) risk always attaches to maintaining a reasonable state of personal readiness, but it pales in comparison to being unprepared. "Authorities" and politicians are surely not going to tell you any of this! Don't expect someone you don't even know to care about you more than you care about yourself. You are on your own. Be ready. Getting murdered is no fun! /John (I believe that "TTGSW" means "tactical treatment of gunshot wounds.") -- Stephen P. Wenger Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info