How to collect guns and irritate PETA

One of my recent articles, entitled “Timmy and Me,” stirred up even Moore controversy than I expected. But, fortunately, most of the email about the article was positive. In fact, several readers wrote to say that they had decided to make their first gun purchase after reading the article. A few even asked if I had any recommendations. Since I have several, I decided to write this article.

Before I get started with the recommendations, I want to make sure that prospective gun owners develop a healthy respect for firearms and for the consequences of using deadly force. That’s why I recommend that everyone take a firearms safety course before making that first gun purchase, even if their state laws don’t require it.

I also suggest that prospective gun owners pick up a copy of Into the Kill Zone by David Klinger. Klinger is a former policeman who, years ago, had to take the life of an armed citizen in South Central Los Angeles. Taking the life of an armed assailant is serious business, even when it is legally and morally justified. The movies don’t accurately portray the horror of deadly force but Klinger’s book comes close. As such, it helps to convey the awesome responsibility of gun ownership better than any account I have ever read.

After you finish the course and the book, you should be ready for that first gun purchase. Just in case you decide to buy a gun safe first, I have decided to include a list of the first several guns you will need to help fill that safe. After that, you’re on your own.

Ruger 10/22 rifle-This was not the first gun I bought, but it should have been. The .22 is cheap and fun to shoot. There is nothing more fun than picking up an economy pack of 550 Federal hollow points (for less than $10 at Wal-mart) on a boring Saturday afternoon. But beware: you can empty the whole carton in less than half a day, if you get carried away. Also, if you know a really strident anti-gun liberal, see if you can get him to fire a few rounds through your 10/22. If you can, chances are he’ll be voting Republican by the end of the year.

Remington 870 Express shotgun-This is another fun gun to shoot and it is versatile. I bought my first 870 with an 18-inch open choke barrel for home defense. My second 870 came with a 26-inch barrel and a modified choke, good for varmint hunting and well-suited to deliver buckshot. The 870 can also be purchased with a 20-inch fully rifled slug barrel for deer hunting. Whichever version you purchase, extra barrels can also be bought, ready for quick interchange. It should only take a novice about 30 seconds to change barrels. Needless to say, I recommend this gun in 12-gauge.

Ruger .357 magnum revolver-If you are at least 21 years of age, you will probably want to consider a handgun for personal protection. The .357 is a great choice because it allows novice shooters to use .38 caliber loads, which have less recoil. The .38 is also arguably better for home defense. The 4-inch barrel provides good accuracy and is small enough to fit inside a glove box (check your state laws first). It can also serve as a good sidearm for hunters. Four or six inch barrels both work for that purpose. Also, Ruger makes a snub nose that is ideal for those with concealed carry permits. I bought a Model 640 snub nose back when I was still doing business with Smith and Wesson.

Marlin 30-30 lever action rifle-In 2000, my friend Lloyd Bass invited me on my first hunting trip to Ivanhoe, NC. Shortly thereafter, I bought a Marlin 30-30 with an inexpensive Tasco Scope (mounted and ready) for $289 at Dick’s Sporting Goods. One hour and ten minutes into my hunting career, I put a 170-grain Winchester bullet through the heart of my first white-tail deer. I have been hooked ever since. This is a great brush gun, good for hunting deer up to 100 yards.

Browning A-Bolt .243 Micro Hunter-Everyone has a favorite gun, and this is mine. If safety concerns drive you out of the brush and into a tree stand, you will want to have a long-range deer rifle. The .243 is simply perfect for the small white tails in North Carolina, especially if you usually take shots under 100 yards. The 100-grain Winchester Supreme round packs enough punch to do the job. If you decide to step up to something bigger for deer, you can use the .243 as a varmint rifle. A 55-grain silver tip is a great round for coyotes and other large varmints.

Ruger Super Blackhawk .44 magnum revolver-When I stopped carrying my 30-30 into the woods, I decided I needed something in my back-pack to ward off the black bears that inhabit the woods of North Carolina. The Super Blackhawk is an inexpensive single-action with a very solid frame to absorb recoil. No North Carolina black bear is going to walk through the 275-grain hunting loads I keep in my Ruger. The only thing that surprises me is how much fun this gun can be at the shooting range.

