Sorry I've been busy....

Had the weirdest meeting ever! Sat in a conference room with the doors
locked with some guy who I think was from Homeland Security, a very
old Hispanic male, and an interpreter. The Homeland Security guy
looked like he should have been and English teacher, the interpreter
looked like a linebacker for the NFL, and he old man looked
like...like an old Mexican with a tattoo on his face and a wooden
ear ring.

After they tried to convince me why they had to talk to me instead of
say, anyone else, we talked for a couple of hours. The old man gave a
great lesson in Meso-American history and politics, and threw in a
quick lesson on religion and something about magic or power or
something.

Anyway, when it was all said and done they gave me a little stone disk
that the old man said was a calendar of some sort, a very intricately
carved wooden box with 'something' locked inside, (he said I would
know what to do with it when I needed it) and one very specific task
to complete; "Save the world".

And apparently there is a dead line.

So, I may not be around much in the next few weeks, but if you see me
after the 21st of December, just a thank you is enough.

More on the Revolver

I have had a couple of emails about the revolver I spoke about in a previous post. I posted this on the S&W Forum and thought I might as well post it here too.

I received this revolver as a gift over Christmas from my Father-in-law. He also gave the boys several rifles that I did not expect. Heck, I never expected to be given a weapon at all. With so much going on, I kind of forgot what he told me about the weapon. A few days later, I emailed him asking for information about the weapon. He emailed me a pdf. file with the following information. Out of respect for the officers family, I have replaced the fallen officers name with "My friend", feeling that was appropriate. Included in the pdf. were copies of the Officers business card, his photo, and a newspaper article about his death.
The following was written to me from my F-I-L;

This revolver was purchased by "My friend" sometime in 1982. "My friend" was a Deputy Sheriff and Armorer in XXX County, Texas. He had “tuned” this pistol and was using it as one of his duty weapons.

"My friend" was shot with his own gun after being hit in the head with a full can of beer while investigating a domestic disturbance, 1986 in XXX. His attacker was later found “Not Guilty” by a jury in XXX Texas where the trial had been moved on a change of venue.

"My friend" died almost six months after being shot due to complications from his injury

"My friend" and I had been Friends and Hunting Partners for years. I served as a Pall Bearer (the only non-Law Enforcement) at his funeral. The funeral was held at XXX, Texas where he had served as Assistant Chief of Police for several years before moving to XXX County. After the funeral, the Sheriff & "My friends" Dad gave me his badge, shoulder patch and duty weapon, the one he was shot with. I received the pistol after the trial was held.

When the “L” frames first came out as a medium sized pistol, the grips were from the smaller “K” frame. "My friend" had bigger hands, like mine and changed the grips out for a “N” frame set (over-sized).
He had “tuned” the weapon for ease of operation and was still “tinkering” on it when he was shot.
The hunting season before he was shot (fall 1985), while we were hunting close to Eldorado, Texas, he shot a 8 point buck with this weapon using 158 grain semi-wad cutter. One shot, through the heart and the deer dropped on the spot.
In the 25 or so years since I have had this gun, except to clean it, I have never taken it out of the safe.
When he died, I was given his duty pistol, a Marlin .357 Magnum Lever Action Rifle he used as a “door gun” on his patrol car (passed on to Grandson #1) and a Smith and Wesson “Survival” knife (passed on to Grandson #2). These and the Pistol (passed on to Son-in Law Mr Fixit) were given out on December 26, 2011 as Christmas gifts.

These were given with the understanding they should be passed on in the family and not traded, sold or given away.
I hope they are used for shooting and hunting and enjoyed as much as "My friend" and I did.

I will be changing out the over sized grips or stocks as S&W calls them as soon as I can find (or possibly make) a set I like. I'm looking for finger grooved combat stocks for a square butt K frame if any of you have some just laying around. I'm looking for some nice wood, highly figured walnut or possibly fancy figured curly maple. Something a little dressy and not a laminate.

The gun needs a good cleaning and holster. But I am already enjoying it. I've taken it hunting, and have plans on taking some hogs with it soon.

I have already made the decision that it will go to my son who got the officers .357 Marlin lever action. It just seems like they need to be together again some day.

Random thoughts and a S&W

OK, I can't do it. Anyone looking for the plans to the play set drop me an email and I'll send a PDF copy to you. Its like 40 pages, so you were warned.

I know I haven't' been here much. Truth is some of the things I'm doing I can't tell you about, and a lot of what I can just isn't real interesting.

