The Question of Liberals

In a follow up to last night's Gun Nuts Radio, I want to further address the question of "how" or "what" we should do about liberal gun owners. There were a lot of good points made on last night's show, from points on education to changing the political culture; however none of these points provide a unified solution for dealing with Obama-voting gun owners. The reason for that is because there isn't one solution for liberal gun owners. To further elaborate, let's look at two different examples, Breda's and mine.

Breda

My good friend and co-host has recently declared that she's no longer going to take liberals to the range, because she doesn't believe that it's right for her to support someone who rationalized away Obama's record because they believed in "change". She will however continue to provide educational materials, and guidance in that direction, just not ammo and range time.

Caleb

Conversely, I'm going to keep trying to get as many "liberals" shooting as possible, to include letting them shoot my guns and ammo. I will also, as Breda, provide education, instruction, and guidance if requested.

Where the show hit a sticky point was that some people seemed to believe that I was saying that my way was "the right way" and that Breda was wrong for her actions. Far from it, actually, because I believe that even though one approach may work for me does not mean that I endorse that approach from everyone. It's up to the individual to decide where their line is on how much they'll support liberal shooters, just because someone has a different line from me doesn't make them wrong or me right.

Of course I want us to evangelize liberals and try to convert them into card-carrying "gun nuts" - but I don't want people to do things with which they're uncomfortable, or worse yet to burn themselves out trying to "go therefore and make disciples". For any sort of outreach to be successful, your heart has to be in it, because people can tell if you're insincere - I would much rather have Breda education and direct than take people to the range, because her heart is in that. I would also never presume to tell another individual gun owner that their way of proselytizing the unwashed heathens is bad or wrong simply because their methods weren't my methods.

Ultimately, it's up to each and every individual gun owner to find your comfort level in reaching out to other side, and then doing what you can. We definitely reached a consensus last night that we need to continue education and outreach to these people, but it's up to you and me to find out exactly what method is most effective for you.

Gun Nuts: Liberals, Guns, and Education

Last night's Gun Nuts Radio was in 1 word - great. The discussion ran the gamut from educational issues, to how we should treat them, and what sort of "evangelism" we should do for our fellow gun owners who happen to be Obama voters/liberals. As usual, you can download the show by clicking here, or by clicking the embedded player below to go to the show page. You can also click this link for an .mp3 copy of the show.



Of course, you can also subscribe to the podcast via iTunes - click here for instructions on how to get Gun Nuts on your iTunes or Zune.

Next week's show we'll be talking about the Alamo - both from a historical point of view as well as what lessons modern gun owners can take from the Alamo.

Gun Nuts Tonight: Much Ado About Nothing

Tonight on Gun Nuts Radio, we're going to be tackling what has become in light of the most recent election, a rather sticky issue. Namely, how should "libertarian/conservative" gun owners act and treat gun owners that voted for Obama? Where do we draw the line with our message? Should we embrace them into the fold and try to evangelize them in the name of "liberty", or should we let them lie in the bed that they made?

As always, we encourage your comments. I imagine that there will be some strong opinions about tonight's topic, so we want you to join the conversation by calling in at 347-539-5436. Tonight's show promises to be an interesting show topically, as Breda and I are of two different minds on the issue; which means that your feedback as the listener is even more valuable. Again, that's tonight at 9pm Eastern time at www.blogtalkradio.com/gunnuts! Be there!

Shooting Sports Vocabulary: Barney Magazine

If you're new to competitive shooting, you may hear the term "Barney Magazine" used from time to time, and wonder what exactly it is that people are talking about. This term is usually used by shooters who are, shall we say, no longer in the flower of their youth.

The term "Barney magazine" or more commonly "barney mag" is used to describe a magazine with a single bullet in it. This is for people with 10 round magazines, where they have their 1 bullet magazine, which they load into the gun, chamber the round, eject the now empty magazine, and then insert a full, 10 round magazine. This allows you to have the gun at "division capacity" (10+1).

Of course, that doesn't answer the question as to where the term comes from...unless you have an extensive knowledge of TV shows that were off the air before I was born. If you're familiar Andy Griffith Show, you'll know where this is heading. One of the characters, Barney Fife was a local cop who kept a single bullet in his pocket. 1 bullet in the pocket, 1 round in the magazine...and thus you get "Barney magazine." Amazing how pop culture influences different aspects of our lives, isn't it?

LAPD now using Benelli M4

As of February 9th, Beretta USA received a contract from the Los Angeles Police Department to produce the Benelli M4 semi-automatic shotgun for the LAPD. The shotgun is not going to replace the general issue shotgun, however it's been approved for use by patrol officers under and "Individual Purchase" program, where the officers can buy a shotgun for official use from a list of approved weapons.

From 07M4tactical-12ga-Desert

While I doubt that the LAPD version will be carrying the digital camo you see on the image, other than that it is a representative image of the shotgun now available to officers with LAPD.

The gun is also available to the general public as well - it's not an LE only gun, as unlike certain companies Beretta (which owns Benelli) is great about marketing their guns to the civilian market as well. In fact, if I were in the market for a tactical shotgun, the Benelli M4 would be near the top of my list. The Benelli M4 retails for around $1700.

Last Night's Gun Nuts Radio: Women and Guns

If I've said it once, I've said it a million times - if you didn't listen to the live broadcast of last night's show on Women and Self-Defense, then you missed out. Luckily for you, you have a lot of options to download the conversation between Breda, myself, and our main guest Pax. You can click the embedded player below to listen to the show, or you can click here to download an .mp3 copy of the show.