Glock .40 or 9mm semi-automatic pistol-Did I say that my .243 was my favorite gun? Well, the Glock .40 (model 23) is a close second. I got this gun for self-defense based on its reputation for reliability. Indeed, it has never jammed in the years since I bought it. What surprises me is the gun’s accuracy. I use 155-grain Winchester silver tips in my Glock. It is nice to be able to explode two liter bottles at 30 yards with a single round. With that kind of accuracy (coupled with power that rivals the .357) it is also a good side arm to take into the woods.

The 9mm version is not as good for self-defense, but great for hunting small game. Glock makes a midsized version with a ported barrel that is extremely accurate. It is a lot of fun for hunting raccoons, foxes, and bobcats. If you think I’m crazy, I got the idea from Ted Nugent (a perfectly sane man, indeed!).

Remington Model 700 .270/Remington Model Seven .308/Browning Stainless Stalker 30.06/Browning Automatic Rifle 7mm Magnum-If I ever move back to Texas, I will need something a little bigger than my .243 for those Texas mule deer. I can think of no better round than the .270 for that purpose. It has plenty of power with a very flat trajectory. The Model 700 version has a good feel with proven reliability. But, since a second long-range rifle is the last essential gun I recommend, it calls for serious thought about several issues, including versatility. For example, what if you intend to hunt mule deer and wild boar?

If you do, I would recommend the Model Seven in .308. A 150-grain rapid expansion round will take care of the mule deer, while a 180-grain slow expansion round will take care of wild boar. The 20-inch Model Seven barrel makes the gun easy to handle in the brush.

But what if your hunting needs include, varmints, white tails, mule deer, boar, and even elk? There is no better and more versatile gun for all those needs than the 30.06. The Browning Stainless Stalker is recommended, largely due to its reliability and weather resistance. The 30.06 is about the only gun with readily available loads for varmints and large game alike.

For elk hunters who think that the 30.06 comes up a little short for large game, the 7mm is a perfect solution. I recommend the BAR because it comes in a 24-inch barrel (as opposed to 26-inches in most models) and allows for a quick second shot, if necessary.

Well, thanks for listening to my opinions. I have to go read the hundreds of emails from hunters and gun owners who have different ideas about brands, calibers, and ammunition. I also have to read all of my hate mail from PETA. There’s nothing quite like a little Second Amendment diversity.

Mike S. Adams (www.DrAdams.org) will be signing copies of “Welcome to the Ivory Tower of Babel” at Trover Shop in Washington, D.C. on July 21 at 12:30 p.m. The store is located on 221 Pennsylvania Avenue S.E. on Capitol Hill.

IF you are going to encourage gun ownership for self defense then the owner of the firearm needs to know the rules of ownership, especially if they RTC or CCW.

Another little piece of reading should be the FBI shootout in Miami in 1987. Two bad guys and five FBI shot it out. Most citizens believe one shot and the bad guy dies. Well the Miami shootout was 2 minutes and 43 seconds before the bad guys were toast. This was at a range of 10 to 20 yards.

Final total two bad guys and two FBI agents died in the shoot out.

HERE are the rules

5 Rules of Conceal and Carry

"YOUR CONCEALED WEAPON IS FOR PROTECTION OF INNOCENT LIFE ONLY."

"KNOW EXACTLY WHEN YOU CAN USE YOUR WEAPON."

"IF YOU CAN RUN AWAY SAFELY- RUN, RUN RUN!"

"DISPLAY YOUR WEAPON, GO TO JAIL."

"DON'T LET YOUR EMOTIONS GET THE BEST OF YOU."

Detail

5 Rules of Conceal and Carry (like a pistol)

1. YOUR CONCEALED WEAPON IS FOR PROTECTION OF INNOCENT LIFE ONLY.

Draw it solely in preparation to protect yourself or an innocent third party from the wrongful and criminal activities of another.

2. KNOW EXACTLY WHEN YOU CAN USE YOUR WEAPON.

The criminal adversary must have or reasonably appear to have:

A. The ABILITY to inflict serious bodily injury. He is armed or reasonably appears to be armed.

B. The OPPORTUNITY to inflict serious bodily harm. He is positioned to harm you with his weapon, and,

C. His INTENT (hostile actions or words) indicates that he means to place you in jeopardy - to do you serious or fatal physical harm.