I did get to spend yesterday sitting in the woods. I have to say that was really nice. Getting away from people and just spending some time alone.

I'm putting this out there, looking for other opinions....

I was given a S&W revolver. My wife's real father, who she hasn't seen since she was 3 (save for meeting him last summer) had us over for Christmas to meet the grandkids. He passed out several rifles to the boys, including a cut down Krag, Remington Rolling block (#5 I think) of probable South American origin, and some lever actions. To me he gave a S&W 586, saying it had been in law enforcement. It had belonged to a friend of his, and was one of his duty weapons. He also showed me documentation that the friend died in the line of duty, being wounded by his own weapon. Yes, that one. The one he gave me.

Thoughts? Opinions?

Discuss


Mr Fixit

Help?

Ok, can anyone tell me how to make a PDF file available here on the blog?

Mr Fixit

Finally! Plans for the Playset

I'm trying to find a way to attach a PDF of the plans for the play set. I hope this comes through. If it doesn't, give me some time to figure out how.

Oh, and advice on how to do it would not be amiss.

Mr Fixit

**Edit: Didn't show up. working.........

Responsibly armed

I found this, written by the late Finn AAgard many years ago.  It was hosted, possibly even written for the The Texas State Rifle Association website.  I had found it and printed a copy to hang inside my locker at the fire station.

I thought about it again off and on and decided to print it again, timeless as it is.  Unfortunatly, the TSRA seems to no longer have it posted.  I found it online and decided to post it here in the hope that these well written words would never be lost for those that look for them.

Responsibly Armed

by Finn Aagard

I carry my pistol always, whenever the law permits, inside or outside the house; at night it goes under my pillow, where I have slept with one on and off for 45 years. Am I utterly paranoid, do I feel that evil out to get me is lurking everywhere, am I so ruled by fear that I must have my security blanket at all times?

No. To think so would be to completely misunderstand the role of the personal gun in my life. My pistol, combined with some competence in its use, has indeed been a wonderful comfort in a few potentially unpleasant circumstances, and the knowledge I can retain command of my immediate environment does tend to encourage a calm self-confidence in everyday life, while precluding panic in an emergency.

The chief virtue of the pistol is that I wear it; you do not have to go and fetch it when criminal violence threatens with shocking suddenness out of the blue, as can happen even in peaceful Llano County, Texas, where I live. If you have time to fetch a gun, you would do better to grab a shotgun, probably.

Wear your pistol; keep all other firearms locked away. On you, it is safe from kids and other unauthorized persons, you do not have to remember where you stashed it or fumble with the combination lock of a pistol safe.

It is there, instantly ready to protect you and your family. On the street concealed carry is usually required either by law or social usage and has the advantage of protecting everyone, even antigun liberals, because criminals cannot tell which of their potential victims might be armed.

Yet my pistol is more than just security. Like an Orthodox Jewish yarmulke or a Christian cross, it is a symbol of who I am, what I believe, and the moral standards by which I live. It symbolizes the Social Contract between society and myself and declares that I am no mere subject but a free and independent citizen of the Republic who holds inalienable rights while honoring the responsibilities that accompany those rights.

My pistol states that I will defend the common weal, that I will uphold what is right and decent and that I am willing and able to protect myself and mine. (The police cannot and are not required to protect the individual person or family. They are spread too thin for that. When called they will do their best, but all too often they can get there only in time to clean up the aftermath. You are responsible for your own safety.)

My pistol is my family's shield, my guarantee that upon my life I will let no evil touch them. When a malefactor demands, your dignity and your money, or your life!" my pistol introduces a very sobering third alternative: No - if you persist in this criminal endeavor, it is your life that will be at hazard."

Many people will suggest that the contents of your wallet are not worth jeopardizing your life for, just hand it over to the thug and move on. By doing so you are encouraging crime - success ensures the robber will seek another victim. I consider it to be a citizen's duty (a hard word to the me generation) to resist attempted violent crime by all means at his disposal, even at considerable risk to himself.

Remember, action is always faster than reaction (unless your assailant has the reaction time of a Bill Jordan). Dissemble, pretend to go along. 'I don't w-w-want any trouble, you can have my wallet, I'm getting it out of my hip pocket now.' As your hand closes on your gun, yell: "Look out, behind you!"

Side step as you present the pistol, and when he turns back your front sight rests squarely on his chest. With variations to suit the particular circumstances, this sort of ploy will work far more often than most victims would believe.