Again, if you missed the show, you missed out. Click here to go to the show page, or click here for instructions on how to subscribe to Gun Nuts Radio on iTunes, and automatically get our shows every week.

Pax was a great guest - it's fascinating to me to be on the outside looking on at that kind of interaction, because I'm not a woman, and I often just don't think about stuff from that point of view. If you're interested in getting your wife/mother/girlfriend/sister/niece/hot chick at Starbucks into shooting, last night's show is a must listen.

Tonight on Gun Nuts: More chicks and guns

That's right, tonight's Gun Nuts Radio we will be revisiting one of our all time most popular topics, women and the shooting sports. Joining us tonight will be Pax, from The Firing Line and The Cornered Cat, as well as a couple of other guests. We'll be looking primarily tonight at the social issues around women carrying firearms in today's world, how they're treated, how other women react, and even "what to tell your mom."

Join us live tonight at 9pm Eastern time for the fastest hour on the internet! As usual, you're invited to join the conversation in the chat room at www.blogtalkradio.com/gunnuts or to call in live at 347-539-5436! See you there at 9pm!

Nighthawk Custom Global Response Pistol

Here is your morning dose of sexay 1911 porn - the Nighthawk Custom Global Response pistol with an Insight Tech-Gear M3X weapon light. Photos by Yamil Sued.



The pistol pictured is the Nighthawk Custom "GRP Recon" - the "Recon" branded pistols differ from the standard Global Response Pistol in that they are built with an integral accessory rail - this particular pistol has an M3X Weapon Light by Insight Tech-Gear mounted on it.



The Global Response Pistol retails for about $2100 without the rail, and $2400 with the rail. The M3X light runs for about $175, and has the following performance specs:

• Interface Options: MIL-STD-1913,Universal, or Rail Grabber TM


• Dimensions: 3.4”L x 1.6”W x 1.6”H


• Weight: 3.9 oz. w/Batteries


• Waterproof: At 20 meters / 66 feet


• Peak Output: 125+ Lumens


• Run Time: 1 Hour


• Lithium Battery Power: 6V from Two 123

Gun Nuts Tonight: Knives and Holsters and Flashlights, oh my!

We talked a little bit last week about tonight's Gun Nuts Radio, which is going to be a "carry gear/gun gear" show, with the exception that to make things interesting, we're not going to be talking about guns.

Our topic will primarly be carry gear other than guns, such as holsters, knives, and flashlights. Speaking of knives, we'll be joined tonight by Jared West, president of Mantis Knives from around 9:20 to 9:40 to talk about their products.

As usual, you can join the conversation on tonight's Gun Nuts Radio by calling us at 347-539-5436. The show goes live at 9pm, and we'd love to have you join us!

Gun Nuts Radio: Gordon Hutchinson

As we had mentioned, Gordon Hutchinson appeared on last night's Gun Nuts Radio. This was easily one of the best shows we've done, Gordon is a natural story teller and was easily able to connect the stories from his excellent book to listening audience.

Click the Gun Nuts Logo to be taken directly to the show! Or if you prefer, click here to download an .mp3 copy of the show.



Of course, you can also subscribe to the podcast by following these simple instructions to hear the show on your iPod/iTunes, or you can do a search in the iTunes store for "Gun Nuts" and it will take you straight to the show.

I can't speak highly enough of Gordon, and the job he did on last night's show. While I often say that "this was a great show" regarding most of the shows we do, listening to Gordon share his story, and the stories of people whose Constitutional rights were trampled was truly inspiring. Click here to listen to the show. From that page, you can also buy a copy of Gordon's book, the Great New Orleans Gun Grab, and a portion of the proceeds will go to support Gun Nuts Radio. Buy two copies, and give one to a liberal. If reading this book doesn't make them a supporter of the right to keep and bear arms, they're a lost cause.

Tonight on Gun Nuts: Gordon Hutchinson

I mentioned yesterday that tonight's Gun Nuts Radio was going to be a great show, and I wasn't lying. Our guest for tonight is Gordon Hutchinson, author of the Great New Orleans Gun Grab, who will be joining us live at 9pm. After an initial Q&A session with Breda and I, we will as always open up the phones to take questions from the audience, you can join us live by calling (347) 539-5436 to join the conversation!

Breda and I are both excited about having Gordon on the show - it's not often that we get to have a prominent pro-gun author on the air, so I hope that you'll join us tonight at 9pm.

The Custom Springfield XD

One of the top secret reasons why I ended up purchasing a Springfield XD Tactical model in .40 S&W is because right before I made the purchase, my copy of American Rifleman showed up in the mail. I had been considering all kinds of plastic guns, and this month's AR featured a nice layout on the Springfield XD...it just felt like fate.

Now, despite the article being overall pretty solid, what really captured my eye was the little blurb on "the custom XD" that ran in a little box down on the corner of one page. Luckily, that entire sub-article can be read at this link, and includes the image of the sexy XD (seXD?) that really captured my eye.

Now, most of those modifications would take the XD out of the production division, and land it square in the Limited/Limited-10 divisions in USPSA, however in IDPA the gun would stay square in the "Enhanced Service Pistol" category even with all the modifications made to the linked gun. It would take you out of Production division in Bianchi Cup as well, which specifies a minimum 3.5 pound trigger pull and specifically bans Bo-Mar style sights.

That being said, the guys at Springfield Armory's custom shop clearly do good work - my XD is going to take a little trip out there sooner than later to have a couple of minor alterations made.