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IN: Self-defense killings skew Indianapolis murder rate
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As 2016 comes to a close, homicide detectives and reporters and politicians will cite murder statistics to gauge the relative safety of Indianapolis and its residents, but those numbers will be based on a flawed accounting and reporting system that supplies data which is then subject to criminal justice interpretation.
There have been approximately 161 homicides in Indianapolis this year. The definition of homicide is the intentional taking of a life at the hands of another.
There have been approximately 139 murders this year. The definition of murder is the taking of life with criminal intent. 144 people were murdered in Indianapolis in 2015, a tally many at the time called a record. |
Home Defense - Mastering Bushes vs. Bushmasters
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A while back, we wrote about an inane NBC Today Show segment that recommended homeowners rely on car keys and wasp spray to defend themselves against burglars and other home invaders. A former New York City detective counseled viewers to �buy a can of wasp hornet spray in the hardware store or the supermarket [and] keep it by your bedside or the floor� An intruder hit with the spray will be temporarily blinded.� If the spray didn�t do the trick, he advised homeowners to treat the criminal �like royalty� and cooperate fully.
Apart from the likelihood that using any registered pesticide in a manner inconsistent with its labeling would violate federal law... |
CA: Another civil war, really?
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When the confederacy decided to leave the union, the federal government did not wish them bon voyage. It launched a full scale war; and upon winning the war, the principle that the union could not be dissolved was enshrined.
As one of the states with the most aversion to guns and the strictest gun and ammunition control laws, California could not be in a worse position to fight the full force of the United States military should they somehow succeed in the quixotic quest to start a second civil war.
Those wishing to secede will have discovered too late that the purpose of the second amendment was to be able to resist a government which had become oppressive to them; it was never about shooting squirrels and deer. |
The real story: Black Friday US gun sales
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The New York Post in late November reported stock in gun manufacturers like Smith and Wesson had plummeted following Trump's win. The same day, Fortune magazine ran a report predicting flat or disappointing gun sales in the coming holiday season.
But something curious happened as the holiday season opened. As America's annual Christmas shopping spree began the Friday after Thanksgiving, the FBI received 185,713 requests for gun background checks. Each request means someone somewhere was buying a gun on the country's biggest shopping day. That breaks any record set during the past eight years, and suggests guns will be good business even during a Trump administration. |
Canada: Kellie Leitch Wants to Legalize Mace So Women Can Defend Themselves
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Conservative Party leadership candidate and outspoken politician Kellie Leitch is reportedly planning to endorse the legalization of mace/pepper spray in Canada, as part of a move for women to help defend themselves against violence.
According to a statement posted by her campaign Thursday morning, Leitch wants to only allow for the purchase and use of non-lethal mace sprays "for self-defense purposes," adding that it is just "one way" in helping women defend themselves against violent attacks. |
MN: Report: Gun violence costs Minnesota taxpayers the bulk of $764 million each year
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Your precious Second Amendment rights are kind of expensive. In the Strib, Karen Zamora writes, �An April shooting at a law office on St. Paul's Cathedral Hill exacted a tragic toll, cutting short the promising life of 23-year-old law clerk Chase Passauer. The crime also had major economic repercussions. The costs of the investigation and incarceration, workers' compensation payments and burial expenses added up to roughly $7 million � $2 million of it footed by Minnesota taxpayers. Those figures appear in a study released Thursday by the self-described bipartisan advocacy group Minnesota Coalition for Common Sense. The report focuses on the high, sometimes hidden economic cost of firearm crimes.� |
AL: Alabamian on Trump�s SCOTUS short list would carry on Scalia�s legacy
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To test the �Scalia-ness� of the judges on the president-elect�s list, law professors at the University of California, Berkeley and Mercer University analyzed the legal opinions and compared them to the tendencies of the Reagan appointee. By looking at the use of originialism, citation to Scalia�s work, and the willingness of a judge to dissent or concur, the researchers created a �Scalia Index� to compare each of the 21 members of Trump�s list.
Pryor had one of the highest scores on the index and was only one of three judges to be in the �positive� range. |
Elites Reserve the Right to Decree What is "Fake" and What is "News"
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Legacy media corporations like the New York Times and Washington Post have big problems right now.
Consumption of their product is dropping. Public confidence in them has tanked. And in front of the nation and the world, they blew the biggest political story in decades by continually pushing the falsehood that Donald Trump had no chance to win the presidential election.
Any rational thinker might take some time for introspection and consider a course correction. But rational is rarely a word used to describe the legacy media. |
NC: DA won't press charges in July shooting death
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The Alamance County District Attorney�s Office won't prosecute Gerald Keith Terry, who shot and killed intruder Larry Junious Graves in his home.
