Arizona – -(Ammoland.com)- The National Shooting Sports Foundation cannot get enough praise for representing the firearms industry, a crucial American business sector, and staging the Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade (SHOT) show every year.
They celebrated their 40th consecutive year this year, with exhibits stretching for 12.5 miles of aisles. You could see every booth if you spent 22 seconds at each. It defies description, and you can only see it if you’re actually in the business, it’s not a public show like the NRA Show.
It also differs with 2,500 members of the trade press (like me) and extensive sections for law enforcement and international pavilions. I can save time and skip miles of outdoor clothing, wish I had more time for miles of gun manufacturing gear, and can’t get enough fab coffee in the palatial press office with non-stop contacts and info.
Let me clue you in with some bullet points.
HB 38, the national carry bill
Learned: though it made it through the House, got a lot of attention, but may not be the bill that moves. When (if?) the Senate moves its version of a reciprocity bill (S 446), it’s the better bill (one page vs. almost nine). It’s clean (without some fix NICS problems and the federalized gun-free zones I wrote about last time, https://www.gunlaws.com/PageNineIndex.htm.
Gun Confiscations
Almost everyone who was asked about what they would do if a Virgin Islands scenario played out here, and armed agents came to your door to confiscate your guns, people said they would lie, insist they were stolen, or they sold the guns, give up a few and keep the rest, hide them real well, dig a hole, leave ahead of time with them, deny ownership, pretend to be out, deny entry (with no thought of how), demand to see a warrant; basically, no resistance offered….
See the SHOT Show
I considered doing a slide show and commentary as in years past, but NSSF and others do such an amazing job of it, mine is pale by comparison.
Flickr Photo gallery www.flickr.com/photos/shotshow/
In case the official picture shows miss this image, I call it Gort — a new police fashion statement from Damascus Gear:
National Training Week becomes National Training MONTH!
After encouraging colleagues for a long while, to establish a national training period, the National Shooting Sports Foundation has adopted the month of August to encourage people to go to the range, take friends to the range, introduce people to the shooting sports, you know the drill. Not modeled after the groundbreaking National Training Week, where we celebrate Freedom with Fireworks and Firearms during Fourth of July week, the “Let’s Go Shooting” campaign is under development and you’ll be seeing and hearing a lot about it in the months to come. Shootingsportsmonth.org
Fix Fix NICS
No time now, consider this a teaser, a lot could be better, including remedies for bad listings and listers, I’ll spell it out later.
50-State Women’s March on Washington
Plans are underway for one female representative of each state to go to D.C. and meet with legislators about their concerns over the Second Amendment. As we all know, men and women are equal, so the women should get equal treatment when they seek meetings, right? June 19 – 20, lots online for The D.C. Project. www.agirlandagun.org/dc-project/
Alternative Mass Media Convention 9/20/18
Staged just before the Gun Rights Policy Conference, this year at the Hyatt Regency in Rosemont, TX. www.ammcon.org. In cooperation with The Polite Society Podcast and the Self Defense Radio Network. The Second Amendment Foundation, which stages Gun Rights Policy Conference, is a co-sponsor.
New Gun Safety Rules Issued: No Trigger Control Included!
NSSF has produced a new booklet, Firearms Safety Depends on You, which omits any mention of trigger control in its 10-step “Basics of Safe Gun Handling” list. Because the 2017 copyright notice forbids reproducing any portion of the 20-page booklet — like its safety rules! — without reproducing the whole booklet! I can’t show you the rules NSSF has invented. The list, in its ungrammatical format, also has no explicit provision for keeping a loaded gun ready. This one needs to go back to the drawing board. I can’t be the only person who noticed this. I sure hope they didn’t print too many of these.
The LEO Side Advances
I am well aware the threats our nation, and our incredibly brave defenders face, is monumental and growing. Companies like this one, DamascusGear, packed room after room in the LEO section of the SHOT Show, filled with beefy guys who looked like they could wear gear like this and run ten miles. We need these people.
One look in Randy Balko’s book, Rise of the Warrior Cop, or a cursory glance at the growing militarism of the police state gives the average person the shivers. How do we balance these powers? What would you do if people like this showed up at your door, without cause? Who keeps power like this under control? Serpico (which didn’t end when the film did) on steroids, with armor, it’s an eye opener.
Negligent Entrustment
SHOT includes an extensive set of seminars, and no way to attend them all and get anything else done. I attended this one, intrigued by the title, and without going to deeply into an hour of legal thought, FFLs (dealers, not the public) have a duty under the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) to be careful about giving or selling a firearm to someone who, despite background checks, apparently shouldn’t have one. How do you tell? It’s a little gray. Obvious drunks. People who seem suicidal (that was a fascinating exploration). Straw purchasers (amazing how blatant or stupid some of them are, we heard stories). Yes, there’s much more to it, this is why you attend. How many people will have even read this far?
United State Concealed Carry Association
This educational outfit is a continually growing force in the industry, had a presence and banners that couldn’t be missed, they were splashed all across the main floor, right next to radio row and the primary escalators between the two main show floors. I’ve got to tell you, it’s an honor to write a column for their Concealed Carry Magazine, and to enjoy the company of the staff members I’ve gotten to know.
About GunLaws.com:
Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Bloomfield Press, founded in 1988, is the largest publisher and distributor of gun-law books in the country. Our website, gunlaws.com, features a free national directory to gun laws and relevant contacts in all states and federally, along with our unique line of related books and DVDs. “After Your Shoot” for media review is available on request, call 800-707-4020. Our authors are available for interview, call to schedule. Call for cogent positions on gun issues, informed analysis on proposed laws, talk radio that lights up the switchboard, fact sheets and position papers. As we always say, “It doesn’t make sense to own a gun and not know the rules.” Visit:www.gunlaws.com