When all three of these "attack potential" elements are in place simultaneously, then you are facing a reasonably perceived deadly threat that justifies an emergency deadly force response. Note that these conditions may be defined differently in certain circumstances. For example, a small woman may be justified in using deadly force with a handgun against a much stronger male who is unarmed and attempting to rape or kill her. For a male vs. male encounter the defendant probably would not be justified unless possibly if he was physically handicapped, elderly, etc. This is known as disparity of force.

3. IF YOU CAN RUN AWAY SAFELY- RUN, RUN, RUN!

Just because you are armed doesn't necessarily mean that you must confront a bad guy at gunpoint. Develop your situation awareness skills so that you can be alert to detect and avoid trouble as much as possible. Keep in mind that if you successfully evade a potential confrontation, the single negative consequence involved might only be your bruised ego, which should heal quickly with mature rationalization. But if you force a confrontation, and it escalates into deadly force, you risk the possibility of death or serious injury to yourself and any friends, family members, or innocent bystanders that may be present.

Also you face the possibility of criminal liability and/or financial ruin from a civil lawsuit as a result of your actions. Flee if you can - fight only as a last resort.

Naturally, there are circumstances in which you may be able to flee but it would not be in your best interest or judgment to do so. For example, a situation that you could easily flee from when alone may be difficult to safely avoid if your family was with you. Also it may be a judgment/ethics call on whether or not to fight or flee based on what is happening to potential victims around you.

For example, a gunman may be threatening the life of someone else and not even notice you. If you leave the scene, and go call 911 and just wait for the police to show up, you may have to deal with guilt and emotional issues that result if the gunman kills someone. In contrast, if you intervene, then you may risk your own life. The gunman may have a partner, which you have not identified and involvement may find you outgunned. Remember that self-preservation, and keeping your loved ones safe should be your first priorities. Always remember to stay calm and quickly analyze the situation at hand. Use good judgment on how you will react to any given circumstance.

4. DISPLAY YOUR WEAPON, GO TO JAIL.

You should expect to be arrested by police at gunpoint, and be charged with a crime anytime your concealed handgun is seen by another citizen in public, regardless of how unintentional, innocent, or justified the situation might seem.

Choose a method of carry that reliably keeps your gun hidden from public view at all times. You have no control over how a stranger will react to seeing (or learning about) your concealed weapon. He of she might become alarmed and report you as a "man or woman with a gun". Depending on his or her feelings about firearms, this person might maliciously embellish their story in an attempt to have your gun seized by police or in order to get you arrested. Even though your jacket only blew open for a moment, giving a brief glimpse of your gun, that person may tell the police that you were waving it around like a homicidal maniac. An alarmed citizen who reports a "man or woman with a gun" is going to be a lot more credible to police than you are when you are stopped because you match the "suspect's" description and you are found to have a concealed handgun in your possession. Before you deliberately expose your gun in public, ask yourself "is this worth going to jail for?" The only time this question should warrant a "yes" response is when an adversary has at least both the ABILITY and INTENT and is actively seeking the OPPORTUNITY to do you great harm.

Also, remember that proper concealment of a weapon is more than just covering it up so that it is not physically visible. You want to remove as much as possible any signs that you are armed. For example, you would not wear a tight T-shirt that shows the lines of your gun printing through it, especially if that T-shirt has a firearm related logo or statement on it. Also, a black nylon fanny-pack or a photographer's vest may, in certain areas or in certain modes of dress tell any half-educated person that you are packing a gun. It is also not usually a very good idea to let too many people know that you carry a gun. This fact should be limited to your immediate family and select friends who are "gun people" also. Please, for your sake and the sake of others around you - be discreet!

5. DON'T LET YOUR EMOTIONS GET THE BEST OF YOU.

When you are armed, you must realize that you just lost your right to initiate ANY type of confrontation that could possibly escalate into a violent encounter. You must now have a very mellow attitude on life and your fellow mankind.

You just lost the right to flip off the motorist who just cut you off in traffic. You have to ignore the scumbag who just "wolf-whistled" at your wife/girlfriend. If someone wants to pick a fight with you, you lost the right to respond in any way other than a kind, friendly manner while walking away. As an armed person you must be more likely and willing to avoid trouble that an unarmed person would be. You have the legal and moral obligation of de-escalating any situation that you are presented with unless you are faced by someone displaying all three of the "attack potential" elements. Carrying a loaded firearm among your fellow citizens is an awesome responsibility that is not to be taken lightly.

Remember, once you strap on your weapon, you must carry with it a great measure of discretion and judgment, along with an easy-going attitude.

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