�After an extensive investigation into the incident,� the district attorney�s office says in a press release, �the events that evening clearly established that Mr. Terry acted lawfully in self-defense.� |
Dry Fire Training - the 2 x 2 x 2 Drill
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The price of ammunition has doubled since I retired from law enforcement and while the supply shortage has ebbed, the price has not receded and I doubt it ever will. Because of this, I remain a supporter of dry fire training as many combative pistol skills can be mastered without ever firing a shot. That said, the most essential of fundamental skills requires live fire and for most of us, a lot of it! Trigger control is the separation of the index finger from the rest of the hand. It is in direct contradiction to how the hand is designed to work which is four fingers working together in opposition to the thumb. |
DNC Chair Frontrunner Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) is an Anti-Second Amendment Radical
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It appears that those gun rights supporters hoping that the leaders of the Democratic Party would engage in a moment of self-reflection following their historic defeat in the 2016 election may be left wanting. Despite having been routed in contests throughout the middle of the country, Democrats are on the verge of electing Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.), an avowed opponent of gun rights, to Chair the Democratic National Committee. Ellison has made clear that he believes the Democratic Party should not only pursue a litany of severe gun control measures, but that the party should also directly attack the Second Amendment.
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KS: Kettler frustrated by state, local officials in federal firearms case
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Jeremy Kettler feels that state and local officials failed in their duties in the criminal case against him and Shane Cox of Chanute.
Both men are appealing their November 15 convictions on federal firearms charges, and said the case is expected to go to the United States Supreme Court by the judge who presiding over their trial.
The charges stem from a 2014 raid on Tough Guys, a Chanute military surplus store owned by Cox. Kettler was convicted on one count of possessing an unregistered silencer. Cox was convicted on eight counts of manufacturing and marketing unregistered firearms. |
The New York Times Just Accidentally Debunked the Gun Control Fairy Tale
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As part of its never-ending, ideologically driven campaign to undermine gun rights, the New York Times ran a big 5,000-plus word story last month about mass shootings. Creating hostility to guns was the obvious goal of this �news� report.
But buried in all that verbiage was a remarkable admission. A big majority of shooters already are in violation of gun laws.
�The New York Times examined all 130 shootings last year in which four or more people were shot, at least one fatally, and investigators identified at least one attacker. � 64 percent of the shootings involved at least one attacker who violated an existing gun law.� |
Smith & Wesson 2Q EPS, Sales Exceed Forecasts
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Smith & Wesson Holding (SWHC) recorded fiscal second quarter results that handily beat Wall Street's forecasts, as weapons sales showed big gains over a year ago, and topped forecasts.
However, the earnings report won't do much to inform investors of the biggest overhang the company and its stock faces: whether the successful presidential campaign of Donald Trump will affect weapons sales.
The stock fell 7% in after hours trading Thursday following the release of the quarterly results, slipping to $22.31. |
The more you know: Tinnitus
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Suppressors are one of the fastest growing parts of the firearms industry at the moment. And for good reason � given the right combination of host, suppressor and ammunition, shooting goes from fun to awesome. Besides that, they also just look cool. However, for many of us who have a lifetime of shooting under their belt, some form of hearing loss is a given. A suppressor in conjunction with quality ear muffs and/or plugs can reduce your exposure to damaging noises. Here�s a brief look at tinnitus, one of the more common types of hearing damage among shooters. |
GOP senator wants gun rights for those using legal marijuana
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U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski is a Republican who opposed a marijuana ballot initiative in her home state of Alaska, but now that it passed, wants to make sure users don�t lose their gun rights.
Alaska voters first approved a medical marijuana initiative in 1998 by a large margin, then in 2014 became the third state to legalize recreational marijuana, following Colorado and Washington, when 53 percent of voters approved a subsequent measure. However, the ATF has long held that any sale or possession of firearms by those who use marijuana, even if allowed by state law, remains criminal. |
NRA member survey full of �malarkey�, columnist says
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A Roanaoke Times columnist shed light on a survey by the National Rifle Association he received in the mail that asked pointed questions about viewpoints of current and potential NRA members � a gesture he referred to as �malarkey.�
In his column, Dan Casey poked fun at the open ended questions aimed at gauging members� concern with how political leaders treat the Second Amendment and views on gun policy.
�Gun bans, ammo bans, gun registration, legislation, court cases, the U.N. global gun ban treaty, the freedom-hating media elite � the attacks will be hitting everywhere, every day,� Casey says, describing the survey. |
NC: Establishing a waiting period for handgun sales could reduce North Carolina suicides
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In spite of myths surrounding the issue, much is known about the ways people commit suicide. We know 86 percent of people who attempt suicide make the decision to do so within eight hours of acting, according to Harvard�s T.H. Chan School of Public Health in 2013. Furthermore, according to the Brady Campaign, in 2016 over half of all completed suicides involve firearms, and with all of the news coverage surrounding gun violence, little seems to report that two-thirds of gun related deaths are suicides. This means people are not meticulously planning. They instead are making impulsive decisions to end their own life, and if that decision involves the use of a gun, they are more likely to die. |
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| The right of the people to keep and bear...arms shall not be infringed. A well regulated militia, composed of the body of the people, trained to arms, is the best and most natural defense of a free country... � James Madison, I Annals of Congress 434, June 8, 1789. |
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