Statistics suggest that an intended victim who resists with a firearm is by a good margin less likely to be injured than one who does not resist at all. On the other hand, the surest way to survive a gunfight is not to get into one. Stay alert and avoid potentially bad situations if you possibly can.

Research by Professor John Lott, Gary Kleck and others into the effects of concealed carry laws prove beyond quibbling that they reduce violent crime quite considerably. Since it began to license responsible citizens to carry arms, Florida's murder rate has sunk from 36 percent above the national average to well below it, and overall the decline in violent crime in states with concealed carry laws (compared to the others) runs at least 15 percent for murder, II percent for robberies and 9 percent for rape, according to Professor Lott.

Private citizens are said to use firearms in self-defense as often as a million times a year. In the vast majority of these incidents no blood is shed; the thug flees or surrenders. Nevertheless, it is claimed that [armed] private citizens justifiably [stop] twice as many criminals as the entire law enforcement establishment in any given year.

Obviously, an armed and responsible citizenry is a very potent force in keeping crime in check. In many nations where private citizens are denied firearms - as most recently in Australia - violent crime is on the upswing, whereas in the U.S. the rate is declining.

However, the right to be armed does not depend on these facts; it goes way back to our very beginnings. Long before the Second Amendment and the rights acknowledged by English Common Law traditions, the right of a free man to bear arms was recognized by almost every culture or civilization that comes to mind.

Until well into this sorry century, free men were armed, and like the yeomen of England and our own militia, they constituted the backbone of their societies.

Every right includes commitments, not least the right to bear arms. Anyone who carries a pistol in public has an obligation to society to be reasonably competent with it, able to hit his target - under stress - rather than uninvolved bystanders; he must know and abide by the laws limiting the use of lethal force; he must avoid quarrels and altercations and understand that he will be held to higher standards of restraint and responsibility than an unarmed person.

The course of instruction that is rightly required (in addition to background checks) in order to earn a Texas Concealed Handgun License teaches all this, and more, including conflict resolution. Passing a shooting test is mandatory, but the class does not include shooting instruction; you are expected to have arranged for adequate training beforehand. It is a fine course; anybody who intends to go armed ought to take a similar one.

My pistol has aided no evil; it has added not a title of gratuitous violence to the world. On the contrary, its presence on my hip or on the Land Rover seat very definitely defused a couple of dangerous situations in the old days in Kenya.

More recently, on a dark street, I am convinced the mere suspicion of its presence, engendered by my alert, confident demeanor, averted what could otherwise have been a nasty incident. Colt got it right; a pistol in the hands of a decent, courageous citizen is a convincing peacemaker.

My pistol is a positive influence for stability, for decency, for righteousness, for freedom from fear and violence, for all that is right and proper. (If anyone can present a rational argument that factually disproves this statement, I will discard the gun and never carry it again.)

One's self-image matters a great deal; it is what charts one's course through life. If I refuse to compromise my integrity, my self-respect and what the Founding Fathers referred to as their sacred honor, it is because my image of myself will not permit it. Self-images are complex, of course.

Basically I see myself as a sound and responsible citizen, a scrupulously law-abiding, friendly, reasonable, middle-class, normally intelligent and fairly well educated paterfamilias with some understanding of true values who has been blessed beyond his deserts in this life and is truly grateful.

At the very root and foundation of my being, though, I am a warrior - a very mild one, but a warrior nevertheless - as any man must be to some degree. My pistol symbolizes that as such I will not be coerced by fear or by any political, social or physical threats whatsoever into doing anything I consider dishonorable or unworthy of my self-respect.

You can push me only so far, but no farther. It symbolizes the positive side of the warrior spirit, which is the one force that can maintain respect for the law, stability, freedom, peace, and decency in this world. Without it we are done.

Warriors and hunters tend to be fascinated by fine personal arms and will often cherish one above all others, far beyond its utility as a tool. That is why embellished firearms are commonplace, while engraved carpenter's hammers are not.

I dote on my Colt Officer's ACP carry gun, and delight in its presence on my hip. Now do you begin to understand what my pistol means to me?

Be that as it may, our body of armed citizens has always been a potent force for law and order, liberty and all that is good in the land. If we allow the hoplophobic left to destroy it on an emotional whim, to make themselves 'feel good,' or in accordance with their unrealistic and failed political philosophy, we will come to rue